Zombie

Fela Kuti's brand of afrobeat music is interesting to me, in that all of the albums of his that I've heard sound very similar to my ears, but still I like what he produces. The background information about this album is fascinating, as it is likely one of the most politically significant albums of all time. Kuti treated his music as a force for social and political change, and this album was certainly received that way, both by his fans and his enemies in the Nigerian government. 4/5

Afrobeat. Entretenido. Venga, un 4.

It was really interesting to read about the history behind this album and how it led to an attack on Kuti's commune. Still I liked it slightly less than the other Kuti albums I've listened to over the years (and on this challenge). Can't really say why but it just didn't click with me as much as the others.

Good sounds. Play loud

Now I don't like jam band music, where there is little structure and lulls to the music. This album seems to shape up as jam music, but at least the first song has a fast tempo, where you're supposed to get lost in the beat to dance.

Good grooves

Жизнерадостная музыка, тяжелый текст.

Pretty funky sound. Glad I had a listen.

Fela kuti e så boss maaaaan

This was pretty cool. The background on this album was quite something as well. The only problem is actually in the scoring. I think my overall honest assessment would be a 3.5 but it's going to get up to a 4 for how bad ass it really is.

Sesión jazz chula

Very funky Sax player, that lyrics are very strange indeed...

Like it.

A lot of passion in this

Solid Afrobeat album.

Far more pleasurable than I expected! Bouncy fun with a real groove to it. As I may have said before, 12 minute songs are rarely a thing I enjoy, but here there is so much movement and variation I really enjoyed them.

Classic Fela Kuti: infectious grooves to get you on your feet, coupled with powerful political and social messages. The horns are brilliant throughout as are the baking vocalists. Genius.

I'm not going to lie you. I spent an inordinate amount of time today wondering how Fela Kuti would feel about gas prices. You know, just to see if I get into his thinking space. He wouldn't give two shits about gas prices at any point in history. He'd overhear people griping about gas prices and immediately lose interest. Fela would be more concerned with drivers who fail to yield, and even that concern would be minor. Fela was likely a huge fan of invention, but I'm guessing overall he didn't see the automobile as a necessity for him. He was more concerned with creating a perfect musical landscape, an offshoot of which would suggest listeners take an edible and just live in his music. Fela would have LOVED that. No, gas prices would never be a cause of concern or interest for Fela Kuti. He always had bigger and better themes in mind.

While incredibly short and lyrically sparse, it is an impressive display of political ire. It's makes people want to move and shake, send a message while providing compelling fusions of afrobeat, jazz, and funk. It's music of the people for the people, and Fela Kuti understood that very well. It's a shame that his mother was killed as a result, which adds to the lived-in reality of what Kuti was expressing on Zombie.

So, all I know about this guy is that he gets nominated for the Hall of Fame a lot. Did he ever get in? Somehow I had assumed he was more of a roots/reggae style. This is not what I was expecting. This album got him jailed, his mother murdered, and his entire town destroyed. That's terrible, but gottdamm, that's rock n roll.

jako mi se svida to sto krene pjevat nakon desetak minuta pa svaki put bude iznenađenje. Jako dobar album.

Stvarno zanimljiva i strašna pozadina što se događala tijekom i poslije snimanja ovog albuma. I opet '77 godina, pa ta godina je premoćna za albume bila, a ovaj album upada sada u moje favorite te godine.

Pretty nice

proper lively, layered and nicely non-cloying

In its own genre, it's good.

Excellent, what a legend

I enjoyed it. I've loved all the jazz on this list except spy v. spy.

Enjoyable funky Jazz which at times was reminiscent of the New Orleans vibe. Was great to listen to preparing dinner but not sure I would sit down and listen to it. Original vinyl was just two long tracks so I'm glad that there was a couple of bonus tracks.

Enjoyably funky jazzy protest. I rather enjoyed this one

Essential. Vital 70s music.

Afrika!

Super catchy and fun, and held my attention even with super long tracks.

good this. its festival daytime bar music.

Trancy groove but long and very similar

Super chill funky stuff considering the subject matter and controversy. Pretty good background music.

Afrobeat (jazz, reggae, africana)

Love those horns.

Probably more of a 3.5.

jazzy!

This list could be 1001 Fela Kuti albums and I’d still do it

4-

Not a genre I would have likely discovered on my own. I really like this album. Good arrangements with powerful significance behind the songs.

Zombie is worth 4* on its own. It might even be 5*. So good.

Interesting listen, not usually the type of music I listen to, but it kept my attention all the way through. I especially like the instrumentals and the Afro-beats are so infectious and energetic, it brought warmth to my otherwise chilly day! Nice!

