Kalakuta Show (1976)

by Fela Kuti

supported by

Moni Another Fela classic. The characteristic sound of the Africa 70 in full effect here.

	/

Streaming + Download

Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

Purchasable with gift card

$9 USD or more
Record/Vinyl + Digital Album
Pressed on opaque blue vinyl.

Fela tells the story of the first large-scale police attack on Kalakuta Republic, on 23 November 1974. Following the drug squad raids in the spring that year (documented on the earlier albums Alagbon Close and Expensive Shit), Fela had erected a ten foot high barbed wire fence around the compound and stationed guards at the gate. “There had been so many raids,” he said years later. “You can’t count how many times they beat my people, in my house, on the street.” The defences were insufficient to repel a force of around 70 police armed with tear gas, machetes, wire cutters and axes. On the pretext of searching for a young woman who it was falsely (and quite ludicrously) alleged Fela had abducted, they stormed the compound. After throwing gas canisters into the buildings, forcing the occupants to exit, they set about anyone they could catch, beating men and women alike.
First re-issued as part of Fela Kuti Box Set #5 curated by Chris Martin & Femi Kuti in 2021.

Includes unlimited streaming of Kalakuta Show (1976) via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more. ... more

ships out within 7 days

Purchasable with gift card

$26 USD or more

	1.	Kalakuta Show 14:31
	2.	Don't Make Garan Garan 16:04		buy track

about

The Kalakuta Show album release was Fela’s undaunted manner of extracting revenge on the military regime that attacked and brutalized him in 1974. The second of such attacks in a space of eight months, Kalakuta Show was an attempt by the Nigerian police to influence the cause of justice. After the first police raid on Kalakuta in April 1974, Fela was charged to court for: ‘possession of dangerous drugs’, and abduction of ‘minors’. However, the evidence presented by the prosecution was easily explained by the defense, who claimed that the drugs found in the premises belonged to Junction Clinic, a government licensed clinic situated inside Kalakuta Republic and run by Fela’s younger brother, Dr. Beko Ransome Kuti. On the ‘abduction of minor’ charge, all the young girls arrested in Fela’s house denied they were underage, nor abducted, and they claimed in court they went to Fela’s house of their own accord. With no substantial evidence to convict Fela in this highly publicized trial, the police chose to raid Fela’s residence a second time, one week before judgment on the case, hoping to find evidence this time around. The result is the narrative of the grueling and brutal manner the police treated their victims. They list the case, and Fela appearing in court with scalp wounds, and a broken arm, drew more sympathy from the judge than the contrary. A crowd of more than fifty-thousand Lagos youths carried Fela from the court house in the Apapa area of Lagos to Kalakuta Republic—a distance of about six kilometers. During this jubilation, traffic was at a stand-still for several hours in the central part of Lagos mainland.

Don’t Make Garan Garan: The right to the land belongs to all. We are all sons and daughters of the land—sings Fela in Don’t Make Big-Mannism for me. Ganran Ganran in Yoruba language means: an egoist, full of himself, self-centered person. The rich and highly placed Nigerians, who frequently try to lord it over the poor, are being asked to know their limits. For if they bring their big-manism close to him(Fela), heaven will fall: ‘…to ba se ganran ganran si mi orun awoo! We all know that, if heaven falls it will fall on everyone,’ he concludes.

- Mabinuori Kayode Idowu

credits

released May 11, 2010

license

about

Fela Kuti Lagos, Nigeria

Over a decade after his death, vindication has come to Fela Kuti, Africa’s musical genius. AfroBeat, his gift to the world, is now an international staple on his own uncompromising terms, social content intact.

fela.net

contact / help

Contact Fela Kuti

Streaming and
Download help

Redeem code

Report this album or account

If you like Fela Kuti, you may also like:

De Bassari Togo (Limited Dance Edition Nr. 10)
by Orchestre Abass

supported by 14 fans who also own “Kalakuta Show (1976)”

Honkin guitar riff davidhominid
go to album
Essiebons Special 1973 - 1984 // Ghana Music Power House (Analog Africa Nr. 33)
by Analog Africa

supported by 13 fans who also own “Kalakuta Show (1976)”

Amazing synthesizer & electric guitar jams that are pure in folk music essence, while really adhering to a rock n roll plus rock uptempo dub reggae vibe. cherub420
go to album
Cameroon Garage Funk (Analog Africa Nr. 32)
by Analog Africa

supported by 13 fans who also own “Kalakuta Show (1976)”

Raw energy, pure inspiration filtered through the west African mojo. Incredible musicians jamming on a cool riff and having a complete conversation through riffs and stabs. What isn’t there to love! Reminds me of the feel of a late 60’s /early 70’s psych cumbia mix from S. America that a similar company compiled and released; folks who appreciates the lost recordings of time, place and inspiration through the lenses of their vibes. gibkel1
go to album
Orile to Berlin
by RAH & The Ruffcats

featured on Bandcamp Radio Apr 16, 2024
go to album
The Confluence LP
by Dele Sosimi & The Estuary 21

featured on Bandcamp Radio Feb 27, 2024
go to album
Duniama
by Jarabi Band

Afro-jazz ensemble Jarabi Band explore the stories of contemporary African and Australian musical culture. Bandcamp New & Notable Oct 19, 2023
go to album
Congo Funk! - Sound Madness From The Shores Of The Mighty Congo River (Kinshasa/Brazzaville 1969-1982) (Analog Africa No. 38)
by Analog Africa

supported by 11 fans who also own “Kalakuta Show (1976)”

The obsessive searching (in all the best ways) and crate digging pay off once again for the Analog Africa crew! This compilation is a veritable gold mine of crazy good funky riffs with horns aplenty. As with most AA offerings, the music appears to originate from various sources and time periods but the underlying quality of all the tracks is undeniable. Drop the needle and get ready to be enthralled!! blixa00
go to album