2009-01-01
Femi Kuti, son of the legendary Afrobeat founder and political activist, Fela Kuti, takes up his father's mantle with this mixture of Afrobeat and jazz, backed by the 17-member band Positive Force. Femi, like his late father, flirts with attracting the wrath of the Nigerian government as he decries corruption and encourages people to empower themselves. Some musicians face barriers that we can't imagine here. Femi mentions that he was particularly influenced by American jazz musicians in making this record, and that's most apparent in "They Will Run," "You Better Ask Yourself" and "Do You Know" (the latter is an instrumental after which he mentions many of the names of jazz greats). W-Africa 01/09 Michael J.Jazz Jamaica All-Stars
Massive
LADYSMITH BLACK MAMBAZO
Long Walk to Freedom
JOHANNES WELCH, DAVID HESS AND PAUL HINGER
Stunderthorm
VARIOUS ARTISTS
Ayombe: The Heart of Columbia's Musica Vallenata
SENTI TOY
How Many Stories Do You Read On My Face?
The Paradise Bangkok Molam International
21st Century Molam
The opinions expressed in these reviews are those of the individual volunteers that submitted the article and do not necessarily reflect the views of WYCE or GRCMC; nor its staff, donors, or affiliates.