Tykkäsin listalla aiemmin olleesta Fela Kutin levystä ja ei tämäkään huono ollut. Sopivalla tempolla soitettua jatsia, ei liian vikkelää. Se jokin erityisyys tästä kuitenkin jäi puuttumaan, joten joutuu arpomaan kolmosen ja nelosen välillä. Pyöristetään vaihteeksi ylöspäin!

Resurrected

I enjoyed this quite a bit and will definitely be revisiting it again this year.

Never really listened to anything like this before, really fantastic! Really great beat and horns that just loop and drive without tiring. Lyrics to Zombie stood out, so I did some research. I feel like this is the type of music that has so much more impact with background - or using it as a way to educate. You can hear so many things that influenced so much music. I enjoyed this one :-)

Not entirely sure how to rate this album. I thought it was pretty good and the story behind it is awesome. A lot of the songs had these weird moments of awkwardness that affected my enjoyment. Between 3 and 4 stars but closer to 4.

I liked this a lot. This is very funky.

4 very long songs, but it is so dynamic that the hour of listening passes very quickly. Ideal of cooking hours.

Like it, as i´m not a jazz export, don´t know if it´s really exceptional, but it swings, has spirit and uses vocals like an instrument rather than spitting lyrics

I listened to the album before reading about it, just to mix things up (usually I read about it before listening). I enjoyed it musically - I've always been drawn to Afrobeat/ music of Africa. I obviously didn't know what each song was about specifically, but the passion and energy was undeniable throughout. I learned that this is a political album - it's criticism of the Nigerian government likely resulted in Fela's commune being attacked by Nigerian soldiers. His mother was killed in that attack, and Fela was severely beaten. Also, he formed the commune which declared itself independent of the Nigerian government. He played multiple instruments, had multiple wives at once, and is widely regarded as the pioneer of the Afrobeat style.

What a life this guy has lived..and yet with such tragedy, comes uplifting music despite themes and lyrics rooted in darkness. Quite a unique blend and I really enjoyed the two pieces. Great dynamics and a great overall runtime.

Afro-Jazz fusion

Frenetic and contagious. This one was a chant for freedom and art. I will always applaud meaningful art! Sorry to see the aftermath caused by this album. Death and war is the language of tyranny

Interesting! I was digging it!

Fun & jazzy album

Sehr schöne Life Aufnahmt

Four tracks, 10+ minutes each! It’s Fela, so they all have a danceable vibe.

Nice jazzy after-beat album. Just 4 songs but each has a pretty unique sound and the lyrics get straight to the point of what they’re trying to say. The horn work really made this album for me. 7/10

Heard it, liked it

Liked it a lot

Sounds like lots of Kuti's stuff - enjoyable African jazz. 7/10.

Very jazzy. First time I've heard reggae elements in jazz. Lots of movement to the music.

I liked this more than I expected - definitely fusion music, but bringing the best of both.

Jazz

This was a cool album. Always nice to have a departure from familiar genres. Nothing too special about it, but great rhythms and just an enjoyable groove. Just a few songs, all very long, but the kind of long songs that I enjoy. Basically the polar opposite of that Goldie album we had recently that overstayed its welcome. Favorite tracks: Zombie, Mr. Follow Follow. Album art: Hard to tell exactly what's going on here. A collage of soldiers, and Fela is pointing a finger gun at one of them? Is he accusing soldiders of being zombies? I'm not sure. It looks alright though, and the bold, colorful text design is really great. 4/5

Before I heard Fela Kuti, I heard Femi Kuti (his son). A co-worker then introduced me to Fela. I do really enjoy west African music, and this is classic.

Histórico.

Sublime

What a cool f'n album. Had no idea who this guy was, but what a story, especially how this album was beloved by the public but incensed the Nigerian government. Now those are powerful lyrics. And his delivery (and his backing band's) is electric. I love Zombie by the Cranberries but I think I have to Kuti's Zombie right up there with it. The album is really just two songs. Zombie kicks serious ass. Mr. Follow Follow isn't quite as good but it still deserves respect.

Always had a soft spot for Fêla.

yeh. dig this ok

Rating: 7/10

A pioneer of Afrobeat at the intersection of jazz and West African rhythm and instruments. Interesting to hear the political history behind this album and Kuti. Dude married two dozen women and had them his back up singers. Tracks flow well and have a lot of diversity in itself, maintaining the rhythm while trying out various instruments and vocals. Very well produced. You can hear the inspiration of soul and funk, especially in the third track. Fourth track was the weakest but still pleasant and would definitely get a huge applause out of me if that played at my jazz festival.

No hay pierde.

