Mike Falana (died c. 1995) was a Nigerian jazz trumpeter and musician of the

highlife Highlife is a Ghanaian music genre that originated along the coastal cities of present-day Ghana in the 19th century, during its Gold Coast (region), history as a colony of the British and through its trade routes in coastal areas. It encompasse ...

genre. He was a member of several groups in the 1960s that included well-known musicians, such as the African Messengers, the Johnny Burch Octet, the Graham Bond Organization and

the Ramong Sound The Ramong Sound was a British R&B, soul and ska band, active from 1965 to 1966. Background The Ramong Sound was a London-based outfit, that featured two black lead singers doing Sam & Dave styled duets, one of them being Raymond Morrison (ak ...

. He achieved a level of stardom in the early 1960s.

Background

According to the book ''Kay Thompson from Funny Face to Eloise'' by Sam Irvin, Mike Falana was a thirteen year old prodigy who could play like

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th century music, 20th-century music. Davis ado ...

. It was then that he was discovered by

Lionel Hampton Lionel Leo Hampton (April 20, 1908 – August 31, 2002) was an American jazz vibraphonist, percussionist, and bandleader. He worked with jazz musicians from Teddy Wilson, Benny Goodman, and Buddy Rich, to Charlie Parker, Charles Mingus, an ...

who was over in Lagos on a cultural arts exchange. In the 1950s, Falana was a soloist with the Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation (NBC) Dance Orchestra which had

Fela Sowande Chief Olufela Obafunmilayo "Fela" Sowande MBE (29 May 1905 – 13 March 1987) was a Nigerian musician and composer. Considered the father of modern Nigerian art music, Sowande is perhaps the most internationally known African composer of works ...

and

Steve Rhodes Steven John Rhodes (born 17 June 1964) is an English cricket coach and former cricketer. He was the former coach of the Bangladesh national cricket team. He was best known as a wicket-keeper, but was also a useful number six or seven batsman, ...

as the musical directors on various occasions. He was a member of the African Messengers who also had Bayo Martins, Peter King, Humphrey Okoh and Paul Edoh in the line up. The group had a hit with "Highlife Piccadilly" and in 1964, they were winners at the World International Jazz Contest in Switzerland. In addition to appearing at clubs and festivals, the ensemble had provided backing for The Four Tops, The Temptations and Diana Ross. Falana, credited as Mike Fellana was a member of the group Chicago Line aka Chicago Line Blues Band who released the single "Shimmy Shimmy Ko-Ko Bop" / "Jump Back" in 1966. The line up included

Louis Cennamo Louis David Cennamo (born 5 March 1946) is an English bass guitarist, who has recorded and/or toured with a number of important British rock/blues/progressive bands, including The Herd, Renaissance and Colosseum. Career Cennamo left school at ...

Mike Patto Mike Patto (born Michael Thomas McCarthy, 22 September 1942 – 4 March 1979) was an English musician, who was primarily notable as lead singer for Spooky Tooth, Patto and Boxer. Background Patto was born in Cirencester, England, and first b ...

Tim Hinkley Timothy Alan Hinkley (25 May 1946 – 21 August 2024) was an English singer-songwriter, keyboardist and record producer. Born in London, Hinkley started playing in youth club bands in the early 1960s, with bands including the Copains, Boys and ...

Viv Prince Vivian Martin Prince (born 9 August 1941) is an English drummer. He played in a variety of bands during the 1960s, including Pretty Things. He was noted for his wild and eccentric behaviour, which garnered a lot of publicity for the group and in ...

and Falana. He was the fourth member of the

Graham Bond Organisation The Graham Bond Organisation (GBO) were a British blues/blues rock group of the mid-1960s consisting of Graham Bond (vocals, keyboards, alto-saxophone), Jack Bruce (bass), Ginger Baker (drums), Dick Heckstall-Smith (tenor/soprano saxophone) a ...

, replacing

Jack Bruce John Symon Asher Bruce (14 May 1943 – 25 October 2014) was a Scottish musician. He gained popularity as the primary lead vocalist and ‍bassist ‍of Rock music, rock band Cream (band), Cream. After the group disbanded in 1968, he pursued a ...

