Two Original Tracks from Saxophonist Dotun Bankole

Tenor Saxophonist Dotun “Dotsax” Bankole dropped by my house the other night for a jam. He plays a 156k silver plate Mark VI which is about a year younger than the horn I've been playing lately, a 148k Mark VI that is basically bare brass, having been stripped of its silver plate a long time ago. The horns are brothers from the late 60's, although his has a high F# key and mine doesn't  Dotun really liked the resonance of my horn and we traded instruments for the evening. He is playing on a Jody Jazz metal mouthpiece which was given to him by the manufacturer while on tour in the States a couple of months ago with Femi Kuti.

Dotun was bemoaning the scarcity of jazz in present-day Lagos. There is not a single venue in this city of 17 million that features live jazz every day. I thought maybe it was just me because I have played out less this past year than in any year in recent memory, although I have been working in a city which is lauded in some media circles as one of the really happening places in the third world. Not really happening for jazz since there is practically no place to jam, even for excellent local players, and not much happening even for home-grown styles like afrobeat although the music press refers to afrobeat as being really popular worldwide – I've previously written about that paradox.

In any event, Dotun continues to improvise and create on his saxophone. Recently he has been working on two original tracks in the studio: Irawo Owuro and Aja Nti Ele, where he plays soprano sax rather than his more usual tenor. You can listen to these two works-in-progress here and look for and buy the CD when it is released. Click on the track names to download and listen. Meanwhile, you can catch Dotsax playing tenor behind Femi Kuti at the New Africa Shrine in Ikeja, Lagos, on Thursday and Sunday evenings.

Christmas at the Shrine

Went over to the New Africa Shrine last night to catch Femi Kuti and band one last time before the Holidays. It was one of the looser sets I've witnessed. Femi came out at about 8:00 PM without much fanfare and joined the band on trumpet. It was the first time I've seen any of the hornmen solo while Femi was on stage; he usually reserves all the solo space for himself and the horn section serves solely as backup. Both the baritone player and tenor man Dotun “Dotsax” Bankole took long solos last night while Femi climbed the riser at the back of the stage and played trumpet with the section. He then did some time on soprano sax but didn’t touch his alto at all, nor his rarely-heard tenor. The first half hour was more jazzy and improvisatory than usual but then segued into some of Femi's more recognizable tunes like Dem Bobo, which in Pidgin means something to the effect of “they deceive” (Dem bobo your mama, dem bobo your papa, in the name of democracy….). 

I did my Christmas shopping at the Shrine and picked up a nice Fela singlet. Won’t be finding one of those down at the local mall. I'm off for Penang via Dubai tonight.

Dotsax - Tenor Saxophonist Dotun Bankole

Dotun "Dotsax" Bankole

Currently featured in the tenor sax spot in Femi Kuti's Positive Force band is 36-year-old hornman Dotun Bankole, aka Dotsax. The band just returned from its summer tour of England, France, and Spain and I had the chance to catch up with Dotsax at the Africa Shrine in Lagos last Thursday during Femi's rehearsal.

We spent a couple of hours jamming on Saturday afternoon and in between the music I was able to explore Dotun's musical interests and background, on top of jamming on one of his original tunes, Coltrane's Africa, some blues and some free explorations.

The Silver Mark VI

Dotsax started on trumpet rather late in life, at age 19 or 20, and played until his trumpet was stolen at age 24. He switched to sax because he had access to one, and learned it by practicing 12 hours a day for six months. His interests started with highlife but he found himself fascinated by jazz after fellow musicians introduced him to the sounds of Miles Davis, Charlie Parker, and Sonny Rollins. He's played with Nigerian masters like Peter King and attributes his current sound to the music he heard in his village growing up plus his fascination with jazz improvisation. Over the past decade he fronted his own band with his brother on keys, although the jazz scene in Nigeria is rather limited. Around nine years ago word was that Femi Kuti was looking for him, and four years ago he finally joined Femi's band full time. He's been touring and recording with Femi ever since and you can catch him and his silver Mark VI on stage at the Shrine on Thursdays and Sundays. 

