Fela Anikulapo-Kuti: The Art of an Afrobeat Rebel Author(s): Randall F. Grass Source: The Drama Review: TDR, Vol. 30, No. 1 (Spring, 1986), pp. 131-148 Published by: The MIT Press Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1145717 . Accessed: 20/09/2013 00:34 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at . http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp . JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org. . The MIT Press is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to The Drama Review: TDR. http://www.jstor.org This content downloaded from 155.247.167.222 on Fri, 20 Sep 2013 00:34:19 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Fela Anikulapo-Kuti The Art of an AfrobeatRebel RandallE Grass A photograph flashed around the world in October 1984. It captured Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, Africa's most controversial musician, at a particularly dramatic moment in the long-running morality play he had been enacting with the Nigerian government. Flanked by soldiers, Fela raised his fist and grinned, a pose he has struck onstage and for album jackets. His arrest on the eve of what would have been a triumphant American tour was the logical consequence of confrontational art taken to its limit. Fela has spent more than 15 years making an artistic statement by breaking down the barriers between his artistic performance and his private life. He has obliterated the notion of "performance" as something existing separate from life. He extends a traditional African concept of art-especially music-as being an integral component of both ordinary and extraordinary human activity. Typically, though, he turned such traditions upside down even as he affirmed them; this is one reason why Fela Anikulapo-Kuti remains Africa's most challenging and charismatic popular music performer. In many traditional African cultures, including the Yoruba in which Fela was raised, music and dance are tied to every aspect of life. Every activity has a particular rhythm, a particular song, a particular dance. Musicians play a functional role within the society because many activities cannot properly be undertaken without them. Only certain people may become musicians, usually persons from a lineage of musicians or those who have passed through an approved apprenticeship. Music can be a bridge to the animating forces of nature or to the spirit-world of the ancestors and the unborn, as well as to deities who influence the material world. The highly sophisticated rhythms of African music evoke the manifold rhythms of creation; this complexity frequently demands a large group of musicians creating communally. Born in 1938, Fela experienced traditional culture while growing up in colonial Nigeria during the 1940osand '5os. But he also was shaped by an emerging urban, bourgeois culture that was greatly influenced by Western values. Fela came of age during Nigeria's struggle with the twin specters of colonial suffocation and impossibly romantic notions of independence. Nigeria's fledgling steps as a newly independent nation in the '6os led it right into an explosion of development accelerated by sudden wealth from massive oil discoveries. The country's leaders-with only an alien colonial blueprint as a guide-already had their hands full dealing This content downloaded from 155.247.167.222 on Fri, 20 Sep 2013 00:34:19 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions VIM:: -:iiiWAX .......... El, ?I: -. ......~i........ . i-............ . x. i:-: mew.iii- Lt.:..:i:~::?: -_::;:iii~d-iiiij cab J: Ai:ciRi .............. ..:::: . ~ iii :-:::::. ::~-iiiii: -?-,_iiii:iii MNii-iil: -_-:,-:-::ii R W w .'fo riil FRIM? ':-.:-iiii--iii ILL:I: i-?iiiii k;;:i-i -i This content downloaded from 155.247.167.222 on Fri, 20 Sep 2013 00:34:19 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Qq Fela AniKulapo-Kuti 133 (Opposite) Fela in concert,hisfists raisedin a gesturefrequently repeatedfor newspapersand albumjackets. (Photo courtesyof Celluloid) paw.: ....... A 1?*,,??