The Fela Kuti Revival

If you haven't yet heard of Nigerian musician, composer, and activist Fela Kuti, public enemy No. 1 of that country's repressive military dictatorship of the 1970s and 1980s, expect to.

The last few months in particular have seen a resurgence of interest in the man and his music, culminating in Knitting Factory's rerelease of his entire catalog.

If there is any justice, this newfound attention will render Fela, long a tastemaker's best-kept secret, a pop icon on the level of Bob Marley or James Brown.

Fela gained fame in the Seventies as head of Africa 70, a group schooled in all forms of indigenous and international music.

With Africa 70, he wielded his saxophone like a weapon and sang/scatted lyrics of liberation for Africans to a potent new sound: afrobeat, a mix of African music with bebop jazz and precision funk.

Africa 70 toured worldwide to increasing acclaim, but Fela and company could be found most nights playing at his Lagos nightclub, the Shrine.

Fela became a hero to the people of Nigeria and a thorn in the side of the powers that be. After the 1977 release of his antimilitary album Zombie, the Nigerian military stormed and destroyed the communal compound where Fela, his family, and his band members lived.

Fela was beaten, many of his wives and singers were raped, and his mother was thrown to her death from an upper floor. This only hardened his resolve: he spent the rest of his short life (he died in 1997 of complications from AIDS) fighting injustice and continuing to play his music.

Today, despite the Nigerian government's repeated efforts to shut it down, the Shrine still stands. It counts among its recent performers Fela's sons Seun and Femi, who carry on his musical legacy with the remnants of Africa 70.

Also keeping his legacy alive are the Broadway musical Fela!, which made a big splash late last year, and a forthcoming biopic based on Michael Veal's Fela: The Life and Times of an African Musical Icon (2000).

Most notably, in late 2009, Knitting Factory began reissuing all 45 of Fela's major recorded works on CD and as digital downloads, with an eye toward completion by 2011. "Digi-sleeves" evoke the original cover art and include copious liner notes.

Knitting Factory's reissues all feature a pristine, painstakingly remastered sound and are a true boon to lovers of afrobeat, as Fela's fragmented discography has made difficult the task of tracking down his albums over the years.

This premier set of reissues covers Fela's first decade on record. Six CDs contain a total of nine albums; additionally, The Best of the Black President compiles 13 of Fela's most popular compositions.

Koola Lobitos/The '69 L.A. Sessions. 1969. UPC 7-20841-20022-2.

Intriguing, hitherto-unreleased output from initial bands Koola Lobitos and Nigeria 70; Fela's signature sound evolves slowly here, with high-life jazz morphing into potent afrobeat.

Fela Ransome-Kuti and the Africa 70 with Ginger Baker: Live! 1971. UPC 7-20841-80012-5.

Though Fela, Africa 70, and Cream wildman Ginger Baker are all in fine form on this live album, the paucity of tracks and a 16-minute drum solo recommend it for completists only.

Open & Close/Afrodisiac. 1971. UPC 7-20841-20062-8.

Fela Kuti; Shakara/London Scene. 1972. UPC 7-20841-80022-4.

These utterly essential early outings by Fela set the tone for the Africa 70 sound and afrobeat in general; the long (ten minutes-plus) tracks swing and sizzle.

Roforofo Fight. 1972. UPC 7-20841-20052-9.

Abandon meets technical acumen in this album that threatens to explode at any second and is a prime example of Fela's work; with six sprawling, red-hot/tense jazz-funk jams.

Gentleman/Confusion. 1973. UPC 7-20841-80032-3.

Fela is at his finest here, full of passion and outrage. This is afrobeat personified: tribal drums build and build until they are obliterated by horns that sound like air-raid sirens.

The Best of the Black President. 2009. UPC 0-20286-15027-5.

A well-rounded music collection needs a handful of Fela's albums at the very least. But in a pinch, this double album compilation will serve as a fine primer.