Upside Down (1976)
Artist
Label
Catalogue number
KFR2023-1
Release date
- Vinyl, 1×LPBlack vinyl
- WAV / FLAC
- MP3
Fela went through some profound musical and political changes during Koola Lobitos / Nigeria 70’s 1969 - 1970 US tour. Politically, the most far-reaching of these followed his befriending of Sandra Izsadore, a black-rights activist who introduced him to the writings of Malcolm X, Angela Davis, Rap Brown, Stokely Carmichael, Huey Newton, Frantz Fanon and other revolutionary thinkers. Fela often credited Izsadore with helping inspire his philosophy of Blackism. Izsadore also affirmed Fela's use of weed. Fela had occasionally smoked in London while he was there studying at Trinity College, but with Izsadore in 1969 he began to use weed daily, continuing to do so until the end of his life. In 1970, Izsadore stayed with Fela in Nigeria for six months, and returned for a shorter visit in 1976, when she sang on the title track of Upside Down, which describes Nigeria’s shambolic, corruption-riddled governance and infrastructure. Originally released by Decca Afrodisia.
Standard black vinyl LP, released in 2015 as part of the Knitting Factory Records re-issues, comes with a download card.
