King Sunny Ade and his Afrobeat orchestra on tour (and on disc)

Monday, March 28, 2005; Page C04

King Sunny Ade

The advance publicity for Nigerian singer-guitarist King Sunny Ade's current U.S. tour promised two innovations: the unprecedented pairing of the Yoruba musician with an Igbo one, Prince Obi Osadebe, and Ade's first stateside foray into "praise singing," in which a vocalist exalts a notable spectator who in exchange "sprays" the performer with money. Neither novelty was the highlight of Ade's frequently exhilarating concert Friday night (and Saturday morning) at the Lincoln Theatre.

Ade and his 14-piece band began to perform a little before midnight and continued for nearly three hours. At any given moment, as many as eight of the musicians played percussion, providing an intricate pulse that never flagged. Atop these polyrhythms, Ade arrayed his sweet tenor and jaunty, high-pitched guitar, which were supplemented by call-and-response chants and -- unusual in African music -- a steel guitar. Twice during the show, the band was joined by three women dancers who snaked their hips to sultry Ade riffs.

About an hour of the concert was devoted to praise singing and spraying, which nearly becalmed the music. Thronged by admirers, Ade was nearly invisible to most of the audience, and half the band simply stood around as he sang.

Fortunately, the percussionists kept going, chattering briskly on congas, talking drum and other instruments until Ade strapped on his guitar again.

He then played for another half-hour, but didn't quite recapture the momentum of the earlier set. More praise singing led finally to a statement of support for democracy in Nigeria and a quick departure. Ade didn't exactly end on a high note, but there were plenty of those before the show gradually unraveled.

Osadebe, , who performed for about an hour, was backed by a five-piece band that couldn't rival the headliner's instrumental complexity.

Despite a vivid red-and-green robe and a frequently employed shimmy, he was at a disadvantage in stage presence.

-- Mark Jenkins

© 2005 The Washington Post Company

Copyright 2005 AllAfrica, Inc.
Africa News

March 22, 2005 Tuesday

HEADLINE: Nigeria;
Laurels Made in Nigeria

It was almost three hours of cheers, hugging, backslapping, thrills and frills at the maiden edition of the Nigeria Entertainment Award on Sunday, March 6. The venue -- Ikeja-based Sheraton Hotel and Towers -- was capacity-filled. The hall was abuzz with the chatter of the entertainment crowd.

For an event on its maiden edition, the awards ceremony was however ambitious. The five categories of Media, Movies, Music, Comedy and Special Recognition Award were replete with a lengthy list of awards.

In the Music category, the award winners were African Queen (Song of the Year), Kennis Music (Best Record Label of the Year), Oruka by Sonny Nneji (Best Music Video), Ruggedman (Best Rap Artiste), Lagbaja (Most Innovative male artiste), Ara (most innovative female artistes) Jimmy Jatt (DJ of the year) Keke & D1 (Most Entertaining Music presenters.

The organisers gave out special recognition awards to icons such as Ali Baba, Richard Mofe-Damijo, Wale Adenuga, Ben Murray Bruce, King Sunny Ade, Charley Boy, K-I Ultimate, and Joke Jacobs.

-KSA was indeed the steppes of Russia, the pants on the Roxy usher, etc. He and his 657 band members (about 735 of whom are percussionists of one sort of another) took the stage around quarter-to-twelve and probably left many hours after I was home in bed, put to shame by nattily robed Nigerians nearly twice my age. And younger, to be fair—the crowd was pretty broadly dispersed as far as age. There were a smattering of white folks there too—hippies doing that damn hoppety-hop of theirs, some fairly limber student-types, and some appreciatively sedentary arts professionals. (Not that, erm, I noticed any of this stuff—that’d be doing King Sunny a disservice, nah?)

Prince Ibo was less exciting—fairly standard issue professional Afropop, a jaded observer might remark. Then again, who gets to see enough West African bands a year to be jaded? (Aside from, you know, West Africans.) But just as impressive as the main attraction was the Legendary Blue Horizon, which has a vaulted ceiling that is indeed very blue—sky-blue, to be exact. It’s used for boxing matches these days, and from what I could gather (though I couldn’t gather much, online or from anyone in attendance) it was a hopping live music venue back when North Philly was the sort of area that supported hopping live music venues. I hope they hold more shows like this in the future.

