Femi Kuti

It's ok I guess a bit long. Nowhere near as good as anything his father made 5/10 Favourite: Frustrations Least Favourite: Survival

Not bad. Not my bag, but not bad either. It's hard to get into 8 min songs when it's not really blowing your skirt up.

I really didn't feel this one... especially once it got into maybe homophobic lyrics? It was the definition of what I consider a 2 star, I wouldn't necessarily get up to turn it off, but I would ask.

Ziemlich lang und nicht so meins. 2 1/2.

I really dislike the saxophone, especially when it's being used to create an overly harsh, loud sound, so I really hated the beginning of "Wonder Wonder." The the rest of the opening song was great, though. Overall, the album was alright, and I would probably give it a 3 if his style of playing the sax were different.

Survival sounded like an OSU marching band version of Metallica's Disposable Heroes. After that I heard a few more marching band-type songs and because of that I can't say I'd ever want to listen to this album again. Unless of course it's during a halftime show at a football game at some D1 American school.

Repetitive and very long songs

Another hour-longer? Fuck my fucking shitty musiccel life https://youtu.be/Hqaa4VY4v9o The Kuti lineage is in poor standing with me. Back in January I listened to "Live" by Fela Kuti, an album I ostensibly did not like. I considered it the worst album that I had or would ever receive from the list because of the general animosity that I held towards live albums, jazz albums (I guess it didn't really qualify) and longform music. That being said, I don't actually remember anything about the music itself. Preamblepreamblepreamble. Did I like this album? Uhh, yeah. The brass sections were very strong and not at all what I was expecting from something "exotic" and "ethnic". I also like the two kinds of percussion on this album, whatever instruments they may be. Femi Kuti is a good vocalist/songwriter and the backing vocalists did a surprising amount of heavy lifting. My problem comes from the fact that this album and it's songs are too fockingGUGGUGUDGGGgggg long. I wasn't just twiddling my thumbs with this one. I was quantifying new, expert techniques of twiddling that will no doubt revolutionise the twiddlympics once they roll around.

I didnt dislike this, but it didnt grab me. Some fine african rhythms but there wasnt a hook for me to get it.

..

2.5 It’s good, and I know it’s very well liked and respected, but it’s just not a style of music I’ve ever going to get into. I respect it, though.

An unexpected album and uncharted water for me — but it was nice. I don’t think I’d listen again, really, but I did find it charming and I appreciated the message despite it not really being my specific cup of tea. He has a very friendly sort of voice, which I liked. But the songs were a little too long and just not quite my jam — a 2 simply because I wouldn’t listen to it in the future, not because it’s bad.

It was alright. Songs were a bit long

Albums like this are often referred to as World music. Which is a lazy description as it also applies to music outside our sphere of normal listening. Thanks to the likes of Peter Gabriel and Paul Simon I have discovered and can appreciate some African music but I don’t think that I am qualified at all to make a serious judgement. So I can only make a basic assessment of this based on how emotionally it makes me feel. In this instance I do not like it. I’m sure others will see good in it but I cannot. Just shows that music appreciation is a basic instinct influenced largely to what you have been exposed to all your life so anything outside that struggles to grab your attention and enjoyment. 2/5 11/3/25

._.

se me hizo demasiadooo largo

I can tell Femi Kuti is good at what he does. Respect, but not for me 5.3/10

Couldn't get into it, not my thing.

non riesco a non leggere: fermi tutti

barely listened

Fun record to dance to

I liked it a bit at first but then it felt really repetitive

Sounded okay but no good way to evaluate further since not in English.

Not for me.

Очень эскапичный. Некоторые треки - терапия радикального оптимизма. Большой минус за длину треков, выдерживать это было тяжело

Seems good quality, but not my style

Almost 600 albums in, I feel that the "loved this while cooking Sunday morning breakfast " trope is much more of an insult than a compliment. A highly rated album demands attention and can't simply blend into the background of life. Conversely, depending on taste, ANY record has those Sunday morning vibes if we grant them.

Fun music but doesn’t really stick out for me.

I wish I liked it because it’s unique among a lot of the list, but it didn’t work for me. Interesting but will not revisit.

2.5

Didn't really interest me. Nothing remarkable or memorable about it.

