Live!

The collaborative album between Ginger Baker and Fela Kuti Recorded in Lagos, Nigeria in 1971 when Ginger left in the UK after the disastrous US tour with ‘Blind Faith’ and to cope with his harrowing heroine addiction. The album dubbed ‘Live!’ Showcase both the talents of the African musicians inside the ‘70’, as well as Baker’s talent as a drummer and his Afrobeat influence that he brought into the mainstream from the mid to late 60s through Cream’s brief tenure. The album, although long only consists of 5 songs, representing the loose, jam-orientated performances of the Africa 70 and the quality Ginger brought from his time at the forefront of the British blues explosion of the 60s and although it represents a troubled time in Ginger’s life, having left his family and been near-fatally addicted to drugs also shows the musical significance of the time, with Baker also recording on Paul McCartney and Wings’ seminal album ‘Band on The Run’ in Lagos at the time, as well as showing a legend finding his footing after a troubled few years. The collaboration remains as legend, with Fela and Ginger falling out soon after this recording with this album representing a glimpse of a fleeting moment where genius met innovation, Baker and Kuti.

This album is a reminder of how small my music world is - I really enjoyed it! Everything worked really well together and the drumming especially was amazing

pretty damn good. i think i was not quite in the head space to enjoy this as much as i might've in a different context, though it does feel a bit directionless, but it's definitely really good. i've not heard much afrobeat so this was a welcome change of pace and i'll have to keep an eye out for more. the drumming in this from ginger baker was especially lovely. he fucking WENT and did not stop. great energy on this album. prior to me listening, ana had me give fela kuti's wikipedia page a read, and what can i say other than he's certainly a complicated figure!!!

You know an albums good when you pretty much decide on the score within the first 15 seconds of the music starting. God damn! Afrobeats Jazz-funk mix is so up my alley that it is unreal. I was working out to this album and I was getting so into it. Its definitely got some Jam Band energy but it is also quite structured and always moving so it ignores a lot of the noodling criticism that can go on there. It also has the longest drum solo I've heard like, ever. My god he must've been so tired after all that. I listened through to this album twice and the only spot that got kinda old to me was the last track, but I know I'm definitely gonna add "let's start" to my personal playlist. Oh, also I read this guys wikipedia page and I've never been more conflicted in my life.

You know a live album is good when I'm upset I wasn't there live to witness it.

Bang on energy.

Good African Jazz

This was fun to listen to. Black Man’s Cry and Ye Ye Da Smell were my favorite tracks.

Cool live African album. It was a lot of fun - to a point. However, it would have been a lot more fun to be at the show than listening to the album was. There are only 5 tracks on this 60 minute album, so every some is long and repetitive. And I could have done without the last track which was a 12-minute drum solo. Regardless, I give it a 3 for some fun jam music.

Funky also cool 8)

First time listen A great live album with some fun banter interspersed and an overall fun, funky vibe. I've only listened to Zombie by Fela previously but his energy transfers well to this live performance. Loved the incorporation of the audience singing on the last track. Favorite Tracks: Egbe Mi O, Ye Ye De Smell 4/5

This is so fun!! Love the vibes

Sooo nice

J'écoute le podcast Fela Kuti: Fear No Man ces temps-ci et je recommande. La mère de Fela, Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti, était enseignante. Elle est passée d'une position circonstantielle de collaboratrice du régime colonial UK, faisant partie du système d'enseignement UK, à une militante acharnée de la levée du colonialisme et du droit des femmes. Je ne sais pas encore si c'est elle qui choisissait les slips de couleur de Fela par contre. Ça va peut-être en parler.

La section rythme kick des culs. Le saxophone est moins intéressant, il est comme un peu rudimentaire dans ses phrases, et faux par moments.

Magnifique cover. Ginger le blanc bec qui groove avec sa cigarette dans la main, Fela qui semble en transe. 5/5 Côté musique, beaucoup aimé aussi! Ça fait du bien des rythmes africains à l’occasion, forts en percussions. Fela Kuti, quel homme intéressant.

Джаз этот тот самый жанр, который к моему сожалению мне не совсем нравится. Звучание неплохое, да и голос Фела Кути мне показался завораживающим. Но нет, совсем не мой жанр, поэтому ставлю 2 звезды.

Funky fun

It was ok. Enjoyed the musicianship. 2.5/5.

3/5

I love this. The tight playing of James Brown’s backing band stretched out and allowed to go on as long as it wants. It feels alive. It is a stone cold jam without ever feeling pointless or noodly. A great album and well worth hearing.

Cool, but too much jam band energy

To be frank, I’d had my fill of drumming by the end but this is a banger of a recording that I’ll play again.

Funky energetic great sound stage replication So many layers of instruments that have individuality

Let's do what we came in the room to do! Fela Kuti comes in hawt with brass instruments, immersing me in a 60s-70s-style Hollywood production. I almost wanna light up a cigarette and SMOKE IT.

very nice afrobeat

You know what? Hell yeah.

Good jazz.