I wonder if Matt C. caught one of the Wisconsin shows?

Sasha Frere-Jones has the King Sunny Synchro Series compilation thing on his top 10 list now.

I loved the guitar, as usual, and Ade's dancing. There was no way I could miss this.

April 23, 2005 Saturday

POP BEAT;
It's OK to toss cash at royalty;
King Sunny Ade doesn't mind if you shower him with greenbacks. In fact, he'll play until 4 a.m. to show his gratitude.

by Richard Cromelin, Times Staff Writer

DATELINE: SOLANA BEACH, Calif.

The musicians in King Sunny Ade's band have many talents. They can play his polyrhythmic pieces for hours with unflagging spirit and precision. They look sharp in their patterned Nigerian garments. They're able to dance when called upon and are always ready with an infectious smile.

And on Wednesday they showed their skill at scooping up the money that fluttered to the floor of the stage during the group's concert at the Belly Up Tavern here. This abundant currency was presented to singer-guitarist Ade by audience members who approached him as he played and, with great ceremony, either showered the greenbacks over him like confetti or stuck them to his perspiring forehead.

This custom, known as "spraying" or "dashing," is rarely enacted outside of its African setting, but Ade, one of the biggest international stars in African music for more than two decades, is including it as an added attraction on his first U.S. tour in several years. The opening act is an exponent of eastern Nigeria's highlife music, Prince Obi Osadebe.

"A lot of people really wanted to see how we normally do it in Nigeria, in our parties and Nigerian concerts," Ade, 58, said backstage before Wednesday's show. "Many people said they saw it on TV or a video ... so my management said I should include it .... We started doing it and everybody really enjoys it. It has been going very well."

The tour will stop tonight at the Vanguard in Hollywood, where Ade will introduce locals to another regular feature of his performances back home: He'll play until 4 in the morning.

The spraying and the "praise singing" -- in which the performer reciprocates by singing flattering words about his benefactors -- are part of the musical/social fabric in Nigeria. At parties held for naming ceremonies, weddings, business openings and other occasions, people's prominence is often measured by the exchange.

"It's a sign of respect, and it's also a means of getting the singer to sing your praise," says CC Smith, editor of the Los Angeles-based world music magazine the Beat. "It actually is a demonstration of status -- showing off your wealth makes you the big man or top dog in the society. The more you can give away, the richer you are considered. And then, of course, the singer starts singing your praises for all to hear.

"I've been to shows where they've done nothing but. People were virtually lining up to throw money on the singer, and the whole song was talking about whoever was currently pasting the money on his head."

At the Belly Up, the spraying began about halfway through the nearly two-hour show, when a man in an African-design shirt danced up to Ade and began tucking bills into his collar and pressing them against his head. Three women soon joined him, and they remained on stage and danced after bestowing their cash.

Ade stood at the side of the stage and faced them as he began the praise singing. At Nigerian parties the singer knows a lot about the people he's addressing, but here it appeared more impromptu. At one point one of the women whispered to a backup singer, who in turn said something to Ade, presumably some information for him to incorporate in his lyrics.

Ade sings in the Yoruba language, so while the words themselves might have been foreign to the predominantly non-African audience, the intimacy and spontaneity of this moment were mesmerizing, all the more so because it was delivered with dazzling rhythmic complexity and precision.

That's been the hallmark of King Sunny Ade's juju music for decades, and his sound is as fresh and vibrant in 2005 as it was when he made his initial splash in the U.S.

At the Belly Up, the size of the stage limited his lineup to 14 players (with three vivacious female dancers occasionally squeezing in to shake their stuff), but with a phalanx of drums behind three electric guitars and keyboards, they mounted the same rippling, intricate, effervescent kind of grooves that first endeared him to Western audiences.

Ade was already a star in Nigeria when his fame began to spread in Europe in the early '80s. He signed with Island Records and was presented to the world as an emissary of a great Third World music, somewhat in the tradition of Bob Marley.

Ade wasn't political like Marley, but his influence has been profound on the international spread of African music and the growth of world music as a vital genre.