In addition to his regular gigs backing Femi, Dotsax wants to develop his own original music with a group of his own that offers more room for improvisation. At our jam Saturday he showed easy fluency on tenor and instinctive harmonic knowledge, no problem ripping off interesting and coherent unaccompanied solos. He and I discussed a shared idea of recording a further fusion of jazz and afrobeat and I hope that can come to fruition in the next year. Listen to Dotsax perform a couple of his original compositions here on his MySpace site, which also contains a detailed bio.

Femi Kuti - Caught In The Act of Creation

I was fortunate last night to witness an act of musical creation, on hand while Femi Kuti composed a new tune and he and his musicians worked out the arrangement and backing parts live on stage. 

I came to the New Africa Shrine at about 7:30 pm to watch Femi and band rehearse. Previous Thursday night rehearsals have been more of an informal show than a working session, but last night was different. I arrived to hear Femi working out a line on keys and his horn players rushing to match the line and scribble notes on paper. I knew something was up because the band plays without scores and it was the first time I had seen anything being written down. 

Femi's keyboard line was a 4-bar ascending figure over a bass vamp, quite simple in itself but built into a compelling whole through repetition, layering, and dynamics. The band worked on it for about an hour and a half, saxes, trumpets, and rhythm section each figuring out their parts while Femi directed. The lion's share of time was spent on the bass line and bass/drum coordination. With parts sketched out, Femi walked out into the audience to listen intently from the dance floor and the mixing booth. 

Femi played keyboards almost exclusively last night although I did see him he pick up his tenor for the first time since I've been in Lagos. He blew it for a short while, facing the band rather than the microphone as if he was figuring out how to approach his solo on the new tune. 

After working out the arrangement to his satisfaction, Femi took a short break at around 9:00 pm. When the band came back, they performed the new tune for the first time. It sounded as if it could have already been in the book for a year. The process of musical creation is fascinating and it was a privilege to be present at the premier performance of this piece of music, which we may find in Femi's regular repertoire in the near future. Here is an audio snippet.

Femi's Back in Town

Femi Kuti and band completed their European summer tour and returned to Lagos this week. Last night, Femi was back in action at the New Africa Shrine for the first time in a month. He seemed mellow and relaxed compared to the weeks before the tour, with all the build-up to his 50th birthday celebration now over. 

I walked into the Shrine during the warm-up set in the middle of an extended tenor solo by Dotun Bankole on his silver Mark VI. At this point the staff of the Shrine know me pretty well, to the point where I don't even need to tell them what I want to order. Showboy met me and a few minutes after we sat down, he was called up on stage after it was announced that the composer of African Soldier was in the house. 

Rilwan "Showboy" Fagbemi

That led to two extended tunes with Showboy fronting the Positive Force band for about half an hour. Something is in the air, as you might recall that last month Showboy played with Femi's band for the first time ever, 15 years after Fela's death. When Showboy finished I kidded him that he now has a second gig (in addition to being musical director of Seun Kuti's Egypt 80). He laughed and said that he hadn't been at the Shrine at all since we were last there together in mid-June. Showboy's two tunes got a rise from the typically stoic crowd since long-time fans recognize him from his days with Fela. 

Showboy and Femi's Dancers at Rehearsal

Femi came out on trumpet and then displayed his considerable prowess in circular breathing on both soprano and alto. 

I'm back in Lagos now and within easy striking distance of the Shrine. More to come in the next few days. Here are a couple of photos of Showboy from last night, in the meantime.

Showboy and Femi Kuti's Band, Together for the First Time

On Thursday, June 7, I was witness to an historic occasion of sorts at the New Africa Shrine in Lagos. I had gone over after work to meet and talk to Egypt 80 band member and Fela Kuti contemporary Rilwan "Showboy" Fagbemi, subject of a series of interviews earlier this month. Femi Kuti holds a public rehearsal of his Positive Force band on Thursdays when he is in town, and this was one of those days.

