Talk:Fela Kuti/Archive 1

le old
What does it mean that Fela Kuti played the "horn" (which is listed in the list of instruments he played)? The french horn? I've never heard that he played that instrument or ever featured it in his band. If the original writer meant trumpet (which he did play in addition to sax), better to use that actual instrument name. Badagnani 06:47, 17 July 2005 (UTC)


 * From what I've heard of Fela's re-released music and from the surviving documentation that is available in the US, Fela played several different horns.

Here is a photo of Fela in his younger Koola Lobitos days blowing trumpet:

Source:Unseen Vogue: Evening Looks and All That Jazz' (1961). Photographed by Brian Duffy and printed by The Art Group Limited, London.

An early Koola Lobitos album cover features a trumpet in the mouth of a effigy which I assume is an abstraction of Fela, again linking him to that instrument. 

Yet another Koola Lobitos album featuring Die Die, and Kusimiyala states ".. Fela's customary instrument is the trumpet (did you ever douby it?) but he is also a swinging pianist and a rare vocalist.  He is also a composer and arranger.  A Musicians' Musician in fact." E.M.I. Nigeria Limited.

I am not sure why or when Fela evolved to the sax but his later music is characterized by wonderful alto work, and some of his most soulful horn work in my oppinion can be heard on ODOO and Beast of No Nations. Some of the Egypt 80 recording sound like Soprano Sax such as ODOO and Beast of No Nations. Some of Fela's keyboard work is gives me the impression of Thelonious Monk. As it is not characterized by manual dexterity or celerity but the overal tonal quality is something very magicals. Fela's horn playing reminds me of keyboards, and his keyboard compositions often remind me of compositions that would work well with a brass section.

We should also remember that the oldest horns extant horns come from the Tomb of King Tut-Ankh-Amen. The Egyptian horn might also be a descantant of the horns played in Southern Sudan which might have also been played in the Western Sudan/Saharan region which in ancient times included nothern Nigeria. All of this beautiful horn work is definately an old African thing! 

There is also a video recording distributed by Sanachie Records which shows Fela beating traditional drums with stick.

I have been trying to get information on Fela's usage or misusage of drugs. I have several conflicting reports. Articles from the Lagos Sun quote Fela as advocating "cocaine smoking" while other reports and eye-witness stories indicate that Fela did not tolerate drug taking. There is also quite a large selection of photos of Fela smoking Grass. Fela did not did not consider Grass/Marijuana a drug. But I am curious what other substances were taboo in Nigerian culture during Fela's lifetime and his tolerance or intolerance towards their usage.

Also, I would like to know if anyone knows about "Gorro(sp?)" Fela's special medicine.

GORO - from "FELA: King of the Invisible Art" by Jay Babcock

"He cooked a bag of grass about [two feet long], which cost just two pennies for like two weeks, soaking it with spices, honey and oils. cooked it right, right, right down til it was THICK," says Fela's son Femi. "Very thick! All that came out was about [an amount that would fit in a small coffee cup]. You're only allowed to take about a spoon, and then, in maybe two or three hours, you are just so high, it's unbelievable. It lasts the whole day, two days, three days. Fela trained a couple of people to cook it, and for six years, man, I was the only one who had authorization (except for him), to serve it round the house, to give it to anybody who wants it."

Michael Veal's excellent biography of Fela also references the drug: "Fela's European performances were sometimes listless, a development that some attributed to his heavy use of a blend of liquified THC extract and native Nigerian ogogoro gin which he [Fela] called 'Felagoro'."