Though his prominence here faded after the initial wave, when he and his band headlined such venues as the Hollywood Palladium and the Greek Theatre, Ade has nothing but good memories about those times.

"I'd been longing to let the whole world hear my music, juju music, and it was like a door opener for me from Island Records," he said backstage Wednesday. "It was like a new thing to the Western world, and they gave me an opportunity to play it live....

"They opened the door not only for me but for other African musicians and all African music.... And the people here are still liking it."

love this dude

I think various old efforts of his are being reissued

Was there ever a proper Search and Destroy on King Sunny Ade?

If not, lets.

I've loved everything I've heard, but I don't know what any of it was as i lost it all in hard-drive crash. The Juju Music LP on Island just arrived in the post, as that seemed a good place to start.

Synchro System rules too.

The Classic Years *really* rules, esp. for mindnumbingly wonderful psychedelic guitar work

I've got a few of those twofer original-album reissues with the rounded CD cases, and those are nice, though I haven't parsed them fully. (I also got them years ago and haven't really gone back yet.)

Anyone heard that new "Classic Years Vol. 2" thing on Shanachie? Been thinking about picking that one up.

(rounded corners on the CD cases, I mean; the CD cases themselves aren't round.)

So I think it was probably the Best of the Classic Years album that I had, and it was great.

Synchro System rules too.

Yeah, but I'm not sure which versions I've heard - and there appear to be three totally different Synchro System albums too.
http://www.discogs.com/release/661002
http://www.discogs.com/release/1085671
http://www.sternsmusic.com/disk_info/CDAS89703

Which one(s) do you have?

Playing a bunch of dates with Femi Kuti, including an outdoor amphitheater in Minneapolis June 30.

seattle too but no femi kuti sad

he's at the Showbox at the Market 6/16. NYC gets these dudes separately, but both free and outdoors.

Separately for DC too, both with ticket prices. Interestingly for DC, King Sunny's gonna play at the 930 Club, and when I first saw him years ago it was at an all-night show at the same location, but when it was called the WUST Radio Music Hall. An awesome show. The publicist e-mailed me that they might add some long late-night gigs in locations where there are more African immigrants.

Fixed version of broken link above:
http://www.citypages.com/2005-04-06/music/here-comes-the-sun-king/all

About to interview him again...

Psyched to be seeing him in a few weeks at Winnipeg Folk Fest. Looks like a crazy busy tour. Still can't believe he didn't get a weekend slot; relegated to next-to-last act of Thursday night, to make way for didgeridoo-sampling-techno-hippie Xavier Rudd.

saw him at bonnaroo, fucking great show, late afternoon, dancing under a tree

Seeing him at the Triple Door, the swankest venue in Seattle, with amazing sound--can't WAIT. (Was even more psyched about Orchestra Baobab, but I'd be out of town for that anyway, plus they canceled.)

They just reissued an early 2000s cd of his, to plug on this tour.

One of the greatest finds of the last two years: a pristine vinyl copy of the OOP Aura. It's got some of the most buoyant electro-grooves I've ever heard. Please don't stop the music.

Who has seen O.C. and Stiggs?!

Synchro-System is the best.

I am going to see him on Wednesday ... can't f'n wait

I enjoyed him lots tonight but man I wish he'd actually played guitar instead of faintly picking behind the female dancers. Then again I left after he took off stage during encore one, so maybe I missed something.

Looking forward to the DC show July 17th. Spring and summer has been great in my area for live African music--Vieux Farka Toure; Amadou & Mariam; Samba Mapangala,

Who has seen O.C. and Stiggs?!
I have. I really enjoyed it the first time I saw it, too, but I guess it helped to be in a room full of friends and drunk. I tried to watch it again by myself a couple of years later and it was just unwatchable. But that's not King Sunny Ade's fault. I picked up AURA for four dollars a couple of months ago and it is good. I like Juju Music best, though.

I wish I loved Juju Music a bit more than I do. The talking drum, the skittery electric guitar, the synth, and esp. the steel guitar are all excellent, but my old early 90s CD just seems a bit thin, and doesn't envelop me and kick my ass the way, say, the best Fela discs do. I'm only a bit familiar with Aura and Synchro-System, and after that nada (and I actually sold back my copy of Live at Hollywood Palace.)

