Africa is a Country

Music critic Jon Pareles feels the genius of Nigeria 70:

Fela Kuti’s Afrobeat was the Nigerian music that drew international notice during the 1970s, with King Sunny Ade’s juju to follow. But other bands were also getting funky in Lagos. “Nigeria 70: Lagos Jump: Original Heavyweight Afrobeat, Highlife and Afro-Funk” (Strut) compiles some of the other contenders, each making its own pidgin dance music out of ideas from Africa (the Nigerian traditions that fed into juju, Ghanaian highlife, Afro-Latin hybrids from Congo) and the African diaspora (reggae, soul and funk). The proportions keep shifting. There’s juju laced with disco from Sir Shina Peters, James Brown funk with new African syncopations from Bola Johnson, polytonal intertwined guitars from Peacocks Guitar Band, Afro-funk with psychedelic guitar distortion from the Faces and a 10-minute Afrobeat-garage-soul buildup from Eric (Show Boy) Akaeze. Less somberly political than Fela’s Afrobeat, and sometimes almost unhinged, this music must have kept the clubs jumping.

(source).