I like this, good brass especially. Favorite track is Zombie.

This is what I’ve been waiting for, something wild and different. Great rhythms, an actual message, and kinetic intensity. Hell yeah.

Nice!

афро битялово одинаково и по домашнему, скупая слеза текла по моему лицу, БЛЯДЬ регги

I dig it.

Yea good to hear some dance jazz....fine track ..zombie

A catchy protest album. Who knew that could happen? Fela Kuti’s band here is tighter than any other band ever tried to be, and he is full of rage and energy and channels it into songs that energize you fully. Twelve minute songs that you actually want to hear through to the end.

Something completely different. For long songs, it was incredibly funky. Didn't love it but will be a recurring listen

really liked it, very niceeeeeeeeee

Great vibe to work to. Fun and upbeat but can also be great background sound

Some chill African jazz, with some POP Lots of horns

Good

A great jazz album that I hadn't previously heard of

Awesome album, short but still fulfilling. The songwriting is great although I had a hard time understanding the vocalist.

i liked it

Sehr gut zum Uni machen und nebenbei hören, fand es sehr entspannt und mochte die Instrumente sehr.

An absolutely amazing Track 1. 4 tracks of afrobeat jazz. The surprise when the vocals kicked in 5 minutes into the song created an intensity that I'm always searching for in my music. A hugely interesting and enjoyable album - matched only by the story of the man.

Not my top favorite of his albums but a goodie.

Funky album, heb hier wel min of meer van genoten

jaaaaaaaaazzzzz

powerful with and without the heavy context behind it of resistance to military rule in Nigeria. aside from its meaning, it also communicates on a physical level in a way that's hard to find an equal to – its extended groove is irresistible

Pretty much every Fela Kuti album is a really excellent song the album is named after followed by a good song that can't quite live up to the main attraction. Zombie is one of Kuti's best songs but Mr. Follow Follow is even more forgettable than some of his other secondary tracks. I had, in fact, literally forgotten what came after Zombie. Still, it's not BAD. Solid 4 overall, best album yet.

This album made me feel like I was living the life of the guy in the Pixar movie Soul

Funky

Funky Jazz Album. Anothwr album with long songs Zombie gets a little repetitive for my tastes I think but all thenother songs have good development and interjections that make them worth listening to, unlike Bat out of Hell

not _super_ into Afrobeat but it's a warmer-temperature aesthetic not dissimilar to Bitches' Brew. liking the revolutionary undertones

great

I don't have a lot to say about this one, but I thought it was really catchy and fun. (And a good, short album to follow up after yesterday's pick).

Dosc niecodzienny pik listowy, bo muzyka ani to hamerykanska, ni brytyjska, a tym razem afrykanska, afrobeat prosto z nigerii lat 70, bedacym panstwem rzadzonym przez wojskowe junty, zmagajacym sie z nieposzanowaniem jakichkolwiek praw, no i jak przystalo na afryke z wszelaka bieda, takie tlo na ktorym powstal ten albumik, sam Fela Kuti nie byl wlacznie grajkiem, ale takze aktywista politycznym dlatego glownym themem jest tutaj wlasnie militarny rzad, ktory mozemy utozsamiac z tytulowym zombie, orginalne wydanie zawiera tylko dwa ponad 12 minutowe traki zombie i mr follow follow, ktore juz samymi tytulami jasno wskazuja o czym beda traktowac, reedycja zawiera dodatkowy trak observation no crime i zapis live kawalka mistake z berlinskiego jazz festiwalu w 78, Kuti byl wspierany tutaj przez bande znana pod nazwa Africa 70, jak na nigeryjska muzyke i okreslenie afrobeat jak dla mnie brzmi to jazzem lat 60, dosc surowym w wykonaniu, ale jedak juz granym w wiekszych bandach, bo troche instrumentow mozna tutaj naliczyc, ale dokladnego skladu grajcego nie potrafilem znalezc, co natomiast wyroznia ten material od typowego jazzu sa wstawki wokalne, wykorzystanie chorkow, ktore nie tylko w rytm sie zgrywaja z swoimi wstawkami, ale nieraz same nadaja tempa traku, gdzie wystepuje licytacja miedzy chantem chorowym, a Kutim na glowym wokalu, ktory tak samo jak chorkowe wykonany jest w typowo afrykanskim ingliszu, wiec dosc prostym i z typowa skladnia, ciekawa postacia jest sam wykonawca, bo jako dzialacz polityczno spoleczny, tak bardzo mial w niesmaku wladze, ze postanowil stworzyc wlasna niepodlegla komune, brzmi niezle, ale jesli dodamy do tego, ze mial wlasny harem 27 zon nadaje to prawdziwie afrykanski klimat opowiesci, po wydaniu zombie rozmontowali mu komune, ale muzyka przezyla i jest swiadectwem jak sztuka potrafi walczyc z systemem, na plejke wrzucilem oba orginalne traki, bo sposob w jaki nagrany zostal mistake pozostawia wiele do zyczenia