- Expensive Shit, Makossa, 1981. (Frontphoto by Peter Obe Photo Agency,graphics and art by MakossaArt/ Remi Olowookere) ::: :,i:::::: _ :e -a I.; i " ~: -ig ii _:B rs:-I"-iii :::::-:- .: :::??::::?: Felain concert,Rome, 1984. (Photocourtesy of Celluloid) This content downloaded from 155.247.167.222 on Fri, 20 Sep 2013 00:34:19 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 134 FelaAniKulapo-Kuti with 700 million ethnically diverse Muslims, Christians,and animists speaking 200 different languages. Suddenly, they found themselves flooded by petro-dollars,foreign exports, and randomlyimportedtechnology. Politiciansand civil servants,alreadysteepedin certainAfrican customs which cynics call corruption, could rarely resist filling their pockets. Lagosis Nigeria'sbizarrecapital,a festering,topsy-turvymutationof a colonialoutpost,jerry-riggedover swampy lagoons to accommodatethe plunderers'ships. It is a city of tall buildings, nightclubs,expressways, trafficjams, and mercantilehustle-bustle,much like New York or any other Westernmetropolis.But the telephonesdon't work, a simple drive acrosstown might take hours, and everyone'shandis out. As a city it is virtuallynon-functional,but millions of Nigerians, seeing only a Hollywood vision of urbanparadise,flockedthereanyway. Fela was one of them. He had grown up middle class in Abeokuta,a tranquilYorubatown a couple of hours up the road, where life was still as it had always been. But both his parentshad made importantsteps away from traditionalculture. His fatherwas a prominentministerand educatorwho ran his school with iron discipline.His motherwas a fiery activistwho fought the absurditiesof colonialism.As founderof the NigerianWomen'sUnion she won her case againsttaxationby engineering the abdicationof a local puppet-chiefwhen she led thousandsof women to a sit-in at his house. She was an emissaryto the People'sRepublicof Chinaand an intimateof Kwame Nkrumah,formerpresidentof Ghana. Fela, who wantedto be a musicianfrom an early age, had a new class of popular musiciansas models: social orchestras,highlife bands,juju bands, marchingbands,jazz groups, and others, many of whom were primarilyentertainersat clubs, parties,and other socialfunctions.In 1957 Felawent to study at the The London School of Music, where he played hookey from classesin music theory to jam with jazz musiciansand others in the internationalmusic community. After returningto Lagos in 1963, he formed a band that played a jazz-highlifehybrid-highlife is a fusion of variousWest Africantraditionalstyles, brass-bandmusic, Latin guitarstyles andjazz. Fela'smusic was neitherthe pure entertainmentof the populardancebandsnor was it connectedwith the sociallymeaningful traditionalmusic. Consequently,Fela's performancesin Lagos clubs duringthe '6os were not particularlypopular,except with a small group of would-be hipsters. In 1969, a financialangel sponsoreda trip to the United Statesfor Fela and his Koola Lobitos band. There they scuffled for gigs with limited successin Los Angeles clubs. Meeting SandraIsidore,a young blacknationalistactivistwho becamehis lover and culturalmentor, changedFela'slife. Againstthe backgroundof the flashy,sophisticatedtechnologyof the Americansociety that awed him, he saw people who were turningto Africa'sculturaltreasuresfor inspirationand wisdom. The Autobiography of MalcolmX in particularconvincedFelato claimandexplorehis African identity, both personallyand with his music. Inspiredby the expatriate AfricanmusicianAmbrose Campbell,he immediatelybegan composing musicbasedon chants,call-and-response vocals, andcomplex, interacting rhythms.He dubbedthe new sound "Afrobeat." When Fela returnedto Lagos in 1970, he was a man with a mission, having changedthe band'sname to Afrika70 and evolved the Afrobeat style. Afrobeatamalgamated jazz, the funk of Americansoul singer/bandleaderJamesBrown, highlife, traditionalrhythms, and chanteddeclama- This content downloaded from 155.247.167.222 on Fri, 20 Sep 2013 00:34:19 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Fela AniKulapo-Kuti 135 r 1 ~iaL c. 5: 1YI~ bUI~~ ~C~I If Innersleeve illustrationof Black-President, Arista, 1981. tory vocals. The jazz element surfaced in the solo and ensemble horn work, which was melodically and harmonically more sophisticated than most African traditional music. The choppy, angular guitar and electric bass figures ofJames Bown-whose communal, rhythmic orchestrations were, ironically, an Africanization of Afro-American rhythm and blueswere utilized by Fela in the far more sophisticated context of African rhythms. Afrika 70 quickly grew to a large ensemble, encompassing a brace of horn