Fela Box Set 6: Curated by Idris Elba

Erykah Badu did it. So did Brian Eno, Questlove, Ginger Baker and Coldplay’s Chris Martin. The latest celebrity to curate a limited edition box set by Afrobeat scion Fela Aníkúlápó Kuti is actor, DJ, rapper and singer Idris Elba, who tells us he overcame imposter syndrome to accept this mission: ‘This was [my] Dad’s music first,’ he reasons in the intro. ‘It has been a joy for me to revisit these albums… they gather power with the passage of time.’

While the albums on offer by Idris Elba were allegedly chosen to ‘reflect the full spectrum of Fela’s message to the world,’ Elba is limited by previous cherry-picking of Fela’s extensive back catalogue. His selection purports to trace the genesis of Fela Kuti’s evolving Afrobeat through the 70s and early 80s: 1971’s Open & Close finds two electric guitarists helping to drive the jazz funk-meets-highlife wig-outs; and the young Tony Allen takes a rare drum solo on the title-track. Stalemate, Opposite People and the track ‘I Go Shout Plenty’ were all recorded in 1977, the year in which the Nigerian army brutally attacked Fela’s Kalakuta Republic, their ire raised by a combination of ignorance, bloodlust and Fela’s ridicule. There is debate as to which of these albums and tracks were recorded prior to or after the incident. But the slow-burning funk grooves and socio-political observations, half-spoken-half-sung, simmer with a clear fury regardless.

1980’s Music of Many Colours – a joint album between Fela and American vibes legend Roy Ayers – is here, a glimmering gem, recorded after Ayers opened for Fela Kuti in Nigeria. As is 1983’s Live in Amsterdam, which, albeit lifted by chanted choruses and forceful sax solos, is not a disc that captures the exhilarating showman at his best. Still, what with never-before-seen photos, an exclusively designed poster and that intro from Idris Elba, Fela Box Set 6 is probably a must-have for any flush Fela Kuti fanatic. The Fela-brations continue apace.