What do i need -- older, newer?

Older -- get Best of the Classic Years

It's not going to kick your ass in the way Fela does, exactly -- Juju is a bit more ethereal and less driving and angry than afrobeat.

is it a 90s cd of 70s music, or a 90s cd of 90s music?

My 90s CD? The "Juju Music" album, and i gotta confess, I don't know when that was recorded.

And by kick my ass, I mean I'm hoping for a recording that compares with seeing him in concert mid 80s: about 25 musicians onstage, mad polyrhythms and that ethereal, swirly steel floating thru.

I dunno, I have the mp3 version of Juju Music and it def kicks my ass. Esp on headphones.

I'll forever praise the wonderful bout of enthusiast record collectors' Blogspot-site vinyl rips in '08 or so - I discovered Adé's African-made records that way. I was not bowled over by 'Juju Music' but these side-long jams I totally got down with it. 'Bobby' is my go-to album too, closely followed by this one: https://groovemonzter.blogspot.com/2009/01/king-sunny-ade-private-line-side-one.html

One of these days I'm finally going to check out 'Aura'. I've heard good things about that one.

xp to man alive, i'm talking specifically about the guitars on vol. 7 and in a few other select spots. to my ears there's definitely something going on that isn't sitting right, but that's not something i hear in all of KSA by any means

otm re: blogspot era

I was at the Musical Instruments Museum in Phoenix (highly recommended) a couple years ago with my parents and it has a display of one of KSA's outfits and a blurb about him. My mom is a total square and not into music more than the average person so I was pretty surprised she knew who he was. I guess then he did have a brief moment in the international spotlight before my time.

another favorite that i first came across in the blogspot years:

Vol 4 Late General Ramat Muritala Mohammed
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iON5zP-wnAY

great fuzz @ 22:47 !

whoa yeah! and the wah-wah before that likewise!

i'm here to ask ilxors if they would be interested in / post in a thread devoted to juju / yoruba music.

or whether there's already a suitable thread for the purpose of posting youtube rips of uncle toye ajagun, admiral dele abiodun, prince adekunle, choice KSA deep cuts, etc

Um yeah, I totally would

Chief Ebeneezer Obey, chief stephen osita osadebe etc.

One of the stupidest things among many stupid things I did in college was to take an Africa in WWII class, do badly in it, and then, for my final paper, try to write about juju roots and palmwine music in wwii, a subject for which there were almost no sources available whatsoever, even from ILL. I think I walked away with a D in that class. I was really not in my right mind at times.

Sorry about the grade, and you not thinking about how hard it would be, but I like the idea.

But yeah a juju thread would be ok

Did the juju/yoruba thread ever get off the ground? No results from my searches. I'd be very happy to get some 'if you like KSA you'll like this' recommendations.

no idea. the highlife/igbo (but not just that) thread has seen a significant revival in the past 24 hours however!

https://www.elderscornermovie.com/

I liked this Elders Corner film doc on old school Nigerian musicians (which I have touted on other threads)

It has juju and afrobeat and highlife

Thanks. Will dig in. How would you define Sunny Ade's sound (and Chief Ebeneezer...)?

Is it juju?

both juju, yes, though I find distinguishing between juju, highlife, and palm-wine fairly difficult, even more so once western/afrobeat influences start showing up. people with a better ear for rhythm & percussion patterns might be better at it than I am

Thanks. I feel the same - I don't really have the vocabulary, which is why I asked. I associate highlife with The Bhundu Boys. Back in the 80s I found much more to enjoy in the complex rhythms of Sunny Ade. I didn't know that palm-wine was a genre.

never started it, will think about doing that this week, or go ahead and make one yourself!

The Bhundu Boys ? That's an interesting confusion. The rhythms are very different. I guess it shows how unknown the Zimbabwean body of music remains.
Palm wine music is more traditional. Juju is more hypnotic and celebratory. Highlife is more funky and melancholic and has rumba-style guitar.

I mentioned the Bhundu Boys only because we were talking about different threads on ILM and how some juju had somehow made it onto the highlife thread. I then noticed there was some discussion above about having a devoted thread, which I've since started.