players, a chorus of singers, myriad percussionists, a couple of electric guitarists, an electric bassman and Fela himself on electric keyboards and saxophones. Each composition's rhythmic possibilities were fully explored with several extended solos which, added to Fela's vocal passages, meant that few recordings lasted less than ten minutes. Fela's lyrics, in contrast to the humorous, light-hearted moralizing of many other popular musicians, send uncompromising messages of pointed social commentary, as reflected in such recordings as "Buy Africa," "Black Man's Cry," "Chop and Quench [Eat and Die]," "Fight to Finish," and others. Fela's lyrics retain the personal touch found in the lyrics of African traditional music but, unlike Chief Commander Ebenezer Obey, King Sunny Ade, and other popular Nigerian performers, Fela eschews praise songs. At the performances of top juju artists, for example, it is common for a singer to sing the praises of a great man-either a This content downloaded from 155.247.167.222 on Fri, 20 Sep 2013 00:34:19 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 136 Fela AniKulapo-Kuti Gentleman, EMI, 1973. (Albumdesignby Afrika 70, photos by Peter Obe Photo Agency,graphicsand art directionby Remi Olowookere) ~ . .~ . ~ :? .... . . Af chief, government official, or simply a respected member of the community. If the praised personage is in the audience, he usually responds by showering the performer with money. Fela writes his lyrics in Yoruba and in pidgin English, the linguafranca of urban Nigerians. He is probably the only major African musical artist to almost always print lyrics on album sleeves. The impact of these recordings on post-colonial Nigeria, which was foundering in waves of corruption, sweeping social change, and war, was immediate and profound. Suddenly the urban masses-as well as progressive intellectuals and restive students-had a spokesperson, a catalyst for mounting challenges. Like traditional musicians, Fela was a lightning rod for the concerns of society, but unlike them he adopted a confrontational posture. Where traditional musicians might admonish a chief or clan member with oblique satire, Fela would make naked accusations and blunt calls to action. For instance, in "Confusion" (on Confusion,EMI, 1975), he describes the legacy of colonial economics in everyday terms: them be three men wey sell for roadside o them be three men wey speak different language o them speak Lagos, Accra, and Conkary one white man come pay them money o he pay them for pound, dollars and French money for the thing wey he go buy from them he remain for them to share am o me I say na confusion be that o Still, in many early compositions, he adopts a more traditional, proverbi- This content downloaded from 155.247.167.222 on Fri, 20 Sep 2013 00:34:19 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Fela AniKulapo-Kuti 137 al style, as in "Trouble Sleep, Yanga Go Wake Am" (on RosorosoFight, EMI, 1972): when trouble sleep, yanga [trouble-maker] go wake am wetin him de find? palaver him de find palaver him go get o, palava him go get when cat sleep, rat go bite him tail Mr. Tentant lost him job him sit down for house him think of chop [food] Mr. landlord come wake him up Mr., pay me your rent wetin he de find? palaver him de find ... Much of Afrika 70's performances during the early '70s took place in Fela's own club, the Shrine, located in the Surulere section of Lagos. The name of the club reflected Fela's intention that it be more than a nightclub; it was meant to be a place of communal celebration and worship, a rallying point of pan-African progressivism. Although many people attended to enjoy the music and the loose ecstasy of the rebellious hempsmoking crowd, just as many were there to partake of Fela's vision of a new African society. Instead of ethnic or "tribal" communalism, as in traditional society, Fela's new society was pan-ethnic and pangenerational. Afrika 70 performed on a stage at one end of a square, open-air courtyard edged with the flags of all African nations. A heaving mass of people crowded the dance floor. Performances began after 9:oo p.m., and, as with most African popular musical groups, lasted for many hours with few breaks. There weren't any formal introductions or other trappings of showmanship; the band simply began to play. The