John Collins came to Ghana in 1952 and has been involved in the West African music scene since 1969. He has worked, recorded and played with numerous Ghanaian and Nigerian bands; the Jaguar Jokers, Francis Kenya, E.T. Mensah, Abladei, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, Koo Nimo, Kwaa Mensah, Victor Uwaifo, Bob Pinodo, the Bunzus, the Black Berets and T.O.Jazz. In the 1970's he ran his own Bokoor highlife guitar band which released twenty songs and since 1982 has been running Bokoor Recording Studio based eight miles north of Accra which has released nine records and sixty commercial cassettes.
Collins is also a music journalist and writer with around 100 publications (including seven books) on African popular and neo-traditional music. He has given many radio and television broadcasts, including over 40 for the BBC. In 1978 he wrote and presented the BBC's first-ever series of radio programs on African popular music called `In The African Groove'.
Collins has been consultant/facilitator for several documentary films: including the BBC's `Repercussions', `Brass Unbound' by IDTV of Amsterdam, `The Highlife Story' for Ghana Broadcasting, `Highlife' for German Huschert Realfilm, `African Cross Rhythms' by the Danish Loki Films, `When the Moment Sings' by the Norwegian Visions On company, `Ghanaian Art Music' by Bavarian TV and `Astronaut' music-video film for Palm Pictures/Island Records.
Collins obtained his first degree (sociology and archaeology)from the University of Ghana and his Doctorate in Ethnomusicology at the State University of New York at Buffalo. He was on the Executive of the Ghana Musicians Union in the 1970's and, together with Professor J.H.K. Nketia and Koo Nimo, was made an honorary life-member of the International Association for the Study of Popular Music (IASPM in 1987. During the nineties Prof. Collins was Technical Director of the three-year joint Universities of Ghana/Mainz African Music Redocumentation Project, and for seven years was with the Ghana National Folklore Board of Trustees/Copyright Administration.
Currently, Collins is running his Bokoor Studio as a mobile studio. He is the Acting Chairman of the Bokoor African Popular Music Archives Foundation (BAPMAF), which has a permanent Highlife Photo Exhibition at his house in Accra. He is PRO for the Ghana Music Pioneers Association and on the editorial board of the journal of Professor Nketia's International Centre for African Music and Dance (ICAMD). He is also a Associate Professor at the Music Department of the University of Ghana, Legon, from where he directs several highlife bands; including Electro-Griot (guitar, harmonica and Ghanaian harp-lute), Local Dimension (a highlife dance band), T.O. Jazz, and the Palmwine Band (an unplugged acoustic highlife band).
Bokoor House, Box 391
Achimota
Accra jcollins@ug.edu.gh