Cool album, cool gig

4 stars for ending the album with a 17 minute drum solo

Oh yesss!

pretty wild how ginger baker made an effort to play in africa more because he had no idea how to get heroin there. anyway despite being only the second best drummer fela played with, baker shreds here. and fela is fela. this isn't the africa 70's peak imo but it's a very strong date overall

fuck yeah this is what I’ve been looking for

not really my style

Durante una época me aficioné a Fela Kuti. La verdad es que me parece que aporta música a este mundo.

I feel like your opinion of this comes down to how you feel about the closing track being a 16 minute drum jam. Personally, I loved it. A glorious. Combination of Fela's style with Ginger Baker's furoous grooves. On Tiday, search for Ginger Baker rather than Fela Kuti.

It's pretentious

This was funky, groovy, different and very fun. Ginger Baker is an insane drummer, and the overall vibe was very interesting and refreshing. Finally something old that doesn't sound like the same recicled material. This is what I wanna hear!

Echt een leuk disco album. Soms beetje onrustig en langdradig. Maar heel leuk

Not a massive fan of live albums.

No esperaba un album así. Tremendamente natural, una banda increíble, una onda espectacular de Fela Kuti, y una energía fantástica. No te aburrís ni un minuto. 8/10

Kinda funky but not interesting at all.

A fun listen. Stirring. The length of the songs knocks them out of contention of regular rotation. Even as a drummer I don't think I need to regularly listen to a 16:00 Ginger Baker drum solo.

Classic Afrobeat from when Afrobeat was just being defined. Great performances, great rhythms, although the songs can get a bit long and repetitive at times.

Ass shaking music to a revolution. I have a rule that if I’m debating two rankings I always go with the lower one. That puts this at 4 stars but in reality it’s 4.5/5. Great beats. Great message. Ginger Baker tears it up. Amazing album

great album

Kind of sicodelic, not the usual sound, but interesting, not easy to get the first time. Makes You want to dance

This is why I started doing this challenge. A great discovery, funky as hell and interesting throughout

Cool album j’ai découvert un truc hyper intéressant je vais sûrement devoir écouter plusieurs fois

What nice, swinging music this is.

Awesome

Man, it was literally just last month that I first dived into Fela Kuti's music. I was thoroughly impressed across multiple releases with his knack for composing call-and-response-oriented jams that inspired people to stand and unite. Of course, he's not the only creative mind on this record. After the disbandment of Cream and Blind Faith, drummer Ginger Baker traveled to Nigeria and set up a recording studio in Lagos to immerse himself in African music. Ginger and Fela became friends during this period, and the two recorded together on multiple occasions. For this first stint, Ginger convinced Fela and his band Africa '70 to fly over to EMI Studios in London for a live-in-studio session. The resulting record is a vibrant, upbeat series of funkish performances, complete with the dual baritone saxophones, chicken-scratching guitars, and Fela's powerful, charismatic voice. Tony Allen led the complex drums and congas before Ginger Baker joined in on "Ye Ye De Smell" and "Egbe Mi O (Carry Me I Want to Die)", further pushing the envelope with his jazz-inspired fast-paced syncopation. It is truly mesmerizing how these musicians from different backgrounds were able to sonically synchronize and be in tune with each other for such an eclectic jam for the ages, and it sounded like the in-studio audience was really into the performance. If I had to nitpick, it's that I do miss the political edge of Fela's later releases. To be fair, there is a certain degree of highlighting the struggles of the Nigerian people on a track like "Black Man's Cry", plus there's spiritual empowerment through dancing and engagement with the music on "Let's Start" and "Egbe Mi O (Carry Me I Want to Die)". If anything, it does get rather humorous for the songs Ginger joins in on, as "Ye Ye De Smell" is a funny little anecdote about your girl's been cheating on you from the smell of the herbs they've been partaking in, while "Egbe Mi O (Carry Me I Want to Die)" is about dancing so hard that you break your body and have to get carried off the dancefloor. In that respect, even if I prefer the sharper political commentary to come, I found some enjoyment in these witty and joyful lyrics here. Overall, this was a fun meeting of the minds, as Fela Kuti and Ginger Baker, alongside the rest of Africa '70, had the musical chops to put on such a defiantly jovial Afrobeat performance.

19/20 Inventeur de l'afrobeat, j'ai eu la chance de voir son héritage en concert à travers son fils et petit fils : Femi Kuti et Mádé Kuti. Le concert m'ayant profondément marqué, j'avais chercher à retrouver cette musique dans le répertoire de Fela, sans trop de succès. Par la découverte de cet album, c'est chose faite. J'ai retrouve ce que j'avais aimé ce jour là, et c'est un délice pour les oreilles ! Si je devais mettre un bémol, c'est peut être que le solo de perçu qui constitue le dernier morceau rend l'album un peu moins accessible

I have not listened to much Afrobeat, but there is one song (Afrobeat but not involving Kuti) I heard on an old NBA2K game that I am somewhat obsessed with, so I should probably check out more. I liked this.

Listened in the car. Had no idea what to expect and was really surprised by this one! Loved the energy, the grooves, the improves, everything. Found myself really grooving on that drum solo and before I knew it 15 minutes had gone by. Really enjoyed this one.

Interesting stuff. I enjoy world music except the vocals tend to throw me off, and this is no different.