. He was described by

Dick Heckstall-Smith Richard Malden Heckstall-Smith (26 September 1934 – 17 December 2004) was an English jazz and blues saxophonist. He played with some of the most influential English blues rock and jazz fusion bands of the 1960s and 1970s. He is known for pr ...

as a "diminutive well-dressed Nigerian from a rich Lagos family" and one "who had a wonderful attitude to Britain in its seamier aspects". Heckstall-Smith also said he was a "wonderful trumpet player". In later years Falana as well as Nigerian Jazz singer,

Maud Meyer Maud Meyer was a Sierra Leonean Nigerian jazz singer who rose to prominence during the 1950s. She was born in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, in Nigeria. From an early age, Meyer was exposed to music and had learnt from her mother who had a band. Music ...

received posthumous awards for their jazz contributions. Falana was one of the well-known African musicians who headed towards Europe to further their careers.

Career

1960s

;1960 to 1962 Mike Falana appeared at the AMSAC organized festival in December 1961 which was held in Lagos, Nigeria. US-artists such as

Nina Simone Nina Simone ( ; born Eunice Kathleen Waymon; February 21, 1933 – April 21, 2003) was an American singer, pianist, songwriter, and civil rights activist. Her music spanned styles including classical, folk, gospel, blues, jazz, R&B, and po ...

, Odetta, Randy Weston, Michael Olatunji, Langston Hughes, and Lionel Hampton were part of it. Falana was incorrectly billed as Mike Falani. Along with fellow Nigerian musicians; saxophonist Bobby Benson, trumpeters Zeal Onyia and Chief Bill Friday, Falana played with closing act Lionel Hampton on his signature tune, "Flying Home". Unfortunately for Hampton the tune didn't go down well with the audience as did the rest of his appearance. In 1962 Falana arrived in London and started work straight away. He was working as part of the house band at The Establishment which was co-owned by

Peter Cook Peter Edward Cook (17 November 1937 – 9 January 1995) was an English comedian, actor, satirist, playwright and screenwriter. He was the leading figure of the British satire boom of the 1960s, and he was associated with the anti-establishmen ...

. ;1963 Now as part of the UK group the Johnny Burch Octet, Falana participated in a live broadcast for the BBC which was recorded in March 1963. The musical selections performed by the ensemble included "Moanin’", " Early In the Morning", "All Members", " I Remember Clifford", "Going Up North", "Nightwalk" and "Del Sasser". While with the Octet, Mike Falana was at a reception at the Mayfair Hotel. While there he was photographed by

Val Wilmer Valerie Sybil Wilmer (born 7 December 1941) is a British photographer and writer specialising in jazz, gospel, blues, and British African-Caribbean music and culture. Her notable books include ''Jazz People'' (1970) and ''As Serious As Your Life ...

. The photograph had him with Sammy Davis, Jnr. and Davis' MD George Rhodes. The photo and caption appeared in the May 1963 edition of ''Crescendo'' magazine. In early August 1963, Falana, billed a solo act was appearing at the

Klooks Kleek Klooks Kleek was a jazz and rhythm 'n’ blues club on the first floor of the Railway Hotel, West Hampstead, north-west London. Named after "Klook's Clique", a 1956 album by jazz drummer Kenny Clarke (Savoy Records 12006), the club opened on 11 ...

on the same night as

Brian Auger and the Trinity Brian Auger and the Trinity was a British band led by keyboardist Brian Auger. His duet with Julie Driscoll, the Bob Dylan/ Rick Danko– penned " This Wheel's on Fire", was a number 5 hit on the 1968 UK Singles Chart. The song also reache ...

and the Tony Baylis Quartet. And on Thursday he was the featured musician with the John Williams Big Band at the Acton in High Street. On Saturday August 3rd he was appearing at the Marquee as the featured artist with the Joe Harriott Quintet, and on Sunday August 4th he was appearing at the same venue as the featured artist with the John Williams Big Band. Also that month Falana was the star soloist with the John Williams Big Band at the National Jazz Festival in Richmond. The review of the band's appearance was by ''Crescendo''. The reviewer made a comment about Falana's phrasing being in the Miles Davis vein. ;1964 Falana came no. 3 in the British section, New Star section of the 1964 ''

Melody Maker ''Melody Maker'' was a British weekly music magazine, one of the world's earliest music weeklies; according to its publisher, IPC Media, the earliest. In January 2001, it was merged into "long-standing rival" (and IPC Media sister publicatio ...