Impressive

Fela groovt sich mit zunehmender Zeit hypnotisch in die Ohrmuschel, frisst sich smooth ins Hirn, breaking & entering my mind, body just follow follow. (Haben Can sich hiervon eine dicke Scheibe gegönnt?) Virtuos instinktive 3.8

Cool in context, and fun enough in general, one of my favorite "big band" albums so far.

Diferente e bem gostoso de ouvir

Was a bit apprehensive after getting yet another Fela Kuti album but this one is very different, much less frenetic Afro-beat and more Afro-jazz, it meanders at a more relaxed pace and has a more serious political tone.

Great rythm and arrangements. Good vibes.

Nice radio, learnt take five

I was excited about this one because I enjoyed Fela Kuti's live album (w/ Ginger Baker) so much. I still think that's the better album, but this one is no slouch either. Excellent African rhythms and drums horns, with a good political message underneath it.

love it. cool beats

Added to YT Music.

Love the horns. Great grooves. Don’t love the singing.

Great grooves song after song

So there is a good kind of jazz. Listened 19/1/21

Goede latin/jazz/soul. Nooit van gehoord en echt steengoed.

Jazzy

Weird Reagea-Jazz with very clear messaging. Not much more to say, it was a good listen.

Jazz!

Great jazz swingy trumpets

Guter Jazz, lange Songs, macht Spaß!

Very catchy start and interesting sound! But the songs were too long for my taste or not various enough for this lenght. Would give a 3,5.

F U N K Y

First time listening to this music. Really vibrant! Looking at the history of this record was interesting

Really great energy, I can totally see how Talking Heads were inspired.

Funky/Jazzy instrumental album.

wow ! this influenced the talking heads like nobodys business

(7.6) Enjoyable

Sure

Interesting cultural context. Nice to have heard once, but not sure I’ll listen to it again.

A Paris did not listen, will listen later.

It was not bad but the songs are too long for my liking.

Great set of tracks from Fela, filled with politics, hope, dance, and music.

Catchy, but this isn't for me at all. Don't know that I've ever listed to Afrobeat before. I respect that this criticizes the Nigerian government (and may have gotten Kuti's mother murdered and his commune destroyed) but I won't likely come back to this. Each track being over 12 minutes long is real difficult for my punk rock heart to accept lol.

Виглядає круто. Вперше таке бачу. З перших хвилин - музика не відповідає обкладинці. Звучить дуже весело, мені подобається. Я б сказав, що це джаз, а це афробіт. За цей альбом нігерійська влада вбила маму виконавця.

bueno

Ok

Really good

I liked it. It's not exactly my style, but it was interesting.

I like the multi-instrumental side of it

3.0

"Musically, there's nothing I don't like, per se... but if you were to cut off ~4 minutes at the start and end of every track (leaving the call-and-response vocal bits) I'd probably rate it a lot higher. It's the kind of music which, if a live band was performing it, I'd have an absolutely great time dancing to for 5-10 minutes... before gradually losing enthusiasm over the next hour until I was swaying out of habit only; a little dead behind the eyes and secretly, desperately wondering when it was going to end." 2,5 sterren

Three stars feels harsh, but I don’t think I know it well enough for four. But who knows? Over dinner and drinks, and a bit more conversation, maybe we could get right up there to five.

Helped the Western world become enamored w World Music

7,50/10 Muy bueno, me gusto. Divertido sin ser molesto, algunas partes medio pj pero bien

Ok

uvalim mu kruti

I had zero clue what I was getting into here. I laughed when I saw it was 4 songs at about an hour long. Talk about jamming! I did enjoy this quite a bit, but I did find it to be a bit monotonous.

Pretty cool album with exciting rhythms and instruments. I enjoyed the music more than the singing.

Some interesting African jazz here Fave track: Zombie

The instruments were really good but the vocals were a little boring and the songs dragged out too long.