This was pretty good it kind of reminded me of James Brown at times. I was driving and didn't listen super-actively. Might be good to try listening when I'm not driving and I'm definitely interested in hearing more of his catalog

Very energetic and uplifting jam. It does lack a bit of the political edge that other Fela Kuti works have though. Still, it's a very good jam, even if not all that live. The origin of how this album came to be is very interesting and kind of opened the door to more contemporary African music in Europe. It's nice hearing Fela Kuti playing the organ and the drumming here is excellent as with all Fela Kuti and Ginger Baker works. Doesn't really grab me as much as a lot of other Fela Kuti work though.

2026.03.05

High energy, fun. Not boring but not for me.

This record got me feeling electrical (?) “Live!” genuinely is the most body swinging album that I’ve heard a while. The overwhelming sense of being smothered by nasty instrumentals drenched in pure grooves and funk really is unmatched. Can we also talk about the ending to this record? In fact, don’t even get me started. When he started using the audience as a choir, I knew it was over for me. This is too much for me man, this is actually peak music. With that said, I do have a problem that keeps me from fully enjoying this project: Its lack of versatility. I don’t think versatility is a requirement for a perfect album, but it definitely shouldn’t be ignored. It’s mostly because of my dying attention span and the lack of understanding of afrobeat, but every song sounded too similar to each other. Sure, the songs are technically very different, but I can’t understand that. All I got as someone who doesn’t “get it” was four very upbeat songs that seemed like one really long song. This review might seem more negative than positive, but it’s really not; the positives were just simpler to understand than the negatives. “Live” is unbelievable, but it’s definitely not for everyone. Anyways, great album, wouldn’t recommend.

This was great. Ginger Baker is a legend and Fela and the band were so full of energy and great melodies and grooves. I listened to this twice and almost went for a third time. Four stars.

Very fun, would listen again!

Oh live is live who would've thought tbh. I heard Fema Kuti's album and this is his dad and holy shit aura must be genetic because I'm loving this holy moly. Fuck man sing it. This is electric bruh. So many artists record live albums and can't get the same energy or a better energy than their studio recordings but this is just something else oh my god he's so dynamic. Favourite: Egbe Mi O Least favourite: Ye Ye De Smell

My Last.fm statistics say that I've previously heard only a couple of Fela Kuti's songs so it's about time to listen to a whole album. I don't like live albums but in this case the feeling and the groove get the job done. A 16 minute drum solo was a bit too much

4/8

Amazing album. I was really blown away. Impossible to describe besides saying it's just some of the best music you've ever heard. A soundtrack to life. I think "Black Man's Cry" was the favorite track this time.

I do not enjoy these live albums, this one is no exception

crazy grooves in this joint

Fela my beloved

8/10 Sorpresa! Canción preferida: Black man's cry

Not my exact favourite style of music but can very much respect the musical talent and ability, specifically the drumming was awesome.

I didn't get a chance to listen

Impressive horns. Not my genre but good music.

I'm not usually one for live albums or overly long instrumentals, but hot damn! The horns! The drums! Prompted me to start a 1001 Albums Bangers playlist just so I could kick it off with Ye Ye De Smell.

Me gustó, muy bailable, me hace acordar al primer álbum. Le doy 2.5

Let's Start

It's kinda funky, just not my kinda funky

1: Ye Ye De Smell 2: Black Man’s Cry 3: Lets Start

Incredible live album! The performances are just insane and the songs are so hip and funky. It’s honestly a joy to listen to, and you just have ti experience it. The 16 minutes drum solo is a bit too indulgent though.

Fuuuuuuuck yes, this is the stuff. Fela Kuti and his backing band Africa 70 absolutely tear up a set of his signature Afrobeat style, bringing funky fresh grooves and killer horn sections to life with Fela's vocals and Nigerian-inspired compositions. The bonus track with Ginger Baker and Tony Allen doing a dual drum solo from 1978 doesn't hurt either!

Immaculate vibes. What a fun listen!

Very fun, hypnotic grooves and rhythms. Fela Kuti's style just lends itself magnificently to a live setting! Standout: Black Man's Cry

This is really good! I was sleeping on it a little on first listen but I think this is one of those albums that keeps on giving, where you have something new and interesting to enjoy on every listen.

I'm generally not a fan of recorded live music, but this was enjoyable.

Appreciate the cultural impact but the 16 min drum solo was not for me

Nice beats. Felt like New Orleans again. 16 minute Drum solos are not my thing.

Pure fun tied with a bow. Infectious energy and musical cohesion.

I was boppin to this

One of my favorite finds from this list is Fela Kuti and how much I like his music

really liked this. the grooves just kept going. glad this project introduced me to Fela because I enjoyed Zombie as well and would have never heard of him otherwise.

Not bad, a fun listen

el drum solo GOD

Albúm que no conocia, con muy pocas canciones, pero un sonido potente. Mezcla jazz, reggae, afrobeats. Me llamó mucho la atención el último tema del disco, es solo bateria, y es excelente! Mi puntaje es un 9 🫰🏼✨

This was a lovely album, I listened yesterday morning to start the day. I feel there’s not much really to say, it hits on all levels, I was very surprised.

