Tony Allen rose to fame as the drummer for Fela Kuti. His characteristic shuffle was one of the important ingredients of the afrobeat, the genre that the two gentlemen invented together. No Accomodation In Lagos (1978) appeared in a chaotic period. The previous year, Fela's estate had been stormed by soldiers who burned down his house. Fela did not let herself be belittled and quickly recorded a
… new album (Shuffering And Smiling) and produced Allen's first solo album No Accomodation In Lagos. In addition, Fela blows a game of sax and plays the piano. Perhaps partly due to all the stress, the relationship between the two friends showed more and more cracks. So much so, until Allen took a stroll after the release of this album. No Discrimination was released a year later. Where No Accomodation relies on the afrobeat sound of Fela's regular backing band Afrika 70, Allen and his new band The Afro Messengers choose No Discrimination to incorporate a bit more jazz influences into their hypnotic afrobeat. (PdK)more