Fair

I don't dislike it, but it's not really my jam. Mid to high twos.

I'm listening to these albums on youtube (I don't have any of the music subscription services) and there was no 'complete' album I could find. I had to find the tracks individually, I didn't manage to find all of them. It's possible all that extra effort clouded my judgement but I wasn't ever really 'feeling' the music. The fact I put in this extra effort for a few tracks probably means it's about 2 stars.

Starts off strong but grows increasingly one-note as it goes on.

Maybe it's my mood today - couldn't get into this. 2/5

Varmaan hyvää musiikkia, mutta ei sellaista, jota itse haluaisin kuunnella.

I cant get over the production.

not enough words

Although I can appreciate that some talent went into this album, it really left me cold. I guess it made me think about what the purpose of music actually is. I can think of many reasons to listen to music, to relax, to dance, to make you contemplate the deep lyrics, to enjoy "the chills" from a particular musical arrangement, appreciation of an artist mastering an instrument, etc. This album just doesn't do anything for me. It's generic afrobeat music that could serve as background music in a film maybe, or a brief snippet in a carnival. I couldn't imagine taking the 70 minutes plus test of endurance ever again, as this was just too long and repetitive. Once I'd heard the first couple of minutes, I felt like I'd basically heard everything the album had to offer me, and then the remaining hour or so was just hammering home how much I dislike this form of music. I like long tracks, but this was relentless with almost every track going on and on and on, way longer than felt right. For the first half an hour or so, it almost felt like time had slowed down to a crawl, and I was horrified to find I wasn't even halfway through. I was tempted to give this 1 star, and I feel it's hovering very close between 1 and 2 stars, but it's not quite awful enough for a single star rating. I found that playing it in the background while I worked allowed me to get through to the end.

I like this genre, but I don’t understand the nuance to really embrace a whole album. I was just waiting for it to end.

This album has interesting drum beats, which is what you would be looking for when listening to this. But for me, there isn't a whole lot to like outside of that. The songs aren't super compelling to me and the album length seems overly long to me. Doubt I would come back to this one.

2,5

was alright. Don't think I'd listen to it again.

Good music. Didn't love it, but, it was good.

I have to give this a 2/5. I kind of like to listen to it for short periode of time, but it’s too long, and I have to choose the correct situation to enjoy it in.

What I like about the album is that it sounds like it was recorded in the 70's, there's no polished, pristine and sterile production value that's been gutting music of its lifeforce since the 1980's. That being said, I don't find the music to be all that compelling. I never heard of this guy and after listening to this album I have no desire to hear anything else by him. It's not terrible, it's not offensive, but it also doesn't grab you, it doesn't shake you, it doesn't make you turn your head. No one's going to pull out their phone and Shazam anything on this album, except maybe the last song "Changes" easily the best song here.

cos innego, jeden fajny utwor, reszta troche sie dluzy po 8 9 minut, przypomina funky jazz ale taki irytujacy

Too busy for my taste

reggae con un saxo muy potente, me gusta regu

The album did not feel as long as it actually was. Very easy to listen to.

Not bad but will take a few listens

Meh? It was okay, but not an enjoyable listen.

Afrobeat from the 90's

Oh dear, not my thing either :(

Good ish

At last a bit more diversity, this time Femi Kuti. On my first play, the album is an enjoyable listen. But not much more than that. 2/5

This is obviously high quality musicianship but, having listened to Fela Kuti for years, I am just over this music. The novelty is gone, I fail to hear any significant dynamic or tonal shift between songs to keep me interested. It is music that just goes and goes in the background. Great if you wan to give your mid city cafe a little ambience, not so great to pick and listen to.

Wonder Nawa Plenty Nonsense

boring

Not sure why but I couldn't really get into this

Ein bißchen aus der Zeit gefallener Ethnokram

Just as much jazz as it is Afro-Pop, I can’t say I’ve heard anything like this before because frankly…I haven’t. Not something I’ll return to but overall it is musically well put together. Lavish instrumentation mixed with high level execution.

As much as I enjoy world music, I found every song sounded the same and just blended together. Listen again: no Purchase for my collection: no Favourite Song: none

Just can't do afrobeat. Never heard of the genre before this list but sadly it just does absolutely zero for me. Feels wrong to give it 1* as it's not offensive, just not for me.