This was a really fresh and revitalising album full of energy , this project has really opened me up to a lot more styles around the world , Bursting with danceable rhythms the African singing coupled with the big band jazz style horns , tribal drums , and mix of funk etc to give felas signature afrobeat sound really opened my ears to some great music that I’d probably revisit The great ginger baker on the last track really pushes his drum solo dynamically giving it that stepped hi hat foot obstinato and playing round the drums , Tony Allen also I need to listen to more and dig into what he’s done , musically a winner this one

I've known Fela Kuti before from his water get no enemy track, which is super infectious. But this album is just a non stop groove it really puts you in a trance and to say it's live too - awesome real human music. Love this one.

Fela's bands are always amazing, but this choice strikes me as weak: Zombie, Expensive Shit, He Miss Road and others are better. I worry this one is on this list just because Ginger Baker showed up. And I mean, the Ginger jam drum solo track is the weakest on the record.

I’m always a bit confused about how to assess live albums next to studio albums since they seem like fundamentally different projects. This album gives me a faint second-hand sense of what it would have been like to be present for an exciting live experience but doesn’t do much for me as an album.

Not my favourite, but the vibe is nice

Solid stuff. It's a very good live album, despite not really being my sort of thing. But it was also fun.

3/5

What a groove! Listened to it 5 times through without even noticing it had repeated.

What can Ginger Baker not do on drums in that period. Phenomenal. Fela Kuti has always been a musician I respected rather than liked. Maybe it was the relisten but it absolutely clicked this time.

While this is not my preferred genre, I appreciate listening to something different (that's NOT British pop-rock). Minus one star for the 16+ minute drum solo. It was quite a piece of art, but ultimately went on too long.

not my style but the music is good just isnt my tune

Fuckin' Fela, man. And Ginger Baker too? Just a great record with absolute killer vibes. Nothing too fancy or mind blowing but killer.

I was already a Fela Kuti fan so although I’m not a lover of a live album, I did enjoy this. They were playing near me not long ago and I didn’t get around to going, don’t think I’ll miss that opportunity again!

Great energy

My third album from the list "1001 albums you must hear before you die" There were no expectations. I saw that it was Jazz and it immediately became clear to me.... I absolutely need to go to a jazz bar. It's necessary for my mental health, God. All I want to say is that I really need to listen to this live. I can imagine how good it can be, but my headphones are not able to convey the full depth and volume of sounds. And my opinion is that jazz is exactly what you should listen to live. And Jazz along with Afrobeat is even more so. But the atmosphere is there anyway. There are only 4 songs here (except for the drum solo by Ginger and Tony(although it's amazing)) and these breaks to communicate with the audience between each song feel so warm. I recommend listening to those who are thinking whether to start listening to Jazz or afrobeat.

8/10 - Afrobeat/Afrofunk (blend of Jazz/Funk & African Rhythms) - Music to make you move & make you happy (very danceable) - Awesome vibes front to back - Sometimes a tiny bit repetitive

The improv is sick on this! Favourite track: Let's Start

Interesting and fun music for the most part but songs seemed to last forever.

fun and funky! great cooking dinner music. could do without the extended drum solo that played as my alarm next morning though.

this is cool and all, i just don't really vibe with live albums

Raspikurkkujen aatelia. Livelevyksi aivan studiolevy kuuloinen ilman spiikkejä.

Ok this is great. I love Ginger Baker’s work on Cream and honestly know nothing else. I think k I heard the name Fela Kuti but couldn’t tell you anything about him. This is some super energetic and funky jazz with African rhythms and super fun dynamics. Great listen even for folks like myself who don’t particularly care for jazz.

Fela Kuti is a fascinating, extremely charismatic performer and figure. Well known for activism and being a pioneer of Afrobeat, Kuti's Live! Is a great document of what made him such a compelling performer. I wish I could better break down exactly what Afrobeat is, but I did like it on here. This album reminded me of jazz more than anything else honestly. Especially in the lengthy, possibly improvised compositions and palette. But regardless, Live! Is colorful, joyful, and appropriately full of life. These are the sort of songs I'd really need to spend some time with to get to their core (or it probably would've helped to be at this performance). But while I listened to this, I really enjoyed it and felt the infectious energy from the performances. I don't think I'm qualified to get super in-depth on this one, but I had a great time either way.

Great stuff!

Uhm I'm thinking yes!

Dope

Gave Fela Kuti a 2 the last time I ranked them. I think I was too harsh. This band slaps with funky goodness. Maybe I just love a live album. The drummer from Cream is on this album as well! It's fun to see peeps from other bands and where they go.

This was a fun album.

I like it even though i didn’t fully listen. It’s funny cuz this was my topic in the TED talk

This was a hard listen. If you like jazz, I think you’ll get away with this. Just. It’s nothing spectacular and I would question that it’s in the top 1000 albums when I think of the albums in the same kind of vein as this. But still not overly bad. I would say, persevere with it and it might just surprise you.

Great record and a full on live jam start to finish!!

That's the kind of energy I want to hear in live performances. You can clearly hear they are having so much fun.

Not my thing but it has grown on me with repeated listens. Each track has aspects that I like but that is not enough for each 15 minute epic to be worth regular revisiting.

heehee

Grooves like a braille bible

- oletan että aikaansa edellä ollaan oltu tämän kanssa, koska tää vois tanssittaa aivan hyvin ens kesän flowssa jengiä - släppää! - drum solo raita oli ehkä vähä turha mut muuten kova platta

alright, not really my thing

Dancing in da kitchen music.