percussionists, conga drummers, Western trap drummer, sticks, maracas, and shekere players set up the oscillating Afrobeat pulse punctuated by deep, throbbing, intermittent electric bass figures. Electric guitarists played chopping rhythm figures and concise single-note lines. The horn players blew repeated figures en ensemble, a response to the soloist's lines. Fela, often wearing only trousers, wotild blow improvised solos on soprano and alto saxophones, occasionally putting down the horns and jumping behind an electric piano for a jagged, rhythmic solo. A trumpeter or another saxophonist might step up at a certain point for his solo. Fela would stalk the stage, pacing back and forth, preaching, declaiming, perhapsjoking with the audience about the events of the day or anything else on his mind. At some point he would begin his sing-songy chant, answered by a chorus of female singers repeating a single phrase highlighting the theme of his lyrics: Fela dem call us hooligans dem call us ruffian dem call us hemp-smokers dem call us prostitutes now we go talk o our big big people dey fight them VIP self dey fight our parliamentarian dey fight Chorus no we no answer) talk, (we (we no talk, we no answer) (we no talk, we no answer) (we no talk, we no answer) (who a be, who are you?) (who a be, who are you?) (who a be, who are you?) This content downloaded from 155.247.167.222 on Fri, 20 Sep 2013 00:34:19 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 138 FelaAniKulapo-Kuti .BFSF At Fela's concertin Rome, 1984, membersof his Egypt 80 group danceand sing chorus.(Photos courtesyof Celluloid) :IL 17 41i 14-- This content downloaded from 155.247.167.222 on Fri, 20 Sep 2013 00:34:19 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions FelaAniKulapo-Kuti139 now we go talk o ariwo ariwo ariwo l'enu vendor (noise for vendor mouth) (from "Noise for VendorMouth," on Noisefor VendorMouth, AfrobeatAbro, 1975) At times, females trooped onstage to dance during instrumentalpassages. Felahimself frequentlyillustratedlyrics with spontaneousdancing while his percussionists,singers,and horn playerstransmittedthe rhythm with steady-stateundulations.Fela focused his lyrics on themes such as economic empowerment("Buy Africa"), corruption("I.T.T., International Thief Thief"), colonial mentality ("Yellow Fever," "JohnnyJust Drop," "Gentleman"),urbanchaos ("Go Slow," "Upsidown"),and police brutality("ExpensiveShit," "TroubleSleep, YangaGo WakeAm"). It was not uncommonfor a performanceto be stoppedfor a prayeror the pouringof libationto ancestralspirits,reflectingFela'sincreasinginvolvement with the traditionalYorubaOrishareligion. Felawould cajole, exhort, joke with and jeer at his audience, who, though replicatingthe Afrobeat pulse in their dancing, hung on his every word. The Shrine encompasseda little community, temporaryperhaps,but one that expressedFela'sconceptof a liberatedAfricansociety. Just as Felaattemptedto createa new society with his performancesat the Shrine,he also establishedhis domesticlife as a liberatedzone within Nigerian society. His communalhousehold, dubbedKalakutaRepublic, encompassedmuch of his Africa 70 organization,which included not only his wife and childrenbut also musicians, DJs, artists, equipment managers,and other workers, many of whom were young people who had run away from home or school. Kalakutawas often a refuge for dropouts-at the very least a teenagerwould be given some pocketmoney. Some would become membersof the householdand get allowances and jobs. Fela's lifestyle was relatively simple: it encompassedeating, sleeping,rehearsing,performing,hemp-smoking,and love-making.The Nigerianpressblossomedwith photos of Felastandingin his underwear, blowing his saxophonein his yard;of bare-breasted young women lounging about;of insolentteenagersblowing cloudsof hemp smoke. It's difficult to overstatethe impactof such unabashedfloutingof conventionin a decorum-consciousAfricansociety. The governmentregardedKalakuta as an affront,a first step towardincipient,secessionistanarchy,no joke in a countryrackedby civil wars. In reality,Felaestablisheda kind of traditional village in the middle of the city, with himself as chief, head of a polygamous household. He exerciseddisciplinein the authoritarianbut benevolentmannerof traditionalrulers. Pilgrims, whether curious passersby, worshipful teenagers, or