Gentleman / Confusion

How do I give this 6 stars? If I was going to a deserted island and could only take 2 CD's I'd take 2 copies of this. :-) The songs are some of Fela's best and the musicians are top notch and the rhythms are stellar. Starting out with Confusion Break Bones, the song meanders on for a bit then this phenomenal bass line starts up then the other instruments start coming in - and the song percolates along with a polyrhythm drive for over twenty minutes then fades out - and as it does the phenomenal bass line beat emerges from the fading polyrhythm madness to close out the song, still holding that awesome groove. HOW they can keep this all together with out it exploding in to chaos, confusion and entropy is beyond me. Then there's Gentleman, another song with an astounding polyrhythm groove. Oh, and if you like horns, these people are tight and can play a groove, not the "improvisational jazz" noodling - it shows you CAN play a horn solo without being boring or noodling along with no groove. If you're a fan of music - this is a must for your collection. TONS of musicians playing and everything works and it works perfectly. This is a tutorial on polyrhythms for anybody interested in more complex music.

Fela Kuti's Gentleman and Confusion are here on one CD. This is a great CD that has the 25-minute Confusion (Parts 1 & 2) and then Gentleman, Fefe Naa Efe, and IGBE in 31 minutes of additional audio. If you like Fela, He totally rocks on this album. The Gentleman version is the typical version that I have on several albums, but the other songs fly along, too. Confusion totally jams at about the five minute mark and beyond. It's the greatest music for navigating rush hour traffic along Interstate 5 near Seattle. Be ready to move. Fela is the greatest. Ever.

Great tunes, buy it. Everybody say yeah-yeah!!!

Beautiful music

Cool album with unique pulsating afro beats a la Nigeria styling this guy was a force to contend with in his day please don't take him lightly. Dig!!

Awesome!

love it

Anyone who thinks they know something about funk, groove music or world beat and doesn't own a handful of Kuti's LP'S is both a poseur and charlatan. It's that simple, as harsh as it sounds. Afrobeat was his invention, he put it on the map and had no equal during the 60's or 70's and would be a household name like James Brown if his political leanings didn't keep him persecuted, incarcerated and tortured by his government during the 80's. These two LP's are among his finest and come highly recommended, along with 'London Scene/Shakara', 'Open And Close/ Afrodisiac', 'Inside Out' and 'Rofororo Fight', among others. Non-stop percolating rhythms, punctuating horns, call and response vocals, fiery horn solos and Fela's social and political diatribes keep things constantly sizzling, searing and smoking. No joke, on a funk level, some of his recordings make James Brown and George Clinton sound like the Captain and Tennille - if you're not familiar, I invite you to indulge, imbibe and intoxicate yourself immediately.

nice