'' Readers Jazz Poll. Falana was a member of the African Messengers. He co-led with alto-saxophonist Peter King on the group's recordings. In mid-May, they appeared at the Marquee, playing to an audience of more than six hundred. At the time the line-up included Humphrey Akoh on alto sax, Peter King on tenor sax, Falana on trumpet, Happy Williams on electric bass, Dick Rushton on piano, Paul Edoh on congas, and James Meane on drums. Vocalist Mel Turner performed with them and one song they did, "Work Song" managed to get an enthusiastic participation from the audience. That year the group had their first single "Highlife Piccadilly" bw "Blues For Messengers" released on the

Carnival Carnival (known as Shrovetide in certain localities) is a festive season that occurs at the close of the Christian pre-Lenten period, consisting of Quinquagesima or Shrove Sunday, Shrove Monday, and Shrove Tuesday or Mardi Gras. Carnival typi ...

label.. According to ''Melody Maker'' in the magazine's May 30 issue, Falana (spelt Mike Fellana), Mose Allison, the Jazz Crusaders, Chris Barber, the Staples Singers and The Yardbirds had been invited to the International Jazz Days festival. Also that year, an episode (one of the earliest) of ''London Line'' featured Nigerian parish priest, the Reverend Ogundura in the UK and a music item by Falana and the African Messengers. ;1965 to 1969 In 1966 and as a member of

, he played at the Ram Jam Club on June 30, and the Farnboroug College of Technology on July 2, the Corn Exchange on July 26, the Manor House on July 29, the Atalanta ballroom on August 1 and various other venues. For a period of time he was in

The Ramong Sound The Ramong Sound was a British R&B, soul and ska band, active from 1965 to 1966. Background The Ramong Sound was a London-based outfit, that featured two black lead singers doing Sam & Dave styled duets, one of them being Raymond Morrison (ak ...

, a group fronted by

Raymond Morrison The Ramong Sound was a British R&B, soul and ska band, active from 1965 to 1966. Background The Ramong Sound was a London-based outfit, that featured two black lead singers doing Sam & Dave styled duets, one of them being Raymond Morrison (ak ...

and

Clem Curtis Clem Curtis (born Curtis Clements; 28 November 1940 – 27 March 2017) was a Trinidadian British singer, who was the original lead vocalist of sixties soul group the Foundations. Background Early life Born in Trinidad as Curtis Clements, he a ...

. When Morrison was forced to depart due to legal matters,

Arthur Brown Arthur Brown may refer to: Entertainment * Arthur William Brown (1881–1966), Canadian commercial artist * H. Arthur Brown (1906–1992), American orchestral conductor * Arthur Brown (musician) (born 1942), English rock singer * Arthur Brown, ...

came in for a brief spell. It would eventually evolve into

The Foundations The Foundations were a British soul band who were primarily active between 1967 and 1970. The group's background was West Indian, White British and Sri Lankan. Their 1967 debut single " Baby Now That I've Found You" reached number one in the ...

. By the time the group had a hit with "

Baby, Now That I've Found You "Baby, Now That I've Found You" is a song written by Tony Macaulay and John Macleod, and performed by the Foundations. Part of the song was written in the same bar of a Soho tavern where Karl Marx is supposed to have written ''Das Kapital''. The ...

", Falana and Brown etc. were no longer in the group.

1970s

Falana played on Peter King's ''

Shango Shango (Yoruba language: Ṣàngó, also known as Changó or Xangô in Latin America; as Jakuta or Badé; and as Ṣangó in Trinidad Orisha) is an Orisha (or spirit) in Yoruba religion. Genealogically speaking, Shango is a royal ancestor of th ...

'' album which was recorded in 1974. The other musicians were Humphrey Okoh on alto sax, David Williams on bass, Paul Edoh on congas, James Menin on drums, Arthur Simon on guitar, and Peter King on sax and flute. The album remained unreleased for decades.

Later years

In July, 2013 ''All About Jazz'' published their review the ''Wade in the Water: Classics, Origins and Oddities'' by The Graham Bond Organization. Falana's solo work on "St. James Infirmary" was mentioned with reviewer Duncan Heining referring to it as a "beautifully nuanced version". Falana's played on about twenty of the tracks. An article about Mike Falana by

appeared in the June 2019 issue of ''

The Wire ''The Wire'' is an American Crime fiction, crime Drama (film and television), drama television series created and primarily written by the American author and former police reporter David Simon for the cable network HBO. The series premiered o ...

''.

Death

According to jazz musician and historian Anote Ajeluorou, Mike Falana had health issues and died abroad. It is believed that he died in 1995.

References

External links

* Discogs
Mike Falana
* Many Fantastic Colors
on Hiseman, Graham Bond, Dick Heckstall-Smith, Mike Falana (pictured)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Falana, Mike The Graham Bond Organisation members Johnny Burch Octet members The African Messengers members 20th-century Nigerian musicians The Ramong Sound members Chicago Line (band) members Nigerian jazz musicians Highlife musicians 20th-century trumpeters Jazz trumpeters People from Lagos Musicians from Lagos