"Psychedelic Woman" is a 1973 Ghanaian song by Honny & the Bees Band. It was written and sung by Ernest Aubrey Honny,[1] who worked mainly as a session keyboardist and recording engineer.[2] Over a medium-tempo groove, the song begins with a spoken-word story concerning a "psychedelic woman" first spotted at a nightclub. The story ends with a transitional climax to a sung chorus of several voices. There are several more choruses, interspersed with solo singing, then a funky, jazzy electric organ solo, finishing with a brief recap of singing. Part and parcel of the
afrobeat sound then becoming popular in Ghana, influences include
reggae,
James Brown, and perhaps even Britain's
mods.[3][4]
Thirty years later it gained a new audience outside of Africa through its inclusion in multiple compilations of 1970's-era African music. Critics highlighted the song in their reviews:
"Many of the best original tracks are from the 1970s, when west African music was still largely ignored in the west, and they range from the pounding and jazzy Psychedelic Woman by Ghana's Honny and the Bees through to..." –
The Guardian[5]
"'Psychedelic Woman' is irresistible simply because it's so cheesy (but also very good)." –
Allmusic[6]
A 2005 remix by
Bonobo has itself been included on several compilations.[12][13]
A
mashup version was included on the 2011 album Ghostfunk, produced by
Max Tannone, which features a combination of afrobeat and vocal tracks by rapper
Ghostface Killah.[14][15]
^Cahill, Greg (12 June 2003).
"Getting Funky". Metroactive.
Metro Silicon Valley. Retrieved 22 April 2012. While the bands on the 14-track Ghana Soundz are wildly diverse in their own ways, they all share one thing in common: All were doin' it to death to those irrepressible down-D, funky-D James Brown funk grooves. You can hear it loud and clear in Marijata's "Mother Africa" and again on Honny and the Bees' "Psychedelic Woman"
^
abDenselow, Robin (24 August 2006).
"Sound Affects, Africa". The Guardian. Retrieved 21 February 2012.