I have just done a podcast for flyglobalmusic.com with Tony Allen. Tony claims Fela was very anti-drugs for the first 5 years (presumably 1964-69) as he was a strict and disciplined band leader. He only started to smoke when they went to the States and he met Sandra, the woman who turned him on to Black Power and also marijuana, which from that point on he would consume in serious quantities as is well known. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Damianrafferty (talk • contribs) 19:37, 6 June 2009 (UTC)

The second paragraph of the 'Biography' section suggests that "a style of music that he would later call afrobeat" was created between 1958 and 1963. Later, in the 'Music' section, it is stated that "Fela's main inspiration for the creation of Afrobeat was American drummer Dave Weckl..." Given that Dave Weckl was born in 1960 and burst onto the music scene in the early 1980's, how could he possibly have been part of the inspiration for the creation of what would be called Afrobeat music?? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Theboogog (talk • contribs) 01:11, 17 April 2010 (UTC)

Religion
Fela was very critical of Western religions, especially Christianity and Islam. He viewed the practice of these religions by Africans as part of the greater disease afflicting Africa, that of self-hatred (think Franz Fanon's Black Skin, White Mask). In the DVD The Music is the Weapon, he says something to the effect that Christianity is the white man's way of thinking and Islam is the Arab's way, and neither are compatible with traditional African thought. His religion is part of the reason he was so dangerous to the establishment--his political views were bolstered by traditional spiritual values. His performances often took on the air of ceremony, and it seems these were conscious attempts to revive traditional Yoruba beliefs such as ancestor veneration. After his mother's death, she was incorporated into his pantheon as a goddess (I believe it was the goddess of wind, but I don't recall). Some note ought to be made about his spiritual/religious beliefs, and the way they related to his music and politics.--Rockero 19:44, 14 November 2005 (UTC)

Feminism and Traditional Culture
If the article is to include the fact that Fela Kuti was a sexist, I think it's equally valid that the following is explained: Fela Kuti obviously opposed Western imeperialism in Africa. The idea of feminism itself could be easily seen in certain traditional cultures (among males and females) as an imperialist ideology.

Also how can Fela be considered a sexist and at the same time loved and respected so much his mother while she is considered a feminist and even lived in his commune. -G —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 24.91.206.221 (talk) 08:38, 18 December 2006 (UTC).

If the lyrics are "lady is na master", this sounds like she is NOT a master... i.e. the man is the master of the house. I love Fela's music, but there really is no doubt that Lady, from a western perspective, places women in a subservient role. Also, in the lyrics Fela mentions that women should not eat before a man. Please listen again. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.112.173.47 (talk) 13:55, 22 May 2008 (UTC)

If you listen to other songs, the word "na" means something between "is" and "the" not "is not" despite how it sounds. It's evidenced in songs like Shuffering and Shmiling (Everyday na di same thing), Army Arrangement (Police particulars na craze particulars), Beast of No Nation (Na be craze world), and I.T.T. (Na European man, na him dey carry shit) among others. The lyrics for Shuffering and Shmiling were actually altered to become a chorus of a song of the same name on the Red Hot + Riot CD which featured various hip-hop and R&B artists remixing and covering Fela songs to benefit fighting AIDS in Africa.72.73.230.75 (talk) 00:46, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

keyboard
Does anyone know what kind of keyboard/organ/electric piano Fela used on many of his recordings? I want to say it sounds something like a Farfisa, but I'm not sure that's what it is. Just wondering since his keyboards have a very distinctive sound. M. Stern 01:02, 24 May 2007 (UTC)

discography labels
hi, it looks like wrasse records did not release the original versions of the albums, only the rereleases. shouldn't the page show this? Aisha9152 (talk) 17:03, 8 December 2009 (UTC)

Tone of article
The tone and general content of the 'Music' section is so drastically unencyclopedic, I wouldn't know where to begin fixing it. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 203.219.181.239 (talk) 06:01, 12 March 2010 (UTC)

I deleted a portion that was cut and pasted without citation from http://www.vanguardngr.com/2010/02/07/how-late-afrobeat-king-fela-composed-his-songs/ Ichnography (talk) 01:38, 15 March 2010 (UTC)

pronunciation
Which language is the pronunciation supposed to be in? It's not Yoruba, and not English. — kwami (talk) 09:43, 24 November 2010 (UTC)
 * The words in the name Olufela Olusegun Oludotun Ransome-Kuti come from the Yoruba language; the pronunciation is thusly Yoruba. Amsaim (talk) 14:25, 24 November 2010 (UTC)