16 minute drum solo? Yeah it's live so I get it. Such high energy for the songs which kept it fun. I enjoyed the album more than I thought I would.

I'll never get used to albums with five long meandering tracks, It's just not how my brain works. It's a certainly got a rhythm though

Elevator music? Energetic jazz? Mixed emotions

Before: This looks fun. I'm anticipating some sort of raucous African reggae-esque beats. Let's see. I think maybe I have something from Fela Kuti on one my favorites by years lists. Nope, it's some other African dude, but I cannot recall his name off hand but I would not be surprised to see him pop up as my album of the day some morning. During: Let's Start, literally. Oh, it's an African James Brown. I do love James Brown's music, is my initial thought upon the beginning of this track which then devolves into some jazzy stuff that I'm not much of a fan of. 13 minutes in now, this way too jazzy for my tastes. I'm leaning towards a 3 at this point. Ye Ye De Smell is great. I kept thinking of some of the stuff the Beastie Boys were doing while listening to this album. I wonder if they were influenced by this artist? After : Overall, it was an enjoyable listen but not one I'll be repeating anytime soon. I would regard it as a high 3.

La la la la la, la la la la, la la la

Fackin great vibes. In the right mood, perfect.

great energy

Not my thing. To me this is forgettable. Could be that it was influential or visionary but I could not tell.

Badass

Can't help but jive.

Fela With Ginger Baker Live! - Fela Kuti Let’s start - 6/10 Black Man’s Cry - 5/10 Ye Ye De Smell 6/10 Egbe Mi O 6/10 Ginger Baker & Tony Allen Drum Solo - 5/10 ФИНАЛНА ОЦЕНА: 5.6 Није мој фазон, превише монотоно али је на моменте звучало океј.

I like Fela Kuti 2

Any reason to listen to fela my top is still zombie

Iconic. Complicated. Grateful for an excuse to spend the time to know his story better. Epic listen

this is an amazing album. Still to this day,

hell yeah

Quite enjoyed listening to this, although more as background music as the tracks are incredibly long, although I liked how rhythmic it was and the energy, particularly the 3rd track, Carry Me. The last track really shouldn't be here though, and I would be more inclined to listen again if the songs were a little shorter and to the point.

Not a bday album, just not really my thing.

Protest music to get the party started.

This has a great beat and Fela’s voice is powerful, but I lost interest halfway through most tracks. I enjoyed the tracks Ginger Baker played on, especially “Ye Ye De Smell.” The bonus track with the 16-minute drum battle between Baker and Tony Allen was a rough listen.

I have to give immense respect to this man for acting as a voice of protest against the military juntas running his country at the time. I also have to respect the excellent rhythms on display here. It sounds like it should be right up my alley with the funky rhythms and groove, but it didn't grab me from the get go, instead being a grower of an album. There are vocals, but they're not in English, so I can't understand what he's actually saying. It's supposed to be political, but I can't tell what his actual message is because I don't speak whichever African language the lyrics are in. Anyway, you can clearly tell that these are great musicians, but a lot of it sounds more like noodly jams than actual songs. That's not inherently a bad thing, as this grew on me the more I listened.

These is one of the best love albums I've ever heard

When the language they are speaking is not your native tongue, you have to depend on the music. Luckily, the music is fantastic, although they tend to be a bit long. I understand that is the point in this style of music but it makes less digestible to people not used to this style of music. The drumming is utterly fantastic & the reason to listen to this. Live 16 minute drum duet!? What's not to love? 3

A bit long, but otherwise not terrible.

Litt kult, men kjedelig. Kommer neppe til å høre på igjen.

Det her var dødskult, fete rytmer og gode vibes

Litt kult, vet ikke om jeg hører på det mange ganger men kult. Funky og sånt.

Bom album, arranjos fodas e musicalidade sólida. 7/10

For meget jamsession, selvom rytmerne er gode.

Probably one of the few in-studio live albums on this challenge. This album is what live albums should be about. Fantastic musicians with great energy throughout. The dream solo was one of the most memorable moments.

Ah, Fela...you cant go wrong with Fela Kuti. This was one of the albums I originally looked into myself when I got the book many years ago, and this was the first Fela Kuti album I got. This isn't even his best album, and it's still an absolute banger. 4.5/5.

it's Fela Kuti, it's like THE Afrobeat sound. The ONLY reason this is getting 4 instead of 5 starts is that I just think albums like Zombie and Gentleman are better in his library so check them out if you like this

First listen Saved 4/5

love fela. his approach is pretty formulaic, but it works. hook, horns, jam it out, bring it down, back in for the finale. big fan. have his boxset something like ~50 albums.

Interesting

I'm all for some y'alla habibi but this gets quite repetitive at times.

Where?!

Fun album.

Having only ever heard singles, this live record really encapsulates the artist, his dynamism and range. Fun peak into the new styles and influences emerging in the 70’s

Good vibes. Great drumming, too. Not really something I'd relisten though. Faves: Let's Start, Egbe Mi O (Carry Me)

Terrible people can make amazing music.