3/5. This is my first real dive into Afrobeat, and theres a lot to like about this project. Tony Allens polyrhythmic drumming is a standout, along with the whole percussion section. The trumpets do a lot to carry each song forward and provide a jolt, and Fela Kuti solos are great. That being said, I feel this whole album never really makes it past the 3rd gear. I often found myself feeling the tension building only for it to be brought down again and again, and I wouldve liked to see some more dynamic change, particularly with the guitars. They keep the same basic jangle throughout every song, and it gets tired after a while. All the tracks seem to follow the same basic structure, and it often left me feeling like each progression had no place in the song. I think this couldve been one long song and it wouldnt have really made a difference in the listening experience. Mistake was the standout track, and I think thats mostly because it was live, and Jazz almost always sounds better live. Overall, while the instrumentation itself is nothing short of amazing, the composition as a whole left a lot to be desired in my opinion, and for that reason I really failed to connect on an emotional level with this project.

very good improv, but very repetitive

Never listened to Afrobeat before, probably good I started with the dude who created it. The funk-jazz thing is awesome. Grooves are hard af. It's right up my alley, but I can see how it would get draggy. The original EP release is much stronger than the CD extras. Overall good album, not amazing due to length of the songs. Also the dude had like 28 wives which is odd lmao. Fav song: Zombie

Andra låten var väldigt bra, första var lite för jazzig och galen

Fascinating album, is all I’ll say. Never heard much like it.

This was a fun album to listen to and very different. I wasnt interested in changing the one song.

Enjoyed some of the vibes in this but it was too jazzy and repetitive in parts for me. If it was 20 min shorter it would have been much higher up. Specific rating - 3.5 Fav song - Mr Follow follow Least fav- Zombie

Enjoyed the newness of the genre, potent backstory too… exactly what this project is for

This was an interesting mix of genres but nothing that stuck out to me as amazing.

Vibe-y, jazzy, & kind of tribal. A fun listen!

I liked the jazzy aspects but the vocals and call/response stuff not so much. Overall, OK.

Funky! Groovy! Jazzy!

This goes insanely hard? Zombie is gorgeous work. Also, was that the last post??

Mukavaa menevää jatsia. Ei motivoinut tutkimaan diskografiaa lisää, mutta kuunnellessa oli hyvä mieli

I am giving this album the benefit of the doubt because I am way out of my element here and it had some cool moments, but this is dangerously close to jazz.

First listen. Knew of Fela Kuti, but never spun this up before. Got a real groove, but each track is just way too long. Start off each track thinking it’s good and by the end of it I just feel relieved it’s over. I can respect this, and can see why people would love it. Definitely glad it’s on this list and that I’ve therefore listened to it. Just not for me. 3

The jazz start completely misled me to where the album was going. It was interesting enough to listen to, but I'm not coming back.

Not the biggest fan of 10+ minutes songs, but the music itself isn't bad at all.

Gear: ZMF Auteur Classic LTD Shedua Artwork: 🎤🫸🪖 Production: 🙂‍↕️🤔🆗 Music: 😤🎺🆓 Rating: 🧟🧟🧟(🧟)/5

interesting but not really my genre. upon researching i learnt that it is a very political album.

Listened to this driving the golden circle in iceland..I thought it was a pretty good grove but my wife asked if the same song just repeated so that's a nice judgement.

Fun, energetic, slightly formulaic. Didn’t stop me from enjoying though! Rating: 6/10 Favorite Song: Zombie

I was very surprised to get Fela Kuti after reviewing an album by his son Femi yesterday. Thankfully I enjoyed Fela and his pioneering Afrobeat sound more than his son's more contemporary attempts. The recording itself isn't great, but the feelings be shared are. Zombie calls out the corrupt Nigerian government of the mid-70s, hiding the message in upbeat music. While it may sound fun to dance to, this album got Fela's mother killed and his commune burned down. At the end of the day, Zombie is an important record with a strong message, but the songs are too long for my taste and the backing vocals aren't great either.

The rhythms are strong, the riffs are cool, and the lyrics were pointed enough to get the Nigerian army to destroy his living compound and throw his mother out of a window (killing her). It is repetitive, hypnotically so, and the four long tracks are almost interchangeable - LONG instrumental intro, a few verses, LONG instrumental outro. I feel the rhythm and the power, but it's not a regular listen for me.

corto pero tiene una o dos canciones buenas aunq no me mataron

Not my style

Fela Kuti is considered the founder of Afrobeat jazz. The songs are mostly long jams with guitar rhythm and horn solos and then some singing in the middle which I liked. The songs are long (more than 12 minutes). I like the album but would have preferred to hear 8 songs with shorter jams than just 4.

Things I learned today: I can sometimes enjoy Afrobeat. The term 'World Music' is now widely considered dated and racist. This guy married 27 women in one day. I was also going to throw in a joke about "my horn section" but I decided against it.

Maybe it was a mistake, but I looked up the meaning behind the album before starting. It made me enjoy it more than I probably would have otherwise. Despite the songs all being 10-15 minutes, I felt like they were each dynamic enough within the song that it didn't bother me too much. But it did still feel a bit much. I really do appreciate the jazzy protest, and it was catchy. As protest music should be. Take a note, Bob.