I like Afro best but this didn’t really resonate with me. I didn’t really get into the groove, it felt quite drawn out

Not tooo bad but it is still jazz so it can get in the bin

It's funky but I have no interest in seeking this album out again.

Femi Kuti can be described as big band jazz with a tribal rhythm section and lyrics sung by Sebastian the crab. While some of the album had great, high energy riffs, and exciting saxophone/trumpet/guitar solos, it really wasn't that good of an album. When I went to learn more about this album, I was shocked to see that the Wikipedia page is literally only five sentences long. The only accolade is that its in "1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die". The author's bias is astounding.

Not my jam

Femi Kuti is the third album by Nigerian musician Femi Kuti. This release through Motown's Tabu Records label was the first introduction of Kuti and afrobeat music to the rest of the world. Afrobeat is a mixture of traditional West African musical styles with American funk, jazz, and soul music along with a focus on percussion, interesting rhythms, and chanting. The album performed well critically and is important for bringing afrobeat to the world stage. I thought this was a wonderful album, although not as popular as many other albums on this journey. The music is entertaining and the production is well done, so there's not many negatives about this album. If you're interested in afrobeat, then give Femi Kuti a listen.

The mix is really good. Music is also good but not really my style. The album drags on a little too long. Will I listen to again: 15%

Some fun instrumentals but all of the songs seem to plod on. I'd expect heavier non-vocal work to drive where the album is trying to go.

It's ok?

First track is interesting. The rest is meh.

Decent blev meget langtrukkent til sidst

Not my type of music.

Sorry, just not my bag. Can appreciate the talent but not for me.

Summer morning on the weekend vibe. Can't relate atm

Ohi

Groovy stuff, but not very memorable

I'm getting African music with some jazz and reggaeton, pretty interesting

interesting

This album is alright, just not something I am interested in listening to.

2 stars

Some was interesting

Super meh.

Not my type of music. I like the second song with the xylophone.

Not my music, but it was enjoyable to listen to in the background

It was fine.

Album was okay, but the random song that Spotify put on after it was fire

Boring pt 2

Not bad, but not for me. I like the afrobeat element, not the jazzy side so much. And the songs seem to go on forever.

J'ai pas trop la ref là

i miss Miracle Tones ....

Not really my type of music, I guess. Some of the sax parts are fun to listen to, though, I am pretty sure I will not pick this up again.

not my vibe

Skimmed

Different flavored. Decent and disciplined horn section. Attempted Bob Marley.

I dont get it. It sounds like stuff people say they like so that other people don't think that they're "culturally insensitive" or "racist" when in fact they'd rather be listening to almost anything else. His dad's music was much better.

It’s fine. 2/5

Not my thing

Songs are too long, they’re nice to study to, aren’t too distracting, but they drag on when you notice it. Not my favorite however also not terrible

Not for me

I honestly don’t really like songs this long. Some of them were nearly 10 minutes long, which is just too long for my taste. I was worried this was going to be a purely instrumental album at first, but luckily it was just a very long intro in wonder wonder. I guess I have a short attention span but I just don’t like songs this long unless I’m listening straight through an album, but if it’s just on my normal playlist I feel like it just breaks up other songs and doesn’t fit, even if I like the song. Songs like this with a lot of just instrumental are better for background music in my opinion that they are for attentive listening. I didn’t dislike any of the songs necessarily, I just wouldn’t go out of my way to listen to them individually. I liked the jazz sound of survival, frustration, etc. His voice is nice too. Tbch I did skip through some of them like ¾ of the way through….they’re just so long…. I’m also confused about the placement of the intro. Oh wait, now I get it it’s not an intro for the album but for the song Nawa? I’ve never seen that done before, that's interesting. Nawa reminds me of walking into class in 5th grade and taking baths. The low ratings are not because I dislike the songs. I just don’t see me ever wanting to listen to them again because not much stood out to me and they blended together.

Interesting rhythms... but not really my thing.

African folk pop

This just wasn't for me. I didn't find it offensive, but it was boring and repetitive. Any small part is nice enough, but it didn't do anything for me constructed into a song structure. 2/5

Not my thing. The playing is obviously talented and there are some nice grooves but the songs just dragged.