As far as live albums go this one’s a keeper

Ok

i've heard this one. it rips

Really loved hearing his perspective and crowd work ♥️

4/8

Sounds great for live recording

A collaboration between an Afrobeat legend and one of the greatest drummers of all time sounds like a match made in heaven. In reality, it's simply okay. Fela Kuti's in fine form with his vocal and percussion performances, and Ginger Baker's virtuosic drumming goes without saying; he's considered an all-time great of the instrument for a reason. But apart from that brief description, there's not much else to really say about 'Live!'. It's a decent live album with jazz-infused Afrobeat jams. There's no real lyrical content to latch on to, it's simply a means to sit back, relax and let Kuti, Baker and The Africa '70 do their thing for an hour. Best songs: Ye Ye De Smell, Egbe Mi O (Carry Me)

Excellent stuff

Learned Afrobeat = African styles + American jazz. This live-ly album has such energy.

Never heard of this album before. Favorites: Black Man’s Cry Thoughts: I liked it. The history behind this album (Being a live performance with a studio audience, Creation of Afrobeat) is cool. Great percussion throughout and I like the vibe. This isn’t something I can listen to whenever though.

A nice album. Good music.

amelie liked da horns

i love horns

Super funky. Ginger Baker rocks too.

Rätt ballt

Bra vibes!

Trummande utlovades och trummande levererades sannerligen! Gillar ändå att de gick all in.

Like very lively jazz.

Great for a live album, unique and funky.

Smooth and delightful

Love an afro-beat album. Beats so good he got 27 women to marry him. Not my favorite of his but it still hits.

There are parts of every song that sound like when you don't hit snooze on your alarm and it just keeps playing over and over and over and over and over again. Decent album for background music during a galaxy gas sesh.

Don’t usually jump for an album where every song is 10+ minutes but I enjoyed this. Very chill with great beats overall!

Was good, felt like agreeable background music. The 16 minute drum solo at the end was pretty boring though.

Bingo bango bongo I don't wanna listen to anything other than 60 minutes of Afro jazz percussion.

grosse vibe afrobeat

Nice album! Liked the sounds.

good, but a bit boring

interessante demais

LOVE, good energetic art making music

This is another certified African (fusion?) banger. Why do I simultaneously love and loathe what Ginger Baker and Ry Cooder did for African music? I sure wish they didn’t, but I’m kinda glad they did. All hail white saviors!

My algorithm never woulda brought me here, but I’m glad this did. Very fun.

Absolute grooves! Charismatic frontman with a tight backing band. The sound has such depth and clarity that you would forget it's a live album. Long-winded but keeps the listener's interest piqued throughout.

Percussionists wet dream. Sounds like music made for trendy late night bars. I liked it, the 15 min drum jam on the last track may have been a bit much for me but overall good stuff if you are in the mood or want something to play in the background to set atmosphere. 3.4

Bloody awful. These guys are good musicians but Christ this was hard work to get to the end. Jam after jam after jam for over an hour. I never liked ginger baker and this has made me like him even less.

Свято життя

Фела Куті кайф, тут ще й оцей драм-батл між Тоні Аленом і Джинджером Бейкером, топова атмосфера живого концерту. Все сподобалось.

There's an old joke my dad told me when I was a kid. What do coffee and Ginger Baker have in common? They both suck without Cream. After listening to this album, I wholeheartedly disagree. Not only do I prefer my coffee black, Ginger Baker was one of the GOATs in terms of drumming and creativity. Fela Kuti never disappoints and throwing Baker into the fold really just takes this to the next level.

Fed rytmisk impro, god energi. Sikkert grinern live. Lidt lang trommesolo i sidste nummer

Fedt, anstrengende i længden men fela kuti, ægte legende

puh, blev lidt gak af de lange tromme-stykker undervejs, særligt på sidste sang (omg - man skulle nok have været der) men ellers har det bare været funky og dejligt at høre.

Fela Kuti! How did I forget about you? I listened to a couple of albums years ago and then... lost in my memory. What a pleasure to listen to this. We need more Afrobeat in the world.

PUTO AMO FELA!!!

Nigerian Icon! I grew up listening to Fela with my family so this is a pleasant surprise. It was a very enjoyable listen to hear all of these songs live from the long intros, to Fela’s adlibs and the help of Afrika 70 and Ginger Baker with the drumming and instruments. All of the songs in this album were great from the opener ‘Let’s Start’ which could still be viewed as an anthem today, to Black Man’s Cry’, ‘Ye Ye De Smell’, ‘Egbe Mi O’ and the ‘Ginger Baker and Tony Allen Drum Solo’. It melded a vivacious blend of highlife and jazz that I’ve grown up to love in a Nigerian family. This album is also one of the easiest 5/5’s so far! - GEMV (21.01.2026)

Not my style of music.

There's some great drumming on this record (obviously). Also, the amount of chaos Fela and Ginger probably got into when they were hanging out is probably legendary.

This is my shit! Loved this album! The African jazz, and funk, and soul all mixed into one beautiful record is exactly the type of music I love!

I felt the funk, the lyrics spoke to me, and it all culminated in a 16 minute drum off where the Cream rose to the top, or something.

