Seun Kuti at Central Park

"FELA LIVES"

We could go on for pages about why Fela Kuti was such a towering figure in music and in the world.  He absolutely deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as Marley, Dylan, Lennon.  Or as Mos Def once said: "Fela Anikulapo Kuti was James Brown, Huey Newton, Rick James, Bob Marley, Duke Ellington, and ODB all rolled up in one black African fist.  The protest artist as a real live, awake and hungry human being.  Africa's original rock superstar."

But of course words mean nothing compared to hearing that blistering Afrobeat groove.  And experiencing it live is something else altogether.  Fela's shows at his nightclub in Nigeria were legendary sweat-soaked marathons, and he toured the States in the late 80s/early 90s -- but we were both pretty young then and not in-the-know.

Which is probably why the show at Central Park felt so special.  It was as close as we could possibly get to the real thing -- the same smoking band, Egypt 80, now led by Fela's youngest son Seun.

Our friend and guest photographer Eric really captured (in the pictures above and below) how Seun was channeling his father.

Goodies: "Many Things" is our fave song from the brand new debut album by Seun Kuti & Egypt 80.

Comments

[ep]

that show was on fire!

afterwards, i netflixed some live dvds of Fela and Femi to continue my Kuti experience. i think Seun comes closer to the patriarch's intensity (it doesn't hurt having daddy's band). his sound is more raw than Femi's. i did appreciate Femi's vibe and philosophy of music, as shared in the film ("Live at the Shrine").

i like that Mos Def quote.

thanks for sharing a few of the pics. your readers can see the full set at http://eperl.myphotoalbum.com/view_album.php?set_albumName=album06

[JO]

Wow! Those are phenomenal photos! And I love that quote by Mos Def. What's he been up to lately?

I'm not as familiar with some of the great African artists as I obviously should be. There are a lot of songs and artists I've enjoyed, but I need to learn more about artists like Fela. You've given me a terrific research project!

As always, thanks for the brand new "Musical Biscuits"!

JO