I didn't hate it, surprisingly. It's way too long, which I don't love, but some of the beats and some of the instrumentals are really fun. But I also have no desire to put it on again, either. This is a 2.5 album that I'm bumping down to a two simple because of the unecessary length.

No thanks

Fun beat, but overly long with very little distinction between songs.

Interesting stuff. That's all I've got.

Bored me a bit.

Every track started out fun and interesting but just lasted too darn long to maintain my interest.

You, sir, are no Fela Kuti.

I don't know, man. Afrobeat never was my genre but here's just so much saxophone on this record. The songs are slickly produced but, somehow, rarely engaging and, by about halfway through, everything began to sound the same. And there were just so many saxophone solos. So many.

Not my cup of tea but it wasn't bad.

It was okay! This isn’t particularly my jam. Glad to be exposed to some Afrobeat music in here, though!

Hmm. Not my thing, but I don't hate it.

This one was pretty fun to listen to, although it did overstay it's welcome. Something like this could be reduced down to 30-40 minutes and be fine. 70+ minutes of this does not do much for me. I liked some parts of these songs, it just kind of all blends in after a while.

Funky and upbeat. a bit samey after a while. Cover art 2/5

For one of the best 1001 albums, the wikipedia entry is pretty scant. Starts of sounding like bad 80s jazz before becoming the sound of dirty hippy stoners in the mid-90s and keeps on this path throughout.

Not my favorite afropop

The songs here are not made for those with short attention spans. Afrobeat goes on and on and on. There are flashes of excellent parts but then it just seems to fall apart and move into blandness again. It wouldn't be so bad if the tunes were good but it all just blends into one jumble of noise. It feels like something hipsters would put on at a dinner party. I just hope I'm not at it. Best Tracks: Wonder Wonder; Nawa; Plenty Nonsense

Meh

I don’t love jazz

Not for me. The songs are just way too long and repetitive to be enjoyable. Nice that it's on the list though, it's important to have some world music, just not my kind of music.

I was not familiar with this artist before. The album was a little long and the songs were long 6-9 minutes long. The songs turned into a jam session. I am not sure I would seek this album out again.

Jazzy funky Afro beat music. Perfectly ok, but I wouldn’t listen to it. Stand out tracks are No Shame and Live For Today

Not to my liking

“The album introduced Femi Kuti and afrobeat to an international audience.”

not terrible

blergh

I can respect all the sounds and everything they are able to do. Just isn’t for me

Clearly talented but totally not my thing

Eh. Probably wouldn’t listen again.

Some quite catchy tunes but it gets a bit samey and some of the tracks feel a bit too long. Half of the songs last for close to 10 minutes!

Maybe it is the way jazz is, even "world jazz", but i find this more stressful than enjoyable to listen to. It's bold, brash and all over the place.

1995: Wonder Wonder

This album is not my jam. I can appreciate the cool Afro Beats, but it's not something that I'd willingly listen to. The arrangements were very long, which dragged out the album. Best: Wonder Wonder Worst: Stubbor Problems

Didn't really care for it either way

Good grooves but tracks just went on and on and were all pretty same-ish to my ears.

Kinda enjoyed, wouldn't listen to any more 2.4

My first experience with afrobeat!! Enjoyable listen, starts strong with Wonder Wonder. This feels like you stepped off the plane in West Africa for the first time. Hope you like brass and percussion.

An ok reggae funk album. Probably would’ve been better without lyrics. The beats are good but the album runs pretty long and gets dull a bit. 4.9/10

Couldn't finish this one. Not my vibe at all.

meh

Some decent grooves but not for me

Great voice and a few high points music wise, but it has way too much saxophone and isn't a genre I'd listen to again.

I don't get it. If you are going to pick 2 or 3 African albums for a list like this one, why would you go for the ones with the most Western influence, where the sophisticated intertwining rhythms characteristic of the best African music are blunted in favor of weak funk and jazz tropes and the distinctive sound palette of the various African countries is traded in for standard Western instrumentation, like a sub-Tower of Power horn section, and electric piano? That objection aside, there is nothing particularly wrong with Femi Kuti. It passes by painlessly enough. Femi Kuti is decent if unremarkable singer. The musicians are competent enough. But the music is a micron deep. There are no interesting rhythms to dig into. The horn section writing is unimaginative. Soloing is often a weak point in African music, and so it is here. Since the songs almost entirely of vamps, it's a whole lot of nothing. 2/5

Past goed bij de tropische omstandigheden, maar ik heb toch iets te weinig met wereldmuziek. Na een paar nummers afgezet.

