We're taking a well-deserved weekend break after "the horror, the horror..." of 3 Days of the Carlos, but we had a Fela Kuti DVD that must have slipped through the cracks, so here's one more addition to the collection. As always, enjoy!
From the DVD biography:
The maverick Nigerian singer, composer and saxophonist who fused rock with African rhythms into a blend known as "Afrobeat" and popularized it around the world, died in Lagos, Nigeria on August 2, 1997 at the age of 58.
Known to his fans as "Fela," he rose to national and international fame with his distinctive Afrobeat music and his criticism of Nigeria's military goernment, and for his bohemian lifestle. Known for openly smoking marijuana, dressing only in his underpants and his social promiscuity, Fela was a legend among his fans.
Fela, one of the dominant superstars of African music in the 190s and 1980s, recorded more than 50 albums.
He called his music Afrobeat, his hypnotic blend of Nigerian high-life, mixed with jazz, improv and funk vamps. He also became famous for his songs criticizing the military junta of Gen. Sani Abacha, as well as ealier military regimes in Nigeria. He was detained several ties and even imprisoned on a variety of charges.
Fela was born in Abeokuta, about 50 miles north of Lagos. He father was a priest and educator and his mother a political activist. He started out as a jazz musician but but shifted towards pop and reggae while studying at Trinity College of Music in Oxford, England, from 1959 to 1962.
He also spent time in Ghana and the United States, where he developed a strong interest in politics and civil rights. After returning to Nigeria for good in 183, he swiftly became a star.
His top albums included "Zombie," "Army Arrangement" and "Vagabond in Power." Fe;a na dis band, Afrika 70, became huge stars in Nigeria and around Africa.
He became enmesed in a long-running confrontation with military authrities because of his urging that young Nigerians become more politically active. Troops burned down his house in 1977. His political activism led to his forming a party called Movement of the People (MOP) in an attempt to form a democratic government. In 1979, Fela and his entourage of 27 wives and girlfriends went to the ruling junta's headquarters and placed the coffin of his recently deceased mother on the steps. Fela said he wanted to demonstrate that the power of the state was impotent compared with the power of the human spirit.
Fela was convicted of illegally exporting foreign currency in 1984 and was sentenced to 10 years in prison. A year later, the military government of Gen Muhamed Buhari was overthrown by Gen. Ibrahim Babangida, who freed Fela.
Technical Information:
Title: Fela: In Concert
Artist: Fela Anikulapo Kuti and the Egypt 80 Band
Date: June 30, 1981
Location: Paris, France
Source: DVD5 Retail
Pro-shot: Yes
DVD Format: NTSC
DVD Size: DVD5
Container: .iso + mds
Size: 2.90 GB
Length: 00:58:36
Programs used: DVD Decrypter, ImgBurn
Resolution: 720x480
Aspect Ratio: 4:3
Video: MPEG2 @ ~6800 kb/s
Frame Rate: 29.97
Audio: Dolby AC3 Stereo @ 448 kb/s
Subtitles: None
Menu: Yes
Video: Untouched
DVD extras: Biography
Setlist:
01. Instrumental Solo
02. Army's Arrangement
03. Original Suffer Head
04. Power Show
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Fela: In Concert Megaupload Links