Night at the Jazz Bar

It’s a Friday night. I am tired of the same old hangouts. It is time to move away from the peer influence to influencing peers if that will work. Tonight I am searching the entertainment map of Accra for a new place to stick a pin. Rhapsodys … overpopulated and overrated. Citizen K … overpriced, pink building and yellow pillars. I dont think so! Venus … watered down drinks and cheap sofa’s with cigarette butts protruding. What source of entertainment is left in this town?

Cell phone buzzes once, then twice before I pick up; just to make sure it wasn’t an infamous flash. My cousin asks me to join him and the other cousins at a new place he has found. I guess he was tired of chilling at Gellato, a latest attempt at reviving Osu since the Accra Mall came. My cousin being a state champion jazz percussionist, had been looking for a good jazz band for some time and had heard raving reviews of one at Aliza hotel, Ridge.

Friday night stars have more than a twinkling about them especially if you are looking forward to a swig of something alcoholic that evening. They remind you of the song lyrics “I’ve got a feeling, that tonight’s gonna be a good night…”. Tonight whichever angel was in charge of the stars has intentionally dimmed their shine. Lord give me sign!

The Jazz Bar, as it is called, was a rather plush looking lounge and bar that could hold about 50 people. Its dark red and mahogany theme gave the room an upscale and calm ambiance. The subtle blue glow emanating from the bar and the two muted plasma TV’s were out of place but the carefully arranged leather chairs and contemporary art caught the better of our attention.

As my extended family and myself ‘ooww’ed and ‘awww’ed about how well done the room was, my aunt paused to call us out on our elitist tastes. No comment. While we waited on fresh fruit punches, we took in different dimensions of the scene. I could see my aunt had quietly let her feet slide out of their sandals onto the soft carpet. Comfort and class were sitting with us.

The live band started at about 9pm, taking over from the Barry white playlist on auto DJ. The all male band was called the All Stars and represented the diversity of West Africa. They communicated in music not language and it showed throughout in both their practiced songs and their improvised sections. There was a guest performance by an apparently famous Ghanaian who played the mouth organ excellently. The lead singer, Jazz Tone, an African American, was not as impressive as the rest of the team but she held them together till the show ended at 2am. We had other plans for after twelve.

Our evening was pretty good with the exception of the late food and bill. However the attention from the waiters and managers made up for that. After the room had about 55 chairs, the manager asked them to stop bringing in chairs. In my opinion, that made for a less populated environment and allowed for more private talk. The crowd was generally of a more mature generation who probably would have appreciated it if the two young ones (my cousin and I being the only ones below 30) would give up our seats to them. Sorry man, we have rights too! The gentlemen retreated to join the two women sitting in the shadows of the room, in tight clothing and wigs. The women clutched their purses ever so tightly while they surveyed the room.

As we left the Jazz Bar, my aunt pointed out how the women at the back didnt look like they came for the music. We laughed and joked at their expense as we explored the new extension of Aliza hotel. The moon had finally decided to make a appearance that complimented the stars and lighted our way home.

On the way home, I was simply rolling the whole evening in my head when the song lyrics came back to me, “I’ve got a feeling…” My stars had plans. I could hear their silent cries. Every time they twinkled my night seemed a bit brighter. I walked into the Friday night darkness still reliving the rhythm of the bass guitar.