r/afrobeat • u/R3D_D1_T • 24d ago
Discussion š Afrobeat Album !
Hiiii!
I've always wanted to listen to Afrobeat, but I've never known where to start!
Can anyone recommend the best albums, both classic and modern, in this genre?
Thank you so much!
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u/x-chazz 24d ago
As already mentioned, Fela Kuti. His two sons, Femi & Seun have a lot of music available. Tony Allen (was the drummer who pioneered the afrobeat swing) From the US, Antibalas, Kaleta & Zozo Afrobeat, The Budos Band.
From Canada - Soul Jazz Orchestra. From S. America, Newen Afrobeat.
Not albums but great bands to check out.
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u/R3D_D1_T 24d ago
Thank you so much guys!
What the you think about Dele Sosimi?
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u/Ok-Calendar-1497 24d ago
Iām a big fan of Deleās music and heās a lovely guy as well! He used to play keys for Fela Kuti back in the day and spent his youth going to the New Afrika Shrine so heās been studying the music for decades.
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u/GeeForjay 24d ago
Antibalas, Early Budos Band and the Daltaris are very nice Daptone artists. Ikebe Shakedown, Shaolin Afronauts are some others on my playlist.
Aside from the creator of Afrobeat, Fela Kuti, you also have William Onyeabor.
Iām also a big jam and fan and one of my favorite bands introduced an Afrobeat song called High Beams linked here. Quite different than the rest of their catalog but if you like new artists these guys are very experimental and layer soundscapes which very much is in the afrobeat vainā¦
https://youtu.be/nIZ9OEatXH0?si=ZPHHb5RcWoyyGh8R
Happy discovering
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u/Max_Power_Junior 24d ago
Ebo Taylor and Gwedu Blay Ambolley are both classics.
For some more modern examples Iād check out Shaolin Afronauts, Nomo, KOG (also KOG and The Zongo Brigade, Nubiyan Twist, Mansion of Snakes, Agbekoā¦
Thereās an amazing compilation called African Scream Contest too. Loads of good stuff on that label.
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u/Revxmaciver 24d ago
My favorite Fela album is Open & Close and then Zombie. I would recommend those first.
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u/BloomisBloomis 24d ago
So, your afrobeat education cannot skip Fela Kuti, but his records were made with the best recording equipment available in Nigeria in the 1970s, which means that they frequently sound like ass compared to modern recordings. So listen to Zombie, listen to Water No Get Enemy, listen to Gentleman, listen to No Agreement, but then get a hold of an Antibalas record. Security is great, Who Is This America is great, the self titled album is great, and they're all recorded beautifully.
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u/AndromedaCorporation 21d ago
The B-Side to Gentlemen, āFefe Naa Efeā is the dopest bass line in any recorded Fela tune.
Prove me wrong.
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u/Comrade-SeeRed 24d ago
Hereās a small sample of links to get the music in your head and inspire you to find the album from which they can be found:
Fela Kuti & Africa 70 - Opposite People
Fela Kuti & Africa 70 - Zombie
Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra - Uprising
Souljazz Orchestra - Serve and Protect
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u/CatAltruistic2543 24d ago
Fireboy dmlās laughter , tears and goosebumps is definitely a ear candy. One of the very best afrobeats album of all time
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u/ThemBadBeats 24d ago
After Tony Allen and the rest of Africa 70 left him, they made a couple of great albums.Ā
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u/Striking_Meringue328 24d ago
Try l'Orchestre Poly Rythmo de Cotonou:
https://youtu.be/E6IMs6E1q5s?si=C3_yzcIptNyLmfEx
https://youtu.be/DEPZmJtL3ZE?si=yDLBCHIUZIe0ss8U
https://youtu.be/kmt_wx1oqdg?si=wLiyN0FVwNmUNTzz
Also Harry Mosco, funkiest ever version of Happy Birthday:
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u/baakabakabakaa 23d ago
Iām a compilation girl, if I wanna dig into something. My start into Afrobeat was The Best of the Black President 1, Fela Kuti
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u/MangoSupreme135 21d ago
Stratavarious. It's technically a Ginger Baker album, but Fela Kuti was one of the main contributors. I'm not sure any of the tracks on it could be classified as afro beat, traditionally speaking, as it is more of a fusion of sorts, but the African influence is so heavy, that for years I thought it was a Fela Kuti album. The first track, "Ariwo," is one of the most powerful and moving songs that I know of. Ginger Baker needed a break from recording and touring with Cream, so he got heavily into afro beat, a genre in which songs are over ten minutes long more often than they aren't, lol. To me, this album is a masterpiece.
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u/Lost_Step_1154 20d ago
This isnāt an album, but it has the goods:
African Inspiration
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4pQmgtv62XMnxKVO0AW3dT?si=lqOwUc2iSoqvO9oIeQtCgw
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u/True_Inside_9539 24d ago
Start with Fela Kuti, pretty much any album but lots of people start with Water No Get Enemy, Trouble Sleep, Yanga Go Wake Him, Zombie.