"Ransome was a slave name"
That's what Fela stated himself once. He appears to be right? Maybe I'm ridiculing myself here, but what about the thought that "ransome" was actually (and thus respectlessly) derived from English "ransom" which, in general, is the money you pay to a kidnapper to get his hostage free? It sounds suspiciously close to the money paid for slaves by people who could afford them (well, in times of, say Uncle Tom's Cabin) -andy 77.191.202.22 (talk) 16:39, 5 December 2011 (UTC)

A Short History Of…Afrobeat (and Fela Kuti)
Can someone please explain why I can't put this article in the external links for Fela Kuti? http://www.stampthewax.com/2012/02/04/a-short-history-of-afrobeat-and-fela-kuti — Preceding unsigned comment added by 78.105.28.133 (talk) 13:08, 11 April 2012 (UTC)
 * It might be a good idea for you to first acquaint yourself with Wikipedia's Basic Policies and Guidelines before editing Wikipedia articles. That way your edits won't be removed. The following 3 Guidelines & Policies might be of interest to you: WP:ELNO, WP:V and WP:RS. Amsaim (talk) 18:35, 11 April 2012 (UTC)

Fela's not Quite Himself around Here
The article on Fela Kuti, as it stands on wikipedia, is a rather rosy portrait of a man whose biography is complex and littered with moments of amoral, or at least morally ambiguous, sentiments and behaviours. Now, I understand when supplying information on this ambitious project objectivity is of the utmost importance. However, one must acknowledge the very widespread opinion that Fela was an extreme sexist. This should probably not just be mentioned in passing as in the present article - it should have an entire section devoted to it, where the views of a great number of people are represented. Also, since his politics and philosophies played a big part in creating Fela's iconic image, it is absolutely imperative that this article also portray the feelings of many people who are greatly offended by Fela's personal life.

Now, I am certainly not an expert on Fela, and I've failed in an attempt to find academic articles on the subject online. More extensive research is possible for me, but I feel like I shouldn't be the only one trying to raise the academic standard of this article. I ask that you all help me bring this article up to grade. Sexism and the subjugation of women is a highly relevant issue today - not an historical eccentricity that can be glossed over. This article is not just about Afro-beat - it is about a figure who has hurt a lot of people with his sentiments and views, while generating pride in the hearts of others. For most of us, I'm sure, it's a whirlwind mixture of the two.

-Yeah, this article needs a devoted "criticisms" section. I had spent several years in W. Africa, and Fela is far from universally admired. Alot of people had different perspectives on what kind of person he was and what his social movement represented. But you hear little about this outside of Africa (by which I mostly mean Ghana and Nigeria).

1.Some of the criticism has to do with the image he presents of Nigeria/ Africa, though that opens up a whole other can of worms.

2.Some were about him being hypocrite

3.He spoke out against condom use on conspiratorial grounds, then died of AIDS.

4.his economic views

5.the cult like following ...and so on.

Some of the criticisms are extreme, others a nuanced and I think fair.

I just dont have time to track down sources...

3/22/2013 — Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.14.6.137 (talk) 15:57, 22 March 2013 (UTC)

Picture
The picture of kuti is totally biased and shows him drinking. Can someone change it? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Garthgirl8888 (talk • contribs)
 * This comment was left nearly two years ago. I never paid much attention to the photos in this article before, but I sure did now.  The majority of them (including the one referred to in the above comment) appear to be screenshots, perhaps from a documentary, making their status as free content questionable.  I haven't been very active on Commons lately.  Do I have to mention this over there, or is anyone paying attention on this side? RadioKAOS / Talk to me, Billy / Transmissions  02:10, 6 May 2014 (UTC)
 * Do we have a picture of Fela on commons or a copyleft picture of him anywhere? Bobby shabangu   talk  17:18, 15 July 2015 (UTC)

Support for socialist regimes?
What was Kuti's position towards Marxist dictatorships that outwardly professed respect for human rights but did not practice such rights in reality? Just curious, I'm not accusing him of anything.

Slanted question. You might as well ask when he stopped beating his wife.

Socialism?
The article says that Fela supported or was politically socialist? There is no reference to this. I believe it to be untrue.