emissariesfrom progressive political movements,came for audiences. Though Fela's lifestyle intentionallyharkenedback to tradition, his floutingof conventionwas at odds with tradition.He openly disrespected the powers-that-be.This generatedharassmentby the police and military which escalatedinto violent clashesbetween arrogantsquadsof "Fela's boys" and the authorities.Fela'sopen hemp smoking gave a readyexcuse for arrests,though his mother'spoliticalinfluencehelpedhim avoid convictions. The clashesgrew more violent until finally, in 1977, Kalakuta was burnedto the ground in a full-scaleattackby the military. One of Fela's boys clashed with soldiers and fled to the Kalakutacompound. Soldierssurroundedthe house, demandingthat Felahand over the man. When he refused, the soldiers charged, and Fela chargedthe electrified This content downloaded from 155.247.167.222 on Fri, 20 Sep 2013 00:34:19 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 140 Fela AniKulapo-Kuti Al. i:. -AWN, In 1977, Kalakuta-the residenceof Fela's communal household-was burnedto thegroundby the military afier a confrontationbetween soldiersand one of "Fela's boys." (Photo courtesyof Celluloid) fence encirclingthe compound. But the power supply was cut off, and soldierspouredonto the grounds.Felaandhis extendedfamilywere beaten; many of the women were raped. Musicalequipment,mastertapes, and films were destroyed;finally, the house was set afire, and Fela was temporarilyimprisoned. In the melee, Fela'smotherwas thrown out a window. Her brokenhip markedthe beginningof her physicaldecline,leadingto her deathseveral monthslater.Whenshe died, Felatook her body to the barracksquarters of Headof StateOlusegunObasanjo.The processionwas depictedon the jacket of Coffinfor Headof State(Kalakuta,1981), an album that vilified Obasanjo. WhenFelawas releasedfromjail with all chargesagainsthim dropped, he sued the government.An inquiryblamedan "unknownsoldier"for the Kalakutadestruction.Felawent into self-imposedexile in Ghana. By this time, Fela'srecordingshad become overtly criticalof specific governmentpoliciesand personages.Albumjacketsoften featureddamning headlinesand articlesfrom newspapersor garishillustrationsdepicting governmentviolence. "Unknown soldier,""KalakutaShow," "Sorrows, Tears and Blood," and "Coffin For Head of State" discussedin detail governmentharassmentand attacks.He focused other compositions on corruption,mentioningculpritsby name. As the proposedbeginning of civiliangovernmentapproached,Felaassociatedhimself with the Young AfricanPioneers,a politicalgroup linked to vaguely socialist would-bepoliticians.He beganto style himselfas "TheBlackPresident," mentioningaspirationstoward politicaloffice to friends. All of this reflectedFela'sfeelingthat artshouldhave politicalpurposes.In a television This content downloaded from 155.247.167.222 on Fri, 20 Sep 2013 00:34:19 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Fela AniKulapo-Kuti141 I i :X : :::::.qmm? IN _:ii";_xiii Confusion, EMI, 1975. (Design by Maxoh-MaxAlax, graphicsby Remi Olowookere) Black-President, Arista, 1981. (Front coverphoto by jean Jacques-Mandel) % ou Ato I 1. IVI --------- AiviAu7 KUTA - - This content downloaded from 155.247.167.222 on Fri, 20 Sep 2013 00:34:19 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 142 Fela AniKulapo-Kuti documentary, Music Is a Weapon,produced in 1981 by Stefan Tchalgalchieff, Fela delivered his artistic credo: Yes, if you're in England, you sing of enjoyment. You sing of love or ... who you're going to bed with next! But my society is underdeveloped because of an alien system imposed on my people. So there's no music for enjoyment, for love, when there's such a struggle for people's existence. So, as an artist, politically, artistically, my whole idea about my environment must be represented in the music, in the arts. So art is what's happening in a particulartime of people's development or underdevelopment. Music must awaken people to do their duty as citizens and act. Fela surroundedby members of his group aftera 1981 concertin Paris. (Photo by BernardMatussiere) By "politics" Fela did not necessarily mean merely a struggle for political office; after all, he held governmental agencies in contempt. For Fela, politics meant a struggle for empowerment of the masses so that they could gain access to the necessities of life. Because he was not content to merely sing about political change, he became a threat to the established authorities. In spite of Fela's rebellious nature and battles against authoritariangovernment, he tended to be authoritarianin his stewardship of the Afrika 70 organization. Members of the household were punished with fines or mild physical chastisement for transgressions. Fela relentlessly and meticulously rehearsed the Afrika 70 band. Yet, in day-to-day life, he was generally accessible and approachable. Like a traditional chief, he would lip doll --ii-l ........ ... .. iiiiiii !ii!•% .. .i ii ?: ? This content downloaded from 155.247.167.222 on Fri, 20 Sep 2013 00:34:19 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions "Is~ I : -:-:i ' " II i"i ' i,-lai-i :s?~:?:: :i~iiiii_- s i i * : hearand adjudicateall disputes,requests,and discussions.One wonders, though, what sort of governmenthe would set up and what style of governingwould evolve. He has not been publiclyspecificaboutthis. Fela'snotion of Africantraditionalismalso bearsexamination.He has chosento live in an urbancenter;he has shown no inclinationto move to a rural area nor urged devotion to agriculture,as Chief Commander EbenezerObey has done. Obey, whose songs praisecommunitychiefs and prominentpoliticiansor expresshis Christianfaith, is the darlingof the Yorubaelite. In manyways Obey is more of a traditionalistthanFela, operatinga farmin a ruralarea.Felahas not offeredmany specificsabout how a returnto Africantraditionalismwould be squaredwith modern technology,which he distrusts.Thoughhe has availedhimselfof Western technologyin his music-making,he has balkedat the use of synthesizers (some synthesizerparts were overdubbedby producerBill Laswell on Celluloid, 1985). ArmyArrangement, ForFela,the paramountstrugglefor Africansis the battleagainstWestern culturalimperialism.He wantsAfricansto reclaiman Africanidentity by re-discoveringtheir traditionalreligions (he has frequentlyreviled both Christianityand Islam), traditionalmethods of healing, and indigenous lifestyles. In some realms, this is a simple matter. It is easy to preferan agbadato a three-piecesuit or poundedyam to frenchfries. But if one accepts television, telephones, automobiles, and other Western technology,thereare social consequences. Fela'sdesirefor Africanempowermentis also at odds with a returnto traditionalism.If Africansare to evolve from dependentconsumer-nations, they must be able to produce the necessarygoods and services themselves.This requirestechnologicalmastery.Beyond hintingat some vast hiddehtreasuretrove of Africanknowledge.Felahas offeredno concreteplanssuggestinga solutionto this problem. The 1977attackon KalakutaseriouslydamagedFela'spsycheand nearly destroyedhis organization.The governmenthad closed the Shrine, cuttingFelaoff from his prime vehicle for artisticexpression.An injury sufferedat the handsof police madeit impossiblefor him to play his alto t Fela performingat his Lagos club, the Shrine, in 1984. (Photo courtesyof Celluloid) This content downloaded from 155.247.167.222 on Fri, 20 Sep 2013 00:34:19 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 144 FelaAniKulapo-Kuti saxophone-he was forcedto rely on sopranosaxophoneand keyboards. After two years in Ghana, Fela returnedto Lagos. He opened a new Shrinein the outlying, rough-and-tumbleIkejadistricton the outskirtsof the city. In a one-day ceremonythat provokedmore headlines,Felamarried 27 of his femaleAfrika70 members.The governmentappliedpressure, statingthat anyonewho went to the Shrinewent at theirown risk. Felaslowly beganto pick up the piecesof his life, doing a little recording and making a couple of Europeantours in the early '8os. He finally seemedvital againwhen the most recentarrestoccurred. On 4 September1984, Fela and 40 membersof his troupe arrivedat MurtalaMuhammadAirportfor the night flightto New York. They had gigs booked in New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco,marking Fela's first visit to the U.S. in 15 years. All was proceedingsmoothly when Fela, the last to check in, was accostedby a customs agent who, Felasaid, askedhim for a "tip" of 20oNaira (about$20). Felawas unable to pay becauseall his Nigerian money was at home. Through customs and immigrationcheckpoints,Fela was again approachedby the same official,who