Teacher, Don't Teach Me Nonsense

As noted in yesterday's post, Showboy and I (!) were recognized by the band's announcer as VIPs and a few minutes later Showboy was invited on stage to perform with the band. They did Fela's Teacher, Don't Teach Me Nonsense with Showboy on vocals. You can download and listen to the June 7 performance here. 

When Showboy returned to our table after singing, he told me, surprisingly, that this was the first time he had ever performed with Femi's band in the 15 years since Fela's death. Apparently there was some bad blood between Femi and Fela that extended to band members; Femi wanted to do his own thing with his own band and own music after his father died. Somehow, last Thursday night, any tension lingering after all these years dissipated and Fela's bandmate Showboy was called on stage as honored guest. 

Afterward, Showboy was asked back for Femi's regular Sunday night performance on June 10 and he again sang Teacher, Don't Teach Me Nonsense with the band (download and listen to the June 10 performance here). He later told me he called two other Fela tunes but the band didn't know them. He will be returning this coming Thursday to rehearse those tunes with the band. Perhaps the beginning of a new development in Afrobeat, the joining of the hottest contemporary band with its roots. 

When I turned 50 my first thought is that I had outlived Pres and Jug, both of whom passed at 49. Then I looked in the mirror and saw my father. Perhaps Femi has had the same thought.

My 15 Minutes of Fame Passed Quickly

Out of the frying pan and into the fire. I really asked for it. Only two weeks in Lagos but carrying the dream of playing at the Africa Shrine for a long time, and there I was blowing my horn on the Shrine's main stage with Femi Kuti's Positive Force band behind me, standing in the spot of the man himself. 

"And then you woke up." 

No, really. Last night I went to the New Africa Shrine at about 6:00pm to meet up with Femi's tenor saxophonist Dotun Bankole. While I was waiting around Femi showed up and introduced himself. I brought my horn; Dotun had his silver-plated Mark VI with him and took me up on stage. We assembled our horns and started blowing. It turned into a 30 or 40 minute free jam which I found really enjoyable - we had no problem communicating from the first note as we alternated trading licks, playing unison lines, riffing and laying down rhythms for each other. Dotun is an excellent player and it was a blast. He made me think, blow, and sweat hard. One of the most fun times I've ever had playing the sax, seriously.

I was told that Femi rehearses his band on Thursday nights so my expectation before I went was an informal working session with the band. Not so; the band worked through some arrangements led by the music director before Femi joined up, but after 8:00 Femi came on stage and played a three hour set straight through! It was as intense a show as Sunday night's performance, only Femi and the band were dressed in street clothes and the dancers were not made up and costumed. When Femi says his performance runs 7:00 to 11:00, he means nonstop! And on Thursday nights, admission to the Shrine is free. Where else in the world can you see an international star and his genre-leading band perform a four hour set for free? 

After we jammed, Dotun asked me to sit down for a while and he would call me up on stage...I thought to join with the horn section and work out. He kept my horn up on stage and assembled it next to him. Right after 7:00 the band started playing, then about halfway through the first hour I heard my name announced from stage on the PA. The entire band broke into a fanfare. I had no clue. I put my harness on, went up on the riser next to Dotun, and picked up my tenor. He pushed me out into the spotlight, right into Femi's spot at the front of the stage with Femi's horns on their stand at my feet. I was in the man's spot facing the audience with the 12-piece band at full blast behind me. There was no choice but to blow. 

Hmmm. I've been around too much to say I was terrorized, but it was definitely nerve-racking and it took me a moment to get my footing. I hung at the mike for around seven minutes, soloing over the polyrhythms and horn punctuations, and the proof is here for posterity. Not my best-ever solo, but I take solace in the fact that Sonny Rollins can't stand listening to his own recordings either. Then it was over. I want more. 

Yes, I did it. I played on center stage at the New Africa Shrine with the world's very best Afrobeat band behind me. Whew.