1956-2023

Victor Derban Mensah, born in 1956, died in London on June 29, 2023, at the age of 67. To those who knew him, even before his Adisadel College days in Cape Coast where he played the guitar, harmonica, keyboards and bass with bands in and outside of the school, through to the countless projects he worked on in England, Vico, as most people called him, was a genius.
An intensely admired musician, his impact on the African music scene in London was huge. Apart from playing with bands like Osibisa,  African Dawn, Taxi Pata Pata, Trouble Dat, This Is It and the Bessa Band,  his recording studio at Stoke Newington was an exciting creative hub and a friendly, open house for Ghanaian and African artists.
Musicians who passed through to catch up on the latest news and musical vibes or work with Vico on a variety of music-related projects included Ben Brako, Pat Thomas,  Kwame Yeboah, Kari Bannerman, Paulina Oduro, Joe Osei, Francis Fuster and  Jewel Ackah.
Others were Jon K , Nii Noi Nortey, Bessa Simons, Ray Allen, Ray Carless, Paul Dawson, Emmanuel Rentzos, Musa Mboob, Kwesi Owusu, Kofi Adu and Paul Bilson.
His flexibility on the musical landscape meant he was many things to many musicians and he helped some of them find their feet and bloom. His massive influence is inextricable from the successful careers of several Ghanaian musicians on both the local and London music scene.

Vico also played bass for Bessa Simon’s Bessa Band at a time.  When Bessa later worked with Osibisa and the Afro-rock band needed a bass player at a point in time, he readily recommended Vico who fitted perfectly into the set- up.
One of Vico’s long-term collaborators on the artistic front in London was his friend from Adisadel College and fellow Tema guy, Kwesi Owusu. As bubbly teenagers interested in all the music and artistic ventures going on in Harbour City, they hobnobbed with all the top musicians and those who really mattered on the Tema entertainment scene.
That meant they were regulars at venues like Talk of the Town, El Paso, Top Hat and Club Faliesa during the college holidays. They also formed a student band that performed at one of the Anansekrom music competitions at the Arts Centre in Accra.
Apart from jointly working on the soundtrack for the Ama film directed by Owusu and Nii Kwate Owoo, Vico got involved with stage and screen acting as well. He was in the short film called Love in a Cold Climate and in a stage production titled The Trial  of Dedan Kimathi directed by the famous Ngugi wa Thiongo from Kenya.
Vico will always be remembered for his passion for cooking. He liked people to feel at home whenever they visited. He insisted and almost always cooked for his guests.

Reference: Tribute, 2023