A. B. Crentsil

Alfred Benjamin "A. B." Crentsil (born 1943) is a Ghanaian musician. He is one of the "big three" of contemporary Ghanaian vocalists.[1] Crentsil has won numerous Ghanaian music awards, including the Fontomfrom Evergreen Award, a special honour bestowed upon a musician with 15–20 years of continuous music experience.[2]

A. B. Crentsil
Birth nameAlfred Benjamin Crentsil Jr
Born1943 (age 77–78)
Prestea, Gold Coast (Ghana)
GenresHighlife
Websiteghanabase.com/abcrentsil

Biography

Alfred Benjamin Crentsil Jr was born in Prestea, Gold Coast (present-day Ghana), to the late Alfred Benjamin Crentsil Sr and Esi Yaaba in 1943. He was always known as AB junior until his father died in 1984, when he assumed the AB Crentsil name without the junior. His primary and middle school education was the Takoradi Methodist Primary and Rev Cleveland Middle School respectively. After his middle-school examinations, AB worked as an electrical apprentice under his father, who was Works Superintendent of the technical branch of Ghana Railways at Takoradi.

While in middle school, Crentsil was introduced to the guitar by a Mr Thedoh. Crentsil became proficient in playing guitar and started singing along when playing it. He was simultaneously working as an electrician and playing with the Strollers Band owned by one Kwesi Donkor. Crentsil has played with the El Dorados, the Sweet Talks – which latter group in the 1970s, under the joint leadership of Crentsil and Smart Nkansah, were the resident band at The Talk Of The Town Hotel in Tema, with Crentsil as lead singer[3][4] — and then finally the Ahenfo Band.

Crentsil opened a 16-track recording studio in 1990.[3] "Devil" is among his best known songs.[5]

Crentsil continues to release new albums and to win the accolades that are awarded to top musicians in Ghana. As he always says: "When burger highlife came and everybody loved it, we all joined the train because we also wanted to make some money, but one that I realized is that, highlife will always be the original form of music for Ghanaians and we will always come back to it."

Family life

Crentsil and his wife Elizabeth have eight children.

References
  1. Graham, Ronnie; Collins, John (1999). Ellingham, Mark; Duane, Orla; Dowell, Vanessa (eds.). Africa, Europe and the Middle East: Volume 1 of World Music. Rough Guides. p. 496. ISBN 978-1-85828-635-8. Retrieved May 10, 2010.
  2. Isaac Yeboah, "AB Crentsil to 'kill a fowl' over Lifetime Achievement Award", GhanaWeb, 9 May 2016.
  3. Craig Harris, A.B. Crentsil biography at AllMusic.
  4. "Sweet Talks – Party Time in Hollywood", Clear Spot.
  5. Adinkrah, Mensah (30 August 2015). Witchcraft, Witches, and Violence in Ghana. Berghahn Books. ISBN 9781782385615. Retrieved 5 July 2017 – via Google Books.
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