Love & Death

Editors’ Notes Ebo Taylor was a star of highlife and Afrobeat in Ghana throughout the ‘70s, but his 2010 international debut launched him to global renown. On Love & Death, he’s backed by members of Berlin’s Afrobeat Academy band, who gamely tackle elaborate horn riffs amid subtle interplays of drums and bass on “Victory” and “Nga Nga.” The instrumental “Kwame” unfurls with a beautiful guitar lead, while the title track is a haunting remake of a Taylor classic about love’s agonies.