Fela Kuti - Vinyl Box Set 4

The Guardian 80

(Knitting Factory)

Having other musicians “curate” Fela’s sprawling catalogue has helped maintain the legacy of Nigeria’s notorious rebel and Afrobeat founder. Soul queen Erykah Badu follows Questlove, Ginger Baker and Brian Eno in choosing seven albums centred on Fela’s industrious late 1970s, when his best band, Africa 70, was intact. Badu’s favourite is Coffin for Head of State, a mournful elegy for his mother, murdered by government troops. More typical of Fela’s mix of anger and exuberance are Yellow Fever, No Agreement and the live VIP (Vagabonds in Power), while 1992’s Underground System is an urgent, neglected return to form. Beautifully packaged, it’s a world fan’s dream present.