March 30, 2009

Femi Kuti - Africa Shrine


Band/artist - Femi Kuti
Genre(s) - Afrobeat (jazz, world music)
Origin - Nigeria
Album - Africa shrine
Year of release - 2004

...and now for something completely different. Afrobeat is an amalgam of jazz, rock, and African traditional music. Very uplifting music to say the least, and much more structured than regular jazz - it even has choruses, and catchy ones they are too! Tribal percussion is coupled to Western instruments like guitars, sax and Hammond organ, but still with characteristic African melodies
. As you may have guessed, Femi is the eldest son of the famous Fela Kuti, and has stepped into his father's footsteps as a saxophonist and activist. He blows a mean sax and has a strong, proud voice. He also shares his father's radical democratic, pan-African viewpoints that are being expressed clearly through the lyrics as a call for all Africans to step up to the plate and help build a self-sufficient, self-determining Africa. This live album was recorded in Nigeria and is hard not to enjoy: it crackles with energy and breathes the spirit of the continent. It paints you a picture, and then I don't mean of the wide plains drowning in sunset with giraffes striding along the horizon, but of a people, struggling for survival in a world wrecked by colonialism.
  1. Intro
  2. Dem bobo
  3. Oyimbo
  4. I wanna be free
  5. If them want to hear
  6. Eho
  7. 1, 2, 3, 4
  8. Yeparipa
  9. Can't buy me
  10. Bring me the man now
  11. '97
  12. Intro to Shotan
  13. Shotan
  14. Water no get enemy
Load it down (62.10 MB)

1 comment:

  1. There is also a DVD of the performance which has interviews and assorted other clips.

    I'm looking forward to seeing him live on his next tour.

    ReplyDelete