Track Listing

1. Musicawa Silt
2. Musicawa Silt Part 2
3. Quiet Man Is Dead Man
4. Modern Technology
5. Super Afro-Beat
6. Give It Up Turnit Loose
7. Eltsuhg Ibal Lasiti
8. Daktari Walk
9. Voodoo Soul Stew
10. Upside Down

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #466575 in Music
• Released on: 1998-09-01
• Number of discs: 1

Amazon.com
The Daktaris are actually several alumni from Fela Kuti's band, and as expected, Soul Explosion contains massive chunks of throbbing Afrobeat, the style perfected by the late Nigerian performer. Part Nigerian and part American funk à la James Brown, these 10 mostly instrumental tracks are hardcore, juju-headed time bombs from the dance floor of the motherland, with a baritone sax-fronted horn section riding earthshaking rhythms, thundering bass lines, and occasional wah-wah guitar. Except for classic workouts on Fela's "Upside Down," James Brown's "Give It Up, Turn It Loose," and the rare "Musicawa Silt" from Ethiopia's Wallias Band, these are all original tunes from a 15-strong ensemble that charges straight at you like a herd of elephants, absolutely unstoppable. Hopefully, any future release from this outfit will extend the group's monumental grooves beyond a five-minute format, which most of these Lagos-produced tracks fit into. --Derek Rath

Customer Reviews

Can you do the Daktari Walk?
If you are into Fela Kuti/The JBs(68-75) you can stop reading, and start smiling, because this is so close to the afrofunk of Fela that it`s impossible not to dig it. Yes, it may be a hustle, but it`s done with conviction and style, and you will find enough funk and afrobeat on this album to fill your socks.

Pleasant
This was quite a celebrated musical hustle; the group was made up of about a dozen or so mostly twenty-something mostly white guys from Brooklyn, who had no personal connection with Fela Kuti at all, apart from being moved by his music. This was their only LP, and the group went on to become the Antibalas, who still exist and tour. Even if you don't care for the backstory, this is a fun record, although it's very much background listening; if you're expecting a body-poppin' dance craze you'll be disappointed, it's mid-tempo and sounds like a small brass band with a funky drummer. It goes on too long and it's too one-note to be a masterpiece, but it's pleasant enough. As many people have pointed out, if you write "Eltsuhg Ibal Lasiti" backwards it spells "It is all a big hustle". The original record went out of print but was re-released in 1998 or so.

daktaris soul explosion
This is an incredible, funked out, horn blastin, juked up, make you happy to just be alive albums. Anybody will love this.