Ik werd wat onrustig van die toeters die maar door en door bleven toeteren.

Disco ameno, pero poco donde rascar mas

Not there for me, muchas de las canciones suenan muy semejantes, y aunque es bueno descubrir música de otras culturas, a la mitad del álbum ya me había aburrido

Not my cup of tea I'm afraid.

It was ok

Not for me.

It's nice to hear something different, though this doesn't really go anywhere or do anything interesting. It's listenable and happily sits in the background without catching my attention too much.

Very upbeat, songs are sooooo long though, I have an hour plus commute and only got through 7 songs.

I just don't care about this kinda stuff

Ass

Utterly forgettable, nothing worthy of an entry here.

0.00

nul nul nul

DNF

No thanks. Not until I'm on a holiday in a hot climate with beer and lions.

2/10… afrobeat / afrojazz / *1995

didn't like it

Not for me

Jazz, African. Ok music

Just didn't have the patience cos it ain't my thing.

Sorry, the sax makes it almost unhearable for me. Had to cut it.

Not for me!

Just awful. It was 1995, why does it sound like 1987? Just after the 80s production sound boon, when they made everything to sound like it was all recorded on the same Casio. Sounds like something from a cruise. Marinee.

Musicians of the 1990s: you do not need to fill up the whole capacity of the CD. I had to listen to this in three shifts because it's far too long and I wasn't enjoying it at all. Maybe I was just in the wrong mood for it, and it's definitely not music for headphones. For each album on the list, I've been picking one song to put on a playlist. With this album, I picked a song at random, but I had tried to get through it rather than actively listening to it.

I hate Jazz.

Não gostei. Não gosto desse estilo musical. 2/10

What a relentlessly repetitive album. And it just keeps going. And going. And going. A 1.

Nein Danke, nichts für mich!

not me.

Das selbstbetitelte Album wurde 1995 veröffentlicht und größtenteils 1994, vermutlich in Studio Davout in Paris, aufgenommen. Femi Kuti, ein nigerianischer Musiker und Sohn des Afrobeat-Pioniers Fela Kuti, spricht hier in klarer, persönlicher Stimme zu seinem Erbe. Er führt die nigerianische Tradition fort, mischt Funk, Jazz und afrikanische Rhythmen und lässt dabei seine Band „Positive Force“ mitwirken. Das Album gehört zum Genre Afrobeat – eine Mischung aus Jazz, Funk, Highlife und typischen Westafrikarhythmen, die vor allem von Fela geprägt wurde. Femi variiert im eigenen Stil: seine Stücke sind tendenziell kürzer strukturiert, ergänzen starke Tanzrhythmen um prägnante Bläserarrangements. Bekannte oder stilprägenden Songs auf dem Album sind „Wonder, Wonder“, „Survival“, „Frustrations“, „Plenty Nonsense“ sowie „Live for Today“ – Titel, die typische afrobeat‑Muster aufgreifen: treibende Rhythmen, repetitive Grooves, kombinierte Bläser‑ und Percussion‑Führung. Das Album bietet durchgehend dichte, instrumentale Arrangements und vermittelt eine Mischung aus politischem Bewusstsein und tanzbaren Stücken. Die Musikerleistung ist präzise, die Produktion wirkt rund und klar, ohne überladen zu sein. Persönlich empfand ich, dass sich Femi hier bewusst aus dem Schatten seines Vaters bewegt, indem er groovigere und kompaktere Stücke präsentiert – das wirkt eigenständig, weniger sperrig. Abschließende Bewertung: Ein solides Album, das Afrobeat modernisiert und Femi Kuti als ernstzunehmenden Künstler etabliert, auch wenn ihm die Originalität des Vaters nicht ganz erreicht.

not for me

I am getting a little bit annoyed that now we are getting nearly half way through and this is the third offering from Mr Kuti, who as far as I can understand has had an influence on precisely NO-ONE. and still had nothing from Roy Harper who was a definite influence on members of bands as iconic as Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin. It is what it is. It's played well, but to me it is more Cuban than African, I don't usually associate the trumpet with Africa, and there seemed to be quite a lot in this. And it is over produced and too clean to have any authenticity. It wasn't unpleasant to have on in the background but nothing special. So, as its inclusion here appears to be utterly pointless I can only give it 1

An interesting African album, unfortunately I have no idea whether this is in any way 'African sounding' or it's Western influenced, so I'll judge it on what it was: not for me.

