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2nd Set of Fela Kuti Reissues 5/11

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KNITTING FACTORY RECORDS TO RELEASE SECOND SET OF FELA REISSUES MAY 11, 2010
UNIQUE PRE-SALE OFFERINGS VIA FELA.NET

Fela Kuti
Knitting Factory Records is very excited to announce that the second set of Fela Kuti reissues will be released on May 11, 2010. Once again, as the reissues are being made available in mostly chronological order, these seven CDs that contain 14 albums total are mostly from the mid '70s and represent Fela and Africa '70 in their prime. Clearly his and the group's most productive period (12 of the albums were released in 1975 and 1976 alone), it is during this point in his life that Fela's social commentary began to reach a boiling point with songs such as “Icy Blindness" and “Expensive Shit." However, in this collection of songs he also touched on more sensual subjects as in “Na Poi," philosophy as in “Water No Get Enemy" and the shaking loose of the colonial mentality as in “Yellow Fever."

The titles that are being released are:

Alagbon Close (1974)/Why Black Man Dey Suffer (1971)
Expensive Shit (1975)/He Miss Road (1975)
Everything Scatter (1975) /Noise For Vendor Mouth/ (1975)
Monkey Banana (1975)/Excuse O (1975)
Ikoyi Blindness (1976)/Kalakuta Show (1976)
Yellow Fever (1976)/Na Poi (1976)
J.J.D. (Johnny Just Drop) (1977)/Unnecessary Begging (1976)

Right now Knitting Factory Records in association with Topspin is making this collection of CDs available for pre-sale in three different configurations: offering one is the digital download of all the titles; offering two is the digital download plus all the CDs; offering three is all of the above with the inclusion of a t-shirt. All of the titles have been re-mastered and re-released in unique digi-packs with the original artwork.

Again, the reissue series is well timed as it coincides with the critically acclaimed FELA!, the hit Broadway musical that has been celebrating Fela's life and music nightly since it opened in November 2009. It was directed and choreographed by Tony Award-winner Bill T. Jones and produced by Shawn “Jay-Z“ Carter and Will & Jada Pinkett Smith with music by the world-renowned Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra and other members of the NYC Afrobeat community, under the direction of Aaron Johnson.

The next group of reissues will be released in the fall.

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