summarilysearchedhim and demandedto know if Felahad declaredthe ?I,6oo00 sterling he found. Fela stated that he had, but the official took him to an office for questioninganyway. In the confused events that followed, Fela's currencydeclarationform disappeared.He was detained,and the flight left with his band. Felaintendedto catchthe next flight. Instead,Felawas chargedwith two counts of illegal currencyexportation and imprisonedfor two days before being releasedon bail. On 8 September,Fela called a press conferenceat his home to argue that he should be allowed to leave the countryfor his tour and standtrialon his return.Police broke up the conferenceand arrestedFela-this time without bail. The trialbeganon 20 September.Fela'slawyersubmitteda "no caseto answer"motion, stating that the prosecutionhad not followed proper proceduresand had producedno documentaryevidence, specificallyFela's currencyform. But the court ruled that there was a case to answer. Fela's defense rested on severalkey points: I) evidence that the money had been withdrawn from Fela's bank in London four days before his arrest;2) evidencethat it was impossiblefor anyoneto pass the first customs checkpointwithout filling out a currencyform, even if he hadnothing to declare;and 3) the failureof the governmentto produce Fela's currencyform, which would indicateif he had declaredthe money. On 8 October, threeweeks afterthe trialstarted,Felawas foundguilty on both counts and sentencedto five yearsimprisonmenton each, to run concurrently. He was also fined 2ooo Naira and forced to forfeit the seized ?I, 6oo. Fela'slaterrecordingsareinterestingin that they revealan evolutionin his art. All the elementsof his '70s Afrobeatperformancesarepresentbut they are shapedby a differentspirit. His band, virtuallyall new recruits, is now called Egypt 80, reflectingboth a new era and Fela's belief in Egypt as a fundamentalsource of human knowledge. His recordings since 1979 present a moodier sound. Though he has often used minor keys in the past, some of his newer solos verge on a modal sound. The rhythmsare not fundamentallydifferent,but the mannerin which they are played gives them a murky, swirling feeling. Whetherthis is intentional or stems from the lower standardof musicianshipof the new recruits is difficultto determine.The loss of originalAfrika 70 drummer This content downloaded from 155.247.167.222 on Fri, 20 Sep 2013 00:34:19 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Fela AniKulapo-Kuti 145 ag kid41 Ado T MMMMMMKU , L' M TIN m IC0 rQA . on Gentleman,EMI, 1973 "Gentleman," I no be gentlemanat all I no be gentlemanat all I no be gentlemanat all (repeat) Chorus:I no be gentlemanat all o I no be gentlemanat all at all I be africaman original I no be gentlemanat all o (repeat) Them call you; Make you come Chop You Chop small;You say you belefull You say you be gentleman;You go hungary You go suffer;You go quench Me I no be gentlemanlike that Chorus:I no be gentlemanat all o (etc.) Perambulator, Skylark, 1983. (Cover photos by Afrika 70 PhotoAgency and Femi Bankole Osunla, graphicsby Ajao Bello) Africa hot, I like am so I know what to wear; But my friend don't know Him put him socks; Him put him shoe Him put him pant; Him put him singlet Him put him trouser; Him put him shirt Him put him Tie; Him put him Coat Him come cover all with him hat Him be gentle man Him go sweat all over Him go gaint right down Him go smell like shit, Peace means Urinate Him go peace for body, him no go know Me I no be gentleman like that Chorus: I no be gentleman at all o I no be gentleman at all at all I be africa man original I no be gentleman at all o This content downloaded from 155.247.167.222 on Fri, 20 Sep 2013 00:34:19 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 146 FelaAniKulapo-Kuti Tony Allen, who was an importantcatalystin the Afrobeatsound, has never been recouped.In any case, such later recordingsas "Coffin For and "CrossExaminaHead of State,""Power Show," "Perambulator," tion" proffersubdued,melancholicsarcasmin contrastto the aggressive, triumphantmockeryof his classicperiod. Even so, Fela'strademarkhumor still occasionallyshines through, as on "Perambulator," a hilarious satireof aimless,ineffectualbureaucrats. Fela'searly-'8osperformancesin Europe generatedsome controversy due to theirreligiouscontentand unconventionalnature.Sincehis