Nice to listen to. I couldn't really get further than that.

I'd probably give this a higher rating if we hadn't had a Femi Kuti album earlier. They're the exact same music. And I can't get past that. This album feels...redundant? Even though I know it was released first. So this rating is a little unfair to dad. Still really good music.

For what it is—African jazz—it’s pretty solid. It’s not really a genre I care much about, but I appreciate the talent. 6/10

A joy

Fiilistelymusaa. Sopii kesäisen puuhailun taustalle.

låtarna var lite för långa

There's apparently lots of different versions of this floating around...the one I heard had just two songs, Zombie and Mr Follow Follow. But those two songs left me wanting more! The titular track, especially, has a killer groove. It's pretty decent stuff, my first introduction to afrobeat or anything adjacent to it. Imagine hearing this and wanting to raid the guy's commune and kill his mother. Insane.

2.5 - Pretty good. I don’t really have any strong feelings about it.

Fun

Good workout background music

6/10

Honestly this is good stuff, not something I would probably play again but I like it

Another album I liked more than expected. Songs were very long though. That being the case, the music was still excellent.

Shnazzy.

Loved the sound of this album. The title track was my favorite. Long songs but they definitely made you dance after awhile.

Nice and chill but not memorable

- What a story about this album... I really appreciate the political statement it's making. - At the end of the day, I just can't get into jazz... this is easier to take than most, but I still get bored quickly. I do like the African elements to it. - The two-song LP is over pretty quickly, but the songs still kind of go on too long for me. - I like the keys on this album. I'm not that into the horn, though - it's fine, but I just always find horn to be a lot. - I'll give it a 3 for the two song LP - it includes the two best tracks and is only about 25 min or something. I like the political statement, and it has a swing that I enjoy. It works as background music, and my cat seems to be into it - I think he's smiling. - 2 for the four song rerelease because the extra songs made it way too long, and I didn't enjoy the first half of Observation Is No Crime). - Came back after listening to another album of his on this list and just learned he's a total misogynist, so yeah, I won't be listening to his music.

Another album with obscenely long tracks. Let’s hope this one earns it. The title track: nothing huge to say. The beat is alright, as soon as the vocalist comes in it improves quite a bit. It does go on for too long, but there’s a lot here to like. Mr Follow Follow had a very cute sound to it! It had a fantastic horn part. Observation is no crime was another track with a lovely instrumental! Mistake being a live recording was pretty cool. Similar elements to the other tracks, but it’s nice and cohesive. Overall, a pretty decent album. Not amazing, but not bad either. Nothing really wowed me about it but I enjoyed some of the vocal bits. 3/5 ⭐️ 154/1089

Favorite Track: Mr. Follow Follow

Som da hora do álbum, mas 4 músicas de mais de 10 minutos inviabiliza adicionar na playlist. Arte pura, me imaginei num festival de improviso, tipo JAM no MAM.

Again an album is not really go for but glad I’ve listened to it. I’ve no real critique other than it’s great to drive to

177. nice

First listen

Now this is some [world?] jazz I liked - had more… structure to it, without the wild improvisation.

I don’t usually listen to instrumental stuff, but it had a great political message

For as serious and important a political song as it is, it’s worth noting that Zombie is also just a lot of fun to experience. It doesn’t feel like 12 minutes; the rhythmic bead instruments, enchanting backing vocals, and chanting of “Zombie” are so captivating. Mr. Follow Follow, on the other hand, feels VERY long. It’s extremely repetitive and easy to tune out, and I think it’s a shame that it follows my favorite 12 minute song. If you listen to the deluxe version, it’s similarly split; Observation is No Crime is shockingly low energy for a song with that title and drags, while Mistake’s organ and crowd cheers keep it engaging despite its runtime. It’s an album of two extremes.

No his best album but Bowie is Bowie

⭐️⭐️⭐️ Don’t have a lot to add on this one. I love the ambience of the album and especially like the points when the vocals accompany the tracks. I get this is intentionally more of a jammy vibe with political tones (looking at Wiki), but it didn’t jive with me as much as I’d have thought. I’ll have to revisit this when I’m not zoning out / dissociating.

Pretty good. Nice jazzy feel

Another Afrobeat album by Fela Kuti. This one was good too, but maybe it didn't hit quite as well as the previous album I listened to.

I often hear conservatives tell artists to stay in their places; and to not be political blah blah. And then you hear an album like this that literally criticized and nearly dismantled the Nigerian government; imagine, art, to be so poignant and true that the artist is beaten and his mother murdered. The title song caused riots. Art can change the world. This album is a sword.

