Fela Kuti - Koola Lobitos/The 69 L.A. Sessions (2001)

It's a shock to hear Fela Kuti, the furious, rabble-rousing godfather of Afro-beat, singing perky little high-life tunes about good times, but that's exactly what he did with his first band, Koola Lobitos, back in the mid-'60s. The first half of this set presents the band's hybrid of swinging London grooviness and African jazz, with Fela playing trumpet at least as much as he sings. In 1969, he took the band (renamed Nigeria 70) to Los Angeles. Within a few months, he'd become radically politicized and started writing songs like "Viva Nigeria." The singles he recorded in America, collected on the disc's second half, are the bridge to the full-blown Afro-beat that blossomed a year or two later--spindly, propulsive funk riffs explored thoroughly. There's a newfound, roaring confidence coming through in Fela's voice, even as he gets a few last stabs at R&B structure (like "Lover") out of his system. --Douglas Wolk