Musical Plate

Nigerian Jollof was made for music as was all the other Naija foods. Pepper soup in a steamy bowl congested with assorted floating and submerged edibles is best swallowed with Peacocks International Guitar band playing that guitar that makes one forget the problems of life and slurp away happily. The Eddie Quansah song drowns out the noisy eating habits of your neighbour and prevents the panic when pepper goes the wrong way and someone starts choking. ‘Bros, drink water’ someone says and passes a glass and pats him on the back. Once the danger has passed, someone else teases, ‘Your village people don start again o’.

There are some Nigerian foods that would refuse to go down the gullet without music especially if more than twenty people are present. I recall eating at a party when the music stopped and all we had was the clinking of cutlery, chewing noises, coughing and noisy conversation enveloping us with an unpleasant sound cloud and sonic drizzle. The silence was unbearable.

Love, music and food all get along fine in the Naija ecosystem. The musicians are not oblivious to this fact and the food references abound in Naija music that we all love.

Oni dodo Oni Moin moin is a Yoruba folk song that has been covered both by Fela Kuti and Sam Apkabot at different times. That song floods my mind with visions of hot rice, slices of dodo and moin moin all baptised with the sprinkling upon of hot bright red tomato stew. Dodo is one of my favourite foods and the way the song emphasises the sound dodo makes the Naija mouth water. Fresh Dodo can never keep a secret of its presence. It could be fried at the east end of the street and the smell travels through the air tormenting each house till it gets to the end of the street and dances back.

Moin moin is made from grown beans, and beans features in another Yoruba folk song that went thus:

There is oil, there is beans

I am not afraid to have twins

Because there is oil, there is beans

Now what is better that a rice and beans orchestra? The thoughts that these song evoke produce dancing vibrations in the soul.

Bunny Mack was from Sierra Leone but his monster hit, Let me love you was loved and adopted by Nigerians

You are my sweetie my sugar

My baby My lover

In my youth when I saw nothing wrong in chewing on a cube of St Louis or Tate sugar, this song struck a chord. Gone are those days of blissful ignorance when I had no Diabetic patients.

In recent times my ability to cope with spices has waned and I avoid Shito at all costs. Just looking at it in a jar takes my gastric pH southwards but I love the wonderful personal irony when I get all emotionally involved in Runtown’s Mad Over you

Ghana girl, say she wan marry me o

I hope say she sabi cook waakye

Hope your love go sweet pass shito

Hmmm, sounds like pure reflux oesophagitis love to me. Another ironic twist is from none other than the KokoMaster himself who equated his ‘hotness’ to Hot Amala to gi  a gaan gaan in the song Gbono Feli Feli.

Now I am not an amala eater but I feel good about the song till date. And sometimes when I am really feeling myself, I think, Hmmmm! African Michael Jackson! Na dem dey rush us!!

Nothing is as attractive as hot food, after all the salesmen tell us that good merchandise sells like hot cake.

Newer sounds like Solid star and Tiwa Star sing about Baby Jollof my love, you too sweet like jollof make me wonder if a girl can be sweet like Nigerian Jollof? Hmmm, expectations should be kept attainable please.

When Duncan Mighty sang in the studio with Tiwa Savage in the song  Lova Lova, I wonder if it was real love or hunger

This your love sweet, Ofada Rice

Nne you too Sweet like a Yam Porridge.

Now to the elephant in the room. You cannot go four songs on any Naija play list without thinking all music recording studios in Nigeria are located on a plantation or on Banana Island. There is an epidermic of Banana references which risks flooding the ears with Potassium. This phase will pass hopefully and I am not a big fan of Banana music. Well I used to be when Dan I recorded Monkey Chop.

It was a big hit in the seventies and the chorus was everywhere

Monkey come chop Banana. I still don’t  understand the song till now.

But when it comes to love songs and food, the best example is down to the KokoMaster ; Dbanj

When to Kokomaster fall in love

You know say water don pass Garri

My sweet Potato

I wanna tell you my mind

My Sugar banana

As I don get you if I say make I hammer

I am not quite sure what the recipe for sugar banana is but I guess the KokoMaster has some form of Gastronomic Immunity and artistic licence in that kitchen of his.

There is no doubt that music can affect our emotional states and modify our food seeking behaviour especially in groups. In parties with very good DJs people dance for hours and the drinks and food always run out. Fast paced music ‘gingers’ people up and they in turn expend more energy, sweat more and drink more. Even when eating alone, I then to play some music. Listening to the humming of the fridge or electric generator and air conditioners (depending on which country I am in) is bad for eating. On flights that depressing white noise that aircraft engines give of is replaced with the inflight entertainment. The meals are usually just nothing to fly home about but I guess that is why everyone is given ear phones at the beginning of the flight.

In all matters of the stomach, just as it is with love, ambience is paramount. And the quickest way to set the mood is via music.

If music be the food of love, play on;
Give me excess of it, that, surfeiting,
The appetite may sicken, and so die.