Not a huge fan of the interminable jams, but the music is pleasant and interesting.

mid asf

I had a lot more time for this than I expected I would have, even if the songs could have done with being a bit shorter. Not bad at all.

toller Funk

2 songs, 25 mins, political, sure. More importantly, hours after completing this. my first child, my beautiful daughter was born today 🙏

This had some energy and was pretty interesting. Not really my musical style but worth the listen.

A nice little jazzy album.

Liked

i like jazz

Awesome. I'd have rather this be instrumental, but the vocals while not bad at all, were minimal.

Zombie - 3/5 Mr. Follow Follow - 3/5 Observation No Crime - 3/5 Mistake - 3/5

197 / 1089. Afrobeat gives me the joy that reggae should. Fela Kuti's two albums on this list have been illuminating for me. The two added tracks to the original LP are good, but not as great as the title track and "Mister Follow Follow." I'm rating the original two-track LP instead of the CD reissue. 7/10.

I found myself dancing to the African rhythms and quite impressed by the length of the songs and its structure, it's quite interesting to say the least.

Kul musik, den klart afrikanska viben är skön och gör en glad, danssugen. Jazzaspekten är mer sitta ner och njuta, så det känns lite ambivalent liksom.

Ok

This is the kind of thing I would watch on Glastonbury highlights on TV and really enjoy, then never listen again.

Ni bien ni mal, me gusto pero no se si es algo que elijo. Me gusto la mezcla con ritmos afro, me hicieron acordar al candombe.

I can hear how this album probably inspired acts like the Talking Heads. I thought it was a pretty fun listen. I think I liked the previous Fela Kuti album I got better just because some of these tracks just go on too long without significant changes.

unpopular opinion : on en fait un peu trop avec fela 3-/5

Jazzier than I expected.

Listening session: may 4th, while chilling at home Listened to before: no Thoughts: this is the type of music that I like to hear on this project. While it’s not something I’d listen to regularly, I really enioyed discovering something new Favourite track: Zombie

Pretty certain I haven’t listened to this album before, but at the same time, I feel like I have heard it or something a lot like it previously. Strident brass and a great bounce in the rhythm made this an easy and enjoyable listen

idek whats going on here

A nice change of pace.

It's hard for me to judge an album that's only 2 songs long, I feel like I don't have like enough to talk about. I also feel like there's just not that much to say about this one, like there's not enough that you can do with the instruments available to make the songs super unique, so they kinda end up just sounding like the same song twice. But I did like the song, I thought it was a pretty fun song. I was just hoping for more somehow.

Even though the songs are pretty long, I didn't mind it. I was really hoping to have something more different on this list. I had another Fela Kuti record before and I enjoyed that one a bit more, but this was equally as interesting and groovy. It's just something about african grooves.

Gillade! Nog inte för alla :)

3/5. Sjukt att bli så deprimerad över sin morsas död att man gifter sig med 27 personer samtidigt och sedan roterar dem på ett schema.

Me hizo sentir de vacaciones

This album led to a backlash from the Nigerian army (Zombie was what Kuti thought of anyone serving in the brutal regime's military), which almost got him killed. His mother was though. Hard to imagine living under such conditions and producing such unapologetically confrontational music. For that alone he gets props. It's not really my bag but in places, it was worth the excursion and may need a few more goes but for now, a 3...

The saxophone part was nice.

Great but a bit repetitive

Nice rhythm and good energy - found I enjoyed much more than I expected

favs: mr follow follow observation no crime rating 2.5/5

nice sound if the tracks are a bit long

Historically significant, and an enjoyable listen, but nothing stands out

3.5

Me impresionó tener referencias de este álbum gracias a Beyoncé

I get it, he's incredible. But 2 Fela albums in less than 2 weeks? Come on

Всего, даже хорошего, должно быть в меру. 5 за звук, 2 за длительность.

such a history behind this album!

6/10… afro jazz / *1977

Not for everyone, good but too much instrumental for me

Sure

I enjoyed Zombie, the rest was a little too much of the same.

Kanske mest intressant wikipedialäsning hittills. Rätt bra album också. Liiiite bjäring

тут какой-то политический контекст, не могу оценить мой мозг отказывается слушать такое на протяжении 12 минут прикольные партии, но можно было сделать их и короче качество звука приятное, инструментал богатый и яркий 3.0

Madcap Nigerian jazz. Definite Mingus influences. Surprisingly good

Un álbum para escuchar chill. Parece actual. Me gustó mucho.