עד מתי שנות ה90

הקטעי נגינה בהרבה מהמקרים היו טובים אבל זה פשוט כנראה לא הסגנון שלי או משהו מתנשא כזה

No thanks.

1. uuonder - 1.5 2. zurvival - 1.5 3. fuztrationz - 1 4. nauua - 0 5. nauua too - 1 6. plenty - 1 7. problemz - 1.5 8. zhame - 1.5 9. today - 1 10. changez - 1.5

Long, but seemed endless, every song going on and on repetitively with upbeat jazzy rhythms that drove me insane.

painful...but not as bad ás GI

No es de mi agrado

Long. Boring. Shit. Only on this list bc his daddy

Amazing. Keep up the good work!

p764. 1995. 1 star. Probably fine if you like meandering Afrobeat noodling. I don't.

Op het moment dat 's ochtends zo'n wereldmuziek album verschijnt voelt het toch altijd alsof de lijst je contributie komt innen. Af en toe word ik dan wel verrast hoe leuk het is, maar in de meeste gevallen is het niet aan mij besteed en is het een kwestie van uitzitten. In dit geval is het dat laatste. Het album doet me aanvankelijk weinig tot niks (wat me meevalt), maar nadat ik ongeveer een half uurtje heb liggen weken komen de tetterende koperen blazers in 'Nawa' succesvol m'n toch al vrij dunne, beschermende eeltlaag laagje voor laagje wegschrapen. Nawa is overduidelijk gemaakt om me pijn te doen. Als het irritatiemonster eenmaal uit de kooi is gaat 'ie moeilijk weer terug naar binnen. Ik ben het getetter na een minuut of 35 (ik vind zelf dat ik het lang heb volgehouden) helemaal beu, maar de beugels zitten stevig vastgeklikt en de achtbaan is al aan het rollen. De call en response van de zanger en zangeressen in 'Plenty Nonsense' blijft op me inbeuken tot ik helemaal murw ben. Herhaling, herhaling, herhaling. Een slijtageslag. Een uur en een kwartier is een hele lange zit. Alle nummers zijn rond de 10 minuten, wat het tempo er voor het gevoel nog meer uithaalt. Ik ga een één uitdelen. Het is objectief gezien helemaal niet slecht, maar ik vind het wel enorm kut(i).

Nope

Sorry but I do not like African jazz either

Ruim demais, meu Deus

No

Not for me

- Frustration 1.5/5

Nope

Mahtipontista ja/tai juustoista ja/tai tylsästi jammailevaa.

Not my kind of music.

Shit

Not for me.

A period of time I'm never getting back. Utter dross. A generous 1/10.

did not finish barely started. not for me

n0t 4 m3

Each song was WAY too long and honestly I couldn't tell them apart. 1/5

I got through it.

Look, he's not his dad.

Sorry Femi Kuti, I just hate the saxophone.

Not a fan of this style music. Couldn’t get into it.

Nekazka

Nah.

I'm sure this is wonderful, but it's not my cup of tea

Not for me

Didn't finish, just not for me.

Ik werd er nerveus van

Om eerlijk te zijn ook niet echt een kans gegeven, maar ik was er voor het einde van het eerste nummer al wel klaar mee...

not my type of enjoyment sorry

No me gusta la voz. La música buena pero muy repetitiva

Boring. Sorry

This kind of choral long-form jazz is just not my thing

Zu lang. Ich frage mich, warum ich das heute hören musste. Aufwendig arrangiert und komponiert empfinde ich es dennoch als oberflächlich, erreicht mich in keinster Weise.

The instrumentals are okay but i don't like the vocals