Vibes

Afrobeat is a new genre to me and I really enjoyed this one, especially the drum solo.

Ginger Baker e Tony Allen na percussão, dupla de peso, Fela Kuti no vocal e a banda Africa 70 o acompanhando. Combinação explosiva, sem igual. A nata do Afro Jazz. Ritmos imparáveis e grooves impagáveis. Canções envolventes. Álbum impecável, repleto de performances explosivas, de fazer o chão tremer. Preciso o quanto antes comprar esse álbum, ele é uma adição inestimável para qualquer coleção. A banda toca de maneira precisa e afinada. Algumas seções de teclado, a percussão conjunta, as seções de brass, o baixo dançante, tudo trabalhando em conjunto em composições progressivamente vivas e agitadas. Disco companheiro para a labuta cotidiana de metrópoles imundas. Sinto isso, ao tocar esse número você de fato incorpora um ‘cool cat’, com um cigarrillo balançando na boca, óculos aviador, passos beatniks desenfreados. A faixa final no Streaming é, na realidade, uma faixa bônus, com um dueto de bateria brilhante entre Ginger e Allen. E apesar de ser apenas um bônus, é uma adição maravilhosa ao pacote, extremamente comovente. Nunca é avassalador. Sempre deixa um espacinho pra você respirar. Disco orgânico e vivo. O melhor tipo. 5/5

Amazing art! I hear James Brown, and African jams and AMAZING DRUMS! 4/5

What a groovy fun afternoon this led to

Får 3 stjerner pga. en klassiker, men der er bedre Miles Davis.

Early 70s groove with a touch of funk. I so dig those African beats with that jazzy jam session. It's a mood and a good one too. Definitely an album that's going on my Discogs wishlist.

Album Review 050 Live! by Fela Kuti (1970) Rating 3/5 I’ve never been a fan of live albums; out of the 3,000+ albums I’ve ever bought, I’d say that less than 10 are live recordings. It’s not that I don’t love live music, I just find that one listen of a live album is often enough. So, Live! By Fela Kuti was always going to be a hard sell to me. Fela is widely seen as the key figure in the Afrobeat genre and this album showcases what is great about his music, his band, and Afrobeat in general. It’s funky, jazzy, and Tony Allen’s complex and prominent rhythm section drives the whole performance - as I would have expected. The album doesn’t disappoint and there’s a lot of energy here, but if I were to choose something for repeated listens, my preference would be to go with one of his studio albums from the mid/late-70’s*. *(hoping either Expensive Shit or Zombie are elsewhere on the 1001 generator)

Boring!

Fella Kuti. The magical world I can create with the simplest of changes to text. An extra "L" takes a run of the mill jazzy beatnik, and turns him into a guy named fella. And besides a fella named guy, I don't know anything that could be more radical than that. This album contains some reasonable jazz rippage, but it's too often interrupted by grunting, and rote crowd-pleasing rhythms. If not crowd pleasing, then certainly plodding. For the record, I like crowd-displeasing music. The type of music that causes nightclubs to shut down. Overturned velvet rope stands, unsold Moscow Mules and perhaps actual mules slowly chewing on flyers for the unattended "Ladies Night." If it can be enjoyed by a swath of people, or performatively winced through by a white guy living in an overpriced apartment in an "up-and-coming" neighbourhood, count this humble reviewer, out. 2.5 HIGHLIGHTS: The closing drums

3.5 - Good

Fun jazzy afro beats

hell yeah

I couldn’t find this actual album, but I did listen to his live album and it was fantastic. Great easy listening, hard listening background music, foreground music. Loved it.

No expensive shit on the list? Worldie nonetheless

I've got this album on vinyl. I adore Fela, fantastic record

It’s impressive but I won’t return to it

i did not like it at all, sounded very messy to be honest

five songs one hours is crazy work loving all the different elements coming together. drummer goes crazy. piano man goes crazy. crazy jazz. Will be putting this on in the background when I am doing just anything

This was 70s dude, definitely need to listen to this again

Not the best fella. But still great

Huh love this guy!

Definitely one of the best live albums I've listened to. Fel Kuti i have listened to from time to time, as well Cream. These type of collabs are often hit or miss, but this was certainly a hit. The flow, the rhythm, and clearly the pure joy of music expressed through different cultures.

African jazz…somehow much more enjoyable then most American jazz I’ve heard. The part before he introduces Ginger Baker is definitely better than the rest. 3.5 stars

African rock with Ginger Baker. The documentary this is from should be a cool watch.

Much more fun than the last one.

Funky drummers!

This is great… the fantastic percussion keeping a constant level of energy that kept these long songs consistently interesting and at times, infectiously toe-tapping! I can't see it being something I come back to a lot but it's one to keep in the back pocket for when the mood suits.

Some good moments in this album but it's just too repetitive for me.

Some of the tracks were an… ‚ok’? background for working, but some were really obnoxious and distracting, like Black Man’s Cry. Whoever decided it should be listened to before death should be hanged.

This was a strange one to listen to. The songs felt a little dragged out and too long. I've got nothing wrong with longer songs as a lot of the music I've heard does this, but it has to be done right. This felt way too repetitive in parts and I couldn't really vibe with a lot of it. Ginger Baker is obviously an amazing drummer but a 16 minute drum solo to end is another example of dragging something out. I'll give 2 stars because there were a couple of interesting parts throughout.