mother's death, Fela had become intensely involved with traditionalYoruba Orishareligion, having experiencedvisitationsof spiritsas describedby Carlos Moore in his biography,Fela, Fela, This BitchOf A Life (I98I, London:Allison & Busby). As a result of this new spirituallife, Fela beganperformingwith white spiritualpowderon his face, an aid to communicationwith spirits.Performancesat his new Shrinestoppedfor ritual interludesin front of an altar bearing the portraitof Malcolm X, Fela'smother, and totems of various deities. ProfessorHindu, an adept from Ghanawho claimedthe power to "kill andwake," becamea regular featureof Fela'sperformancesas well as Fela'sspiritualguide. In Europe, ProfessorHindu's often gruesome performancesdisturbedmany in the audience.The Professorreportedlylopped off humanlimbs on stage in Ix I In a 1984 concertin Rome, Fela worethe whitespiritual powderthat he has been usingsince the early '80s. (Photo courtesyof Celluloid) A"W* g? ii-::iii •.?? This content downloaded from 155.247.167.222 on Fri, 20 Sep 2013 00:34:19 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions ... ,,• • , Fela AniKulapo-Kuti 147 :::--_: --::;':::::I::;-~ ::::::::::: ::.:.... ::::::::: ::::.. ....:. li'iii: i;::::_::~-:::: :_-::-:jj~:-:-:_ ?: iii:::: : -i:::::i:ii-:: --:::': i::ii-i-.:::::~~~j:----:i:-:::-: -:-::: :i-ii.i :-::::: Fela in concert, London, 1984. (Photocourtesy of Celluloid) order to demonstrate his restorative powers. These performances would end with a ceremonial flourish from the band as Fela, with his singers and dancers, faced left, right, then center, clenched fists in the air. Some people were disappointed that Fela chose to perform mostly new material rather than familiar classics, while others were put off by the disjointed progression of the performance. The music was often halted by Fela so that he could harangue musicians or technicians when he was displeased with the sound or the playing. He also indulged in rambling monologs. Many of those disappointed by Fela's performances had probably never seen him perform before. Possibly they had expected an entertainment in the Western sense. But Fela has not been interested in putting on a "show" since 1970. His European performances were a presentation of those things he considered relevant-the spiritual inspiration of Professor Hindu, his own didactic preaching, and, of course, his new music. The audiences were treated to Fela in a presentation of his faith, his anguish, and his anger. As of this writing, Fela's early release from prison is imminent. A change in leadership of the military government, effected by the August 1985 coup, has resulted in less austere governmental policies. A number of persons detained by the previous government have been released, and press curbs have been lifted. Fela's brother, Beko, briefly jailed himself, was released and made Minister of Health. Fela's manager, Pascal Imbert, a French national, was also freed. For Fela, the projected I October 1985 release date passed without action, but optimistic predictions now set the date of his release for January 1986. When Fela returns to the music scene, he will still be the only credible purveyor of Afrobeat. Other musicians, especially in West Africa, have attempted the style, usually with unmemorable results. Only Sonny Okosun, a Nigerian musician inspired by Fela, and Tony Allen, Fela's former drummer, have made music within the style. But neither has matched Fela's penetrating political commentary or the charismatic power of his performances. In any case, Afrobeat is only one element of Oko- This content downloaded from 155.247.167.222 on Fri, 20 Sep 2013 00:34:19 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 148 FelaAniKulapo-Kuti sun's music, which encompassesreggae,Westernpop, Caribbeansounds, highlife, and hybridsounds includingboth romanticand politicalmaterial. In Africa,there are hundredsof popularperformersplaying the lilting Congolese styles, hundredsof juju bands, dozens of highlife ensembles, and multitudesof ersatzWesternpop groups. But Felastandsaloneas the originatorand masterof Afrobeat. Ed. Note:As of 1 Feb. 1986, Fela hadnotyet beenreleased. This content downloaded from 155.247.167.222 on Fri, 20 Sep 2013 00:34:19 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
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