re:Discovery

HUGH MASEKELA naturally gravitated towards the Kalakuta Republic, but it was Hugh Masekela Introducing Hedzoleh clear that Fela had started a movement and would not be con- Soundz vinced to play under Masekela. The two then traveled to Ghana (Chisa Records) 1973 to visit Fela’s old friend Helwani and see Hedzoleh hold court at the Napoleon. Masekela, enchanted with Hedzoleh’s heavy The seven members of Hedzoleh Soundz earned their chops percussive sound, pulled out his trumpet and started jamming. while playing for the hustlers, pimps, and “good-time girls” The next day, Hedzoleh Soundz became Masekela’s new back- who frequented the notorious Napoleon nightclub in Accra, ing band. Ghana. Owned by an eccentric music producer, Faisal Helwani, Introducing Hedzoleh Soundz was recorded at EMI Lagos the Napoleon nightclub was a fresh dive for a hip crowd looking on borrowed mics from Fela’s stage. The album holds to- for a hang; it was Ghana’s answer to Fela’s Kalakuta Republic. gether seamlessly, as if Hedzoleh and Masekela always be- The comparison to Fela is not forced. Helwani toured Ghana longed together. “Because we had jelled so well as a unit with a young Fela during the 1960s—a period when Fela had in Ghana, our recording sessions were smooth,” Masekela more love in Ghana than at home. Similar to Fela’s jams at the recalls in his autobiography. From the opener “Languta,” Shrine in Lagos, Hedzoleh would rock Accra’s cosmopolitan Hedzoleh’s percussion-driven groove gallops across each after-hours crowd early into the early morning with their hyp- track, interrupted only by Masekela’s melodic, homesick notizing five-piece percussion ensemble, electrified guitar riffs, trumpet interludes. But the rerecording of “Rekpete” with and deep bass grooves. Masekela’s additions stand out as a playful nod to Hedzol- By the time Hugh Masekela arrived in West Africa in the eh’s Ghanaian roots. early ’70s—looking for inspiration from home but unable to Though Hedzoleh’s career as Masekela’s backing band return to South Africa because of his exile—both Hedzoleh and was short-lived—ego, miscommunication, and distrust be- Fela had settled into their sound. Hedzoleh played to a packed tween Hedzoleh’s manager and the band precipitated their nightly crowd, and their first single, “Rekpete,” was a regional breakup—this album stands as a perfect collaboration of Af- hit. As for Fela, he and his Afrika 70 were well on their way rica’s finest. The album is a snapshot of Africa in the 1970s: to making a stamp on African popular music with their Afro- searching for place, longing for home, wanting to be free. beat. Masekela, looking to recruit young, innovative musicians, . Kristofer Ríos

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