Fela – “Ikoyi Blindness / Kalakuta Show” – [MCA Records]

Before reading the liner notes to this release, all I knew about Fela Kuti was that he created amazingly vibrant Afro-beat music. Now I know that he suffered greatly for his beliefs, and that his music is a statement, just as all his actions were, intended to bring about change in his native Nigeria. These four long tracks raise awareness about the hypocrisy of the elite class; how the “haves” will pay for their abuse of the “have-nots” how not even a broken arm and scalp wounds from unfair beatings based on trumped-up charges can keep Fela down; and how the land belongs by rights to rich and poor alike. Listen to the rhythms and instruments as they speak their own truth to your senses.