Atongo Zimba, born in Ghana's Bolgatanga region in 1967 gained first fame as he was for a year and a half the openingact at the Shrine shows of Fela Kuti in Lagos, Nigeria. He returned to Ghana to play at the PANAFEST (Pan African Festival of Arts and Culture) and he played and toured with great African musicians as Hugh Masekela, Manu Dibango, Osibisa, Francis Fuster, Jimmy Beckley's Afro-Jazz Combo and Angelique Kidjo, to mention just a few. Atongo recorded his first album "Allah Mongode" in 1994 in Switzerland and that same year he went on his first European tour, soon followed by a second tour, that brought Atongo to Spain and Germany. In 1996 Atongo has a special guest appearance on the Crusade album of Ghana’s most popular reggae singer Rocky Dawunin (the hitsong "Conqueror”). But Atongo worked as well in collaborations with John Collins, the world renowned musicologist. Atongo moved to London in 2003 to play in the award-winning UK production of Kwame Kwei-Armah's theatre play "Elmina's Kitchen" and performed with The Shrine Synchro System. Producer and arranger Sultan Makendé (aka Dave Yowell, co-producer of the legendary Captain Yaba album, recorded in 2004 for Hippo Records the album that gained Atonga Zimba the international recognition he deserved: Savannah Breeze. This Afro-fusionalbum was lauched at the 2005 Womad festival. It caught the attention of DJ Rita Ray and Savannah Breeze got great exposure on BBC's "Africa On Your Street." Savannah Breeze moves effortlessly through a variety of grooves. At the moment Atongo's version of the polka classic "No Beer In Heaven" was a major hit in Ghana, he made an European Savannah Breeze-tour, filmed by Kingsley K. Ottopah and released on a that great DVD. The release of his new album "Barefoot in the Sand" was followed with the nomination cd of the year 2007. At the moment there is another documentary in the make about this Great Ghanian Singing Star, to be released in 2009. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.