Geraldo Pino - "Power To The People"

Afro-Funk luminary Geraldo Pino often seems to get lost in the shadow of his great contemporary, Fela Kuti. While Fela received much recognition outside of Africa (in the U.S., England, and elsewhere), Pino remains virtually unknown in the West today. Interestingly, Pino was one of the first (and most successful) African musicians to incorporate the sounds of American Funk and Soul into his own music. At the time, Highlife Jazz was the predominant sound found in the clubs. Pino (later with the help of Fela and a cohort of other notable West-African groups) adopted the tougher rhythms pioneered by James Brown, mixing the new grooves with traditional African styles. The fresh sounds caught on and the popularity shifted towards the funkier dance bands. Fela recalls his early admiration of Pino in a passage excerpted from Carlos Moore's Fela, Fela, This Bitch of a Life (1982):

"I was playing highlife jazz when Geraldo Pino came to town in '66 or a bit earlier with soul. That's what upset everything man. He came to town with James Brown's music, singing, Hey, hey, I feel all right, ta ta ta ta... And with such equipment you've never seen, man. This man was tearing Lagos to pieces....[Pino] came in a big way: in a convertible Pontiac; you know, one of those big American cars, man. Flashy, new equipment. Lots of bread. He was doing his thing, man. He had everything I didn't have. After that Pino tore up the scene, there wasn't shit I could do in Lagos. So I went to Ghana in '67... At that time that's where the action and the bread was. So, we went to Ghana. After seeing this Pino, I knew I had to get my shit together. And quick!"

With "Power to the People," Pino (along with his dynamic backing band, The Heart Beats) unleashed a monster of a groove. The relentlessly funky drums and bass are engulfed by waves of psychedelic wah wah guitar while the organ and vocal weave in and out. If this righteous stomp doesn't get you on your feet and dancing, I urge you to check your pulse to make sure you are still with us...

Below is a video interview with master percussionist and Heart Beats drummer Francis Fuster.