No Condition Is Permanent

Pictured: Fela Kuti.

Saturday — when Fela presented his ”Comprehensive Show” complete with the Egypt 80 dancers and an enormous, ritual conical “cigar” presumably filled with marijuana and various native herbs — was also mainly a dance night, with the most diverse audience of the week; listeners traveled from all over Lagos and beyond to enjoy the music. For some attendees, a visit to the Shrine, with its marijuana smoking, go-go dancers, and antigovernment lyrics, was an act of social rebellion in itself. Others came to engage, examine, or debate Fela’s political philosophy. Still other visitors were content merely to enjoy the music, irrespective of its political sentiments. Each show concluded at dawn with Fela pausing before the shrine in the rear of the building. With intense flames leaping into the air, the “Chief Priest of Shrine” paused — flanked by two young male attendants — to salute his ancestors and Pan-Africanist heroes, before returning home as the rest of Lagos awakened with the dawn.

— Michael Veal, Fela: The Life And Times Of An African Musical Icon.

Nigerians had (and now have again, albeit in rebuilt form) The Shrine. Denizens of the darker end of Brush St. in downtown Detroit have The Purple Bat Lounge. These two entities, half a world distant from one another, are less dissimilar than one might suspect initially. In both cases patrons tend to stay all night, regardless of curfews and legislated hours for Last Call, as the prospect of returning home before dawn represents nothing less than a foolhardy impulse. Both establishments bear renown out of proportion to their humble settings. And both places benefit from associations with charismatic figures: One attended The Shrine to see, hear and dance to Fela – and you can only find Lee-Roy at The Purple Bat Lounge. Need proof? Click on the arrow immediately below…

 

LISTEN TO EPISODE 248 OF NO CONDITION IS PERMANENT:

 

DOWNLOAD EPISODE 249 OF NO CONDITION IS PERMANENT BY <OPTION> + CLICKING HERE.

Here’s what we played in Ep. 249 of No Condition Is Permanent:

THE FIRST SET

Rufus & Chaka Khan — “You Got the Love” — Sweet Soul Music: 23 Scorching Classics from 1974

Afro Soul System — “Tink Tank” — Akwaba Abidjan: Afrofunk in 1970s Ivory Coast        

The Spiders — “Don’t Blow Your Mind” — Garage Beat ’66 Vol. 2: Chicks Are For Kids!

Melih & Faruk & Serdar & Saygun — “Aynali Carsi” — Turkish One Hit Wonders (1967-1976)

Captain Beefheart & The Magic Band — “I Love You, You Big Dummy” — Lick My Decals Off, Baby

Big Joe — “World Wide Kaya” — At The Control

The Yardbirds — “Hot House Of Omagarishid” — Roger The Engineer (a.k.a. Over Under Sideways Down)

IT’S MADISON TIME…        

             

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Michele Torr — “Non, A Tous Les Garcons” — C’est Chic! (French Girl Singers Of The 1960s)

THE SECOND SET

The Real Kids — “All Kindsa Girls” — The Real Kids

Catchito & Cacha Po — “Fine Fine Woman” — Guitar Safari : Electric Explosion In Africa

The Carnations — “Scorpion” — Dancehall Stringbusters Vol. 2

Bappi Lahiri — “Disco Title Music From ‘Dahshat’” — Bollywood Bloodbath: The B-Music of the Indian Horror Film Industry

Wire — “Sand In My Joints” — Chairs Missing

Sadistic Mika Band — “Taifuuka” — Kurofune (Black Ship)

The Four Clippers — “You Can’t Trust A Woman” — Vicious Vicious Vocals! Volume Vun

Los Mirios — “Muchachita del Oriente” — The Roots of Chicha: Psychedelic Cumbias from Peru

Dennis Coffey — “Impressions Of” — Big City Funk

THE THIRD SET

King Tubby’s — “King At The Controls” — Psalms Of Drums: The Black And White Story

The Slits — “Love Und Romance” — Cut

Very Be Careful — “Playas Marinas” — Escape Room

The Mermen — “Honeybomb” — Food For Other Fish

Fela & Africa 70 — “Who’re You? (Original 45 Version)” — Nigeria Afrobeat Special: The New Explosive Sound in 1970’s Nigeria

THE FINAL SET

Johnny Thunders & The Heartbreakers — “Born to Lose’ — L.A.M.F. (The Lost ’77 Mixes)

Omar Khorshid — “Rahbaniyat (Rahbani Variations)” — Guitar El Chark

Paul Gayten — “Hot Cross Burns” — Sound Of Detroit 2: Original Gems From The Motown Vaults

Ros Serey Sothea — “Jam 10 Kai Thiet (Wait 10 More Months)” — Cambodian Rocks

The Standells — “Medication” — Dirty Water

Icebreakers w. The Diamonds — “Grand Rock” — Planet Mars Dub

Roxy Music — “Angel Eyes” — Manifesto

Manzanita — “Mi Choza, Mi Chacra y Mi Mujer” — Cumbia Beat Vol. 2: Tropical Sounds from Peru 1966–1983

LORD BUCKLEY’S WEEKLY BENEDICTION…                      

Marga Benitez & The Mello-Tones — “Winos On Parade” — Marga 45rpm