Felt mixed about this one at points, excellent background music when doing other things, but when it was my sole focus i started having flashbacks to the 40 minute continuous jazz piano performance i once sat through during which i oscillated between trying as hard as i could to manifest pyrokinesis in order to trigger a fire alarm and accepting my death and new home in jazz based purgatory. That said i think there is nothing more magical than hearing a room full of voices singing together.

Funky coolness!

This was fun, enjoyed the live element, and the energy and intimacy of that! 4 stars for the impressively long drumming solo

Hell yeah. This album was so much fun! I secretly love a live album (I feel like they are controversial? But I want to FEEL like I’m THERE). Excellent poolside listening and I was really surprised that the drum solo was my fave track.

Found this fun to listen to and enjoyed hearing the little live bits

This is really impressive musically in a way that frankly I just can’t appreciate as well as I think the musicians deserve. Feels hard to give it an honest review when I haven’t got enough musical theory knowledge to know if what they’re doing is truly great or not.

Super fun, funky, and fast-paced..pure energy. Had to skip the drum solo for my nervous system. My standouts: All

Some great instrumental work but also some annoying vocals and far too many overbearing long boring drum solos.

This is what this project is about. It's a fun album and a look into a world that I wouldn't have known about otherwise. Afrobeat is fun to listen to, but I don't think I'll listen often.

It was fine. World music doesn't often "wow" me, but it didn't mind listening to this. Nothing really stood out to me though.

Just not clicking with this like I hoped to

Nice sounds, some chill afro type rhythmns but didn't stand out to me much as anything special. Almost 3 stars but simply not something I would go back to.

Bangin'

This is a great album selection...especially for those whose blood runs cold when they hear the words "drum solo".

I’ve never heard anything like that, totally new experience for me. Im willing to learn more about afrobeat The drums are absolutely killing it. But I couldn’t seat through the whole thing though

Beautiful history piece as well

New to me. Super fun and easy listening.

Not for me

Truly much better than expected.

It’s Fela. I like the non-live ones more

This was a fun listen. No standouts, just quality live music.

Baker and Allen together, what a treat. Always for Fela and his hypnotic sound.

liked the introductions of the music and the music, but 5 songs in an hour- idk about that, fine nonetheless

groovy drum solo too long black man's cry and egbe mi o are faves i like the heckle at the start of egbe, nice break

good vibes, just a little long & repetitive

Groovy as. A a drummer, I loved the drums and rhythms on this. Do feel like the last track dragged on a bit however. Didn't feel as tight as the other tracks. Incredible nontheless.

canciones larguisimas wow

pretty decent but the songs are12 minutes long and theres a minute of talking before the song starta and i get bored. Again probably 3.5 but ill round up

Surprisingly I enjoyed this one

wait I'M SO ANNOYED !!!!! i took notes and it looks like they didn't save 😭😭 ....anyways, trying to remember....... I lowkey think I manifested an album of longer songs via my comment ab the previous album.... This was a really interesting album. It is not something I think I would have listened to or even discovered without this project. Egbe Mi O (Carry Me) - standout to me !!

the jazzy, funky, heavy instrument afrobeat sound is one i find engaging and easy to listen to i liked how long the songs were, i feel like you rly settled into the beat, the songs kinda blended in a way that felt cohesive this being a live album rly added to it for me, i liked in the last few songs when you could hear people in the crowd, i feel like the music has a lot of energy, so hearing the audience react and engage with it was cool ending the album w a 16 minute long drum solo is such a power play bonus: was curious so i did google fela kuti and he is one interesting guy, him marrying 27 women in one day is a fun fact i will not soon forget

Interesting, not my usual style but had some fun beats and lots of impressive percussion, may never listen again but enjoyed it

Vibin! 10/10

The first example of one of the rock/pop fraternity fusing with Africa - great to hear Tony Allen as well. The birth of afrobrat (for western ears). Goes on a bit but fela kuti is very charismatic and this lays down foundations for WOMAD and such like.

Was ok

Such a powerhouse of an album. Also the live recording is stunning. So much fun!

i would not have heard of this album if not for this generator. definitely one you listen to fully

In the true spirit of jazz all of the tracks on this album are long as shit

Definitely slaps but the mood's gotta be right for sure

Delightful!

fun project! loved the instrumental a lot overall: 3.5/5 favourite tracks: ye ye de smell, egbe mi o least favourite track: ginger baker and tony allen drum solo

Repetitive, nothing really that special. Why is this album on this list?

Mr Kuti seems like a cool Fela. Enjoyed the drum battle and black man's cry. Drags on a bit but a fairly easy listen overall.

I've known about Fela Kuti for some time, and have been meaning to check him out, but this is my first time listening to an album of his. This is exactly what I was expecting, and it's solid. I'll definitely check out more Fela Kuti albums.

Normally I quite like Fela Kuti but I found this a bit self-indulgent. There's nothing wrong with the music, the playing, or the singing, it just all goes on a bit without variety. I also did not need a sixteen minute drum solo, however virtuoso.

Not my style

Ikke fundet