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Extract of Amtha Kol’s Kuede video-music, addressing the topic of risks of sexual libertinism.
In the title KuedeAmtha Kol keeps intact her sense of humour in addressing the topic of risks of sexual debauchery.

This afro-jazz gospel song called Kuede, written composed and beautifully performed by Amtha Kol, appears on the first track of her 8 title album Surprise.

The recording of Kuede, performed in Ewe-Mina Guen language of Ghana, Togo and the Republic of Benin, dates back to 2002. However, the song does not seem to have taken the slightest wrinkle as its contents remain highly topical.

In the title KuedeAmtha Kol keeps intact her sense of humour in addressing the topic of risks of sexual debauchery.

This afro-jazz gospel song called Kuede, written composed and beautifully performed by Amtha Kol, appears on the first track of her 8 title album Surprise.

The recording of Kuede, performed in Ewe-Mina Guen language of Ghana, Togo and the Republic of Benin, dates back to 2002. However, the song does not seem to have taken the slightest wrinkle as its contents remain highly topical.

Amtha Kol uses the full power of her teaching skills, with smile and one can guess her proximity with the medical world

In this song, Amtha Kol gives us with talent and tact, the full control and mastery of her sense of humour, as she well knows how to do it. Yet she challenges us directly on often difficult issues of social life. She addresses here, in an original way, the thorny public health issues raised by moral depravity and some of the bigger risks relating to sexual libertinism, that is to say, the behaviour of men or women who have very desultory habits, people who indulge without restraint to the pleasures of the flesh with all the known risks, including medical.

In this song, Amtha Kol uses the full power of her teaching skills, with smile, and to some extent we can guess the proximity of the singer song-writter with the medical world, namely through her husband, who happens to be a medical doctor.

Great art in a truly subtle style

But the style of the song doesn’t sound tedious, quite the contrary. One smiles a lot throughout her song because her work rarely leaves the audience indifferent. Amtha Kol uses storytelling techniques that are similar to those of cartoons. In fact, it is all about, sung lyrics directly inherited from the deepest sources of African villagers’ narrative techniques of storytelling.

Thus, in this Amtha Kol’s song, sexually transmitted diseases such as Hiv-Aids and gonorrhea are no more scholarly laboratory abstractions but they suddenly come to life and become little characters, as human as you and me or like Walt Dysney’s little Mickey Mouse.

They keep a close watch on us and are vigilantly waiting for you at the street corner, ready to fire on you, if you continue your journey on that path of sexual debauchery,

the song says.

Throw it all away like dirty washing water!

The word Kuede, which stands for the title of the song, is an expression in Guen Ewe-Mina language of Ghana, Togo and Republic of Benin, which can be translated as:

Reject this behaviour quickly, throw it all away like dirty washing or laundry water!"

The song says, in summary:

Hey, Boy! You, Girl! You bad little Guys,
How yobbo and rascal can you be!

Since you've got married, this is a solemn commitment you must not fail to honourd.
Cherish your love one!
You just can't go on getting out at night, in the greatest secrecy through the back-door, trough that hole made by pigs in the compound hedge.

You girls and young men, even you, full-grown father of many, can you hear me? Throw all those habits away before they destroy you. Throw them like dirty washing water.

Because Mr Hiv-Aids and Mrs Gonorrhea are keeping a close eye on you, over there, at the street corner. What kind of profit does it bring you, playing the "wild dog?"

Sexual debauchery or libertinism can destroy a whole life!

Jacques Bolognesi, made the arrangements of Amtha Kol's Kuede.

Jazz artist Jacques Bolognesi, a great adventure as professionally as friendly

The arrangements of Amtha Kol’s song Kuede were made by the multi-instrumentalist jazz artist Jacques Bolognesi, who also excels at trombone, piano and accordion.

It's this great name that the Director of Caravane d’Afrique, Amtha Kol, is preparing to receive, as Guest of Honour of for the great concert, scheduled for 7th June 2014..
It's this great name that the Director of Caravane d’Afrique, Amtha Kol, is preparing to receive, as Guest of Honour of for the great concert, scheduled for 7th June 2014.

He has an exceptional sense of accompaniment that made him as one of the most highly sought luxury collaborators by the greatest artists. Jacques Bolognesi has all the place he deserves in the French musical output of the early twenty-first century. In 2004 he worked as a composer, arranger and performer with the famous French author Pierre Louki, a great adventure as professionally as friendly.

Jacques Bolognesi is seen professionally alongside Claude "Dino" Cagnasso, Ivan Jullien, Claude Bolling, Vladimir Cosma, Hubert Rostaing, Art Taylor, André Hodeir, Azuquita, avec Magma, Maurice Vander, Steckar Tubapack, Pierre Michelot, François Jeanneau, Tochiko Akiyoshi, Paul Simon, Don Costa, Lalo Schiffrin, Elton John, Claude Nougaro, Sacha Distel, Nilda Fernandez, to name a few.

Since he participated in the famous series “Paris Musette” (Label La Lichère – over 100 000 records sold) Jacques Bolognesi has been invited by many world famous artists: guitar player Kazumi Watanabe, Césaria Evora for the recording of her CD “Cabo Verde” (Sangue de Beirona), Francoise Hardy and Blur for their common clip directed by Khalil Chahine; Ute Lemper for her show “Nomade”, and a concert tour with Michel Godard and Dave Bargeron,"

writes Benjamin Goldenstein.

It's this multi-talented great name, professionally as well as friendly, that the Director of Caravane d’Afrique, singer songwriter Amtha Kol, is preparing to receive, as Guest of Honour of the event, on 7th June 2014 for the great concert of the 4th festival edition at the Casino of Pougues-les-Eaux. 

Content of the song Kuede  translated from the Ewe Guen-Mina language by Clement R. Lawson