Interesting African jazz soound

Really interesting. Something I would play during a jazzy dinner party, or while tanning. 6/10

interessante uso de instrumentos, mas algumas repetições vocais me tiraram um pouco do album. apesar disso, tem muita relevância histórica por ser bem político,

4 songs but really strong songs,I actually really like this.If I heard this in public I would be dancing. 3.5/5

5/10 I think reading about this album and the resulting unrest was perhaps a more profound experience than listening to it. I'm not a fan of the genre but I appreciate this album for it's significance in the history of the Afrobeat genre. Best track: Zombie Would I revisit?: No

Very interesting, just not really my style of music.

Long improvisational jams with just the right amount of vocals and vibes for a saturday afternoon.

Colorful and interesting. One of those albums that’s fun to listen to.

Very good album. 3,5

Kinda feels like a lot of other albums I’ve reviewed where this is only really on here for some contextual reason and not because of the actual music. Not to say that the music on this one is bad

The songs are plenty fun and the lyrics and singing is good I just can’t listen to songs this long regularly

I liked it, but I found each track a bit too long. I fully agree with this comment from another reviewer who summed it up perfectly: "if you were to cut off ~4 minutes at the start and end of every track (leaving the call-and-response vocal bits) I'd probably rate it a lot higher". I loved discovering something new, though and I'm very intrigued to learn more about Fela Kuti. Overall, great music to have in the background.

He has very long instrumental Intros in these songs. I was vibing and looking him up during the first track. Was wondering why everything I looked up mentioned lyrics when I’d heard none yet 😅

Good background music.

Normal, me agradou pouco

3/5 sterren Leuke vibes, soms te uitgerokken, maar dansbaar. Doet denken aan goede zomeravonden en bks

Fela Kuti is known as the father of Afrobeat, a genre that blends jazz, funk, and African folk rhythms. The genre is generally quite enjoyable, both for dancing and as a background track; this album is no exception, but the story behind its creation reads like an episode of "Parts Unknown". Kuti declared his own microstate in Nigeria, consisting of a commune and a recording studio. The government became agitated and told him to stop acting up. Kuti got angry and recorded this album, which consists of just two songs (a reissue is available online, adding two more). In my opinion, the lyrics are simple and rather toothless, but the government was overly receptive to this ragebait and sent the army to burn down the rebel's house. During the process, the soldiers beat the artist and threw his mother out of a window, killing her. Kuti responded by sending the coffin containing his mother's body to the then-president's residence. Basically, this scene (https://youtu.be/UajTvU3sjrY) from "The Boondocks" perfectly describes the whole situation.

6.5/10

Fun, but got bored after a while

nice tunes.

3 Stars. Being disconnected from the time period/culture/politics of it all hurts this one a little and that's probably unfair, but it is what it is. I love the jazzy bits, but could do without the vocals.

Fine as background music

Good jam with a fascinating history.

This album was good, not entirely my vibe but I did enjoy it. On the ultimate plus side just another good use case of this project. I wouldn't have ever known about this artist, but now I know this is the African Bob Marley and grandfather of Afrobeats which is huge today. Musically I will give credit to the instrumentation in this, all jazzy and good, and the bass line is slapping.

funky, groovy, it was alright. though i'm not much of an afrobeat fan

Never heard of it. Didn’t get it. Good music thiugh

Me gustó

Imagine how hard this would go in the middle of the summr

-cool sounds -very chill background vibe -might listen again

Great performances and rhythms, but things start to drag on at points. Highlight: "Zombie"

To be listened - sick

Fun and interesting, love being exposed to new kinds of music. Didn't love some middle tracks here.

Before listening to Fela Kuti’s Zombie, I read a bit about him and the album. It helped — knowing what was happening politically in Nigeria and the risks he was taking made the whole thing hit harder. The title track, “Zombie,”. It calls soldiers… zombies. They “go and kill,” “go and die,” just following orders. It’s blunt and repetitive, but that’s the point — the repetition really sticks with you. I wasn’t super familiar with Afrobeat, so it was interesting to hear. The long grooves and repeated sections didn’t always click for me; sometimes they dragged a bit. But I get why they’re there — it drives the message home. I probably wouldn’t have picked this up on my own, which is why the thousand albums project is fun. I could see this growing on me with another listen, especially knowing the history behind it. Overall, I’d give it a 3 out of 5 — more respect than personal enjoyment, but glad I experienced it.

I enjoyed this on in the background, particularly love the funky feel and afrobeats. But it would be too repetitive for me to sit and actively listen to I think.

Great beat. Lively jazzy tunes and nice brass sounds. Overall a good album.

not a massive fan of jazz tbh, would be closer to a 3.5/5 if this site allowed half stars