Album Details

• Artist: Various Artists
• Album: Nigeria Rock Special: Psychedelic Afro-Rock & Fuzz Funk In 1970’s Nigeria
• Label: Soundway
• Year of Release: 2008
• ME Rating:
• Reviewed by: patchen on 2008-04-21

The other night I had the chance to hear a bootleg of James Brown's show that was part of the Ali-Foreman "Rumble in The Jungle" fight in Zaire in 1974. Brutal funk, with the Godfather clearly at the top of His Badness. Listening to this compilation of funk and rock from 70's Nigeria, I bet Africa, while impressed by Soul Brother Number One, were more than used to such smoking ya-ya. With its absorption of Moroccan folk, West African funk, and their own Highlife club soul and take on the Brit Psych scene-primarily courtesy the Ginger Baker Air Force  tours of Nigeria in the late '60s-a blizzard of hot, rhythmically tight bands sprang up. Anthologies on labels like Sublime Frequencies and Sound Way attest to the untapped lode of great West African rock/funk from this period.

This set is the fruit of a whole lot of listening and assimilating, an early example of mash-up, if you will. You can hear both Santana and Fela Kuti in "Adieu" by Ofege, the set's lead-off track.

Reggae mixes with Traffic on the instrumental "In The Jungle" by The Hygrades; is that a Farfisa on The Ecolades' "Ku Mi Da Hanakn?"

True standouts include The Funkees' "Acid Rock" and Question Mark's "Freaking Out," though any of the fifteen tracks jam on many levels, as history lesson, new google search material and, most importantly, hot period rock and funk by bands that were open to many styles and moods, and to finding a way to stew up them up right.

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