[download] Fela Kuti's 'Zombie'
Is this the best zombie song ever? It certainly may be the longest and most potent.
Knitting Factory Records today released the third set of Fela Kuti reissues, and passed along this free download of his 12-minute 1976 afrobeat classic “Zombie,” which railed against his home nation's government.
DOWNLOAD: Fela “Zombie” [mp3]
"What's fascinating about Fela's music at this point is the dichotomy between the music and the message," says Brian Long of Knitting Factory Records in a press release. "Out of context, these songs are incredibly upbeat and full of the hottest African funk, while in the context of Fela's life, when you read the lyrics and know the story, they are full of frustration and a fiery anger that was meant to lift the people into protest."
The "Zombie" series spans Fela’s 11-album 1976 to 1980 catalogue, when his Kalakuta Republic found itself under siege from the Nigerian government. Thirteen CDs and 23 albums have been releasded by Knitting Factory already this year, and the next batch arrives this winter. Among the current re-issue are the releases Zombie (1976), Upside Down (1976) / Music of Many Colours (1980), Stalemate (1977) / Fear Not For Man (1977), Opposite People (1977) / Sorrow, Tears and Blood (1977), Shuffering & Shmiling (1978) / No Agreement (1977), V.I.P. (1979) / Authority Stealing (1980).