STEPHANIE BROWN draws attention to the hidden labour of the female embroiderers, and how a 19th century replica made no such error
NIGERIAN sax player, bandleader, composer, political activist and Pan-Africanist Fela Kuti is regarded (with his band Africa 70) as the father of Afrobeat, which combined West African music with funk and jazz, popular not just in Nigeria but across Africa.
Fela made his recording debut in 1970 and his 1973 set Gentleman is seen as an Afrobeat classic. One of his most political albums ever, its title track attacks the colonial mentality of Africans who maintain European customs and clothing styles. The album features a cover collage of a monkey’s head on a western-suited body.
The original Fela Kuti: Gentleman has been issued on vinyl to mark its 50th anniversary by Knitting Factory Records.
New releases by Porridge Radio, The Cribs, and Bjorn Meyer
As part of the 2025 London Jazz Festival Rich Mix offered intriguing sessions titled 'Persian Jazz,' CHRIS SEARLE was there
NEIL GARDNER listens to a refreshingly varied setlist that charts Cabaret Voltaire's voyage from avant-garde experimentalists to techno pioneers
TONY BURKE recommends a new podcast about the legenary Nigerian musician and political activist FELA KUTI


