Melody Monday - Vol. 4

Fela Kuti & The Africa ‘70 - Mister Follow Follow

When my good friend Thomas Wilson first played Fela Kuti’s album “Zombie” for me, we were on the way to my hunting lease to try our luck fishing Cibolo Creek. What’s important to note about Tom is that he’s about as unique and well rounded a person as they come. A husband and father, he’s brilliant when it comes to academics, teaches high school physics and chemistry full time, performs lead vocals in various music projects, and has a deep passion for the outdoors. His music tastes are certainly no exception to his uniqueness. Here’s a guy that can sing along to The Cure’s Head on The Door, Black Flag’s Damaged, then turn around and jam Enya’s Memories of Trees or some tunes by Dwight Yoakam. Trying to show Tom a genre of music he hasn’t fully explored already would be like trying to solve one of his Advanced Placement physics problems… Seemingly impossible for an oaf like myself.

As we reached the gate to the property, I was excited to show him a song I had discovered by Calypso artist Mighty Sparrow. We jammed “No, Doctor, No” to our mutual delight when he proclaimed something to the extent of, “Oh, I know what you like...” and promptly took control of the AUX cord to play me “Zombie” by Fela Kuti. Although certainly different in styles, both songs are politically charged with social commentary of their time and place and you can feel the emotions through their instrumentation and lyrical content. On the surface Fela’s thirteen-minute track “Mister Follow Follow” is an Afrobeat gem with a catchy chorus vocal that lingers long after the song is over. Much deeper is its message relating to the struggles of living under the oppression of the Nigerian government in the 1970s. If you’re interested in learning more about the history of the artist and time I encourage you to read the commentary in the video below by Afrobeat Historian Chris May...

We had a successful trip wetting some lines that late August evening. I had been effective in catching channel cats numerous times here in the past but leave it to Tom to reel in the only largemouth bass I’d ever seen come out of that creek. Reflecting on it now I can’t help but recognize the similarities between my friend and the song he shared with me, in how one’s own ideas about a certain place or time can shift with influence from someone that comes along with a fresh new perspective. I’m looking forward to our next fishing trip and the new experiences it will bring, be it auditory or piscatorial in nature. Until then, Happy Melody Monday y’all!