Fela Kuti’s ‘International Thief Thief (ITT)’ was an unmistakable attack on the telecommunications conglomerate, International Telephone and Telegraph (ITT). The acronym “would have been recognized by any Nigerian” in 1980. Fela was in dispute with Moshood Abiola, the CEO of ITT and also the boss of Fela’s record label. Abiola had colluded with the CIA to overthrow Chile’s democratically elected president. Fela also calls out Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanjo for stealing, corruption, and oppression.
The original album art featured another acronym: ‘MOP’, which was Fela’s abbreviation for his political party, Movement of the People, which aimed to “clean up society like a mop.” Fela’s youngest son, Seun, carries on the party today.
Drummer Tony Allen and guitarist Oghene Kologbo had quit after Fela’s tour of Europe in the late ’70s, which included the Berlin concert. Trumpeter Tunde Williams was also absent by the time of ‘ITT’. Despite some musicians departing, the band was getting bigger. There are two drummers, two bassists, five guitarists, congas, maracas, and four of Fela’s wives provide the electrifying call-and-response.
Allen had laid the foundation for Afrobeat drumming. Fela is one of the few people credited with singlehandedly inventing a genre, but some argue that Allen was the co-creator of Afrobeat. Fela’s eldest son, Femi, disagrees with this claim.
In the liner notes for a 2014 Fela collection, Brian Eno wrote of Allen’s drumming, “It rolls, rocks, and snaps and makes you moves. And yet it isn’t ever very regular—it’s hard to isolate the part that Tony Allen is playing because he’s constantly moving around it.” Maseaswe Anam and Nicholas Avom’s drumming on ‘ITT’ is comparatively regimented – still full of life, still syncopated, but more consistent.
With Allen’s role as bandleader available, Lekan Animashaun took on the role, and here he provides one of his distinctive baritone saxophone solos. The horn section on this record composes two baritone saxes (Mukoro Owieh joined Animashaun), Fela’s alto, a tenor, two trumpets, and a valve trombone. It’s the meanest, deepest, and fullest that Fela’s horn section sounded to date. The main riff first snarls at 2:30 and returns many times throughout.
The highlight of the song (or at least one of many) is when Fela repeats “Gradually” over and over, building to the “International Thief Thief” refrain. During the “Gradually”s, Fela’s vocals are supported only by drums, guitars, and bass. The guitar and bass riffs repeat for most of the 24 minutes and are still thrilling by the end. The horns fall out in this section, ready for a triumphant return.
The song is one of the finest examples of Fela’s ear for vowel sounds, and how he could turn ordinary words into hooks. That was also thanks to his unique sense of rhythm, which is exemplified with his timing of “ITT” after the backing singers’ first “International Thief Thief”. Fela’s “ITT” comes after a little delay and the first note (“I”) is unexpected, further ramping up the tension.
Superhuman Happiness, Sahr Ngaujah, Abena Koomson and Rubblebucket used a similar “Gradually” section for their cover, even though their version was 18 minutes shorter than Fela’s.
This was becoming the standard length of Fela songs. He was further developing his thoughts on Pan-Africanism, anti-authoritarianism, and music composition. Egypt 80 was soon to be born. In the next two editions of Friday Fela, we’ll discuss two of his greatest works.
Top image from Bandcamp.