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20 × 16 in. (51 × 41 cm) print with 18 × 12 in. (46 × 30 cm) image silver gelatin exhibition print.
Edition of 25. Hand-signed by photographer David Corio.
£155 from every sale of this print is donated to mental health charity Rethink Mental Illness (charity number 271028).
“This was a wild night with an almost entirely Nigerian crowd here to see their hero. Fela had not played in London since the early 1960s, and this was the first show with his band Egypt 80. He would only play a few more shows here, and I was lucky to see him that night. Leading a powerful horn section on his saxophone, he led his large band through a Afrobeat’s greatest hits set. Also on stage were Fela’s 30 singing and dancing wives, enhancing his mythic stature. The show lasted over four hours – short compared to the all-nighters at The Shrine, Fela’s compound and venue in Lagos. As the Academy had no photo pit I got as close as possible to the front of the stage. It was a difficult situation as the crowd kept throwing pints of lager up in the air to celebrate the opening bars of each new tune. I like this photo as it clearly expresses just how powerful a force Fela was in African music and politics.” David Corio
Since he was 16 years old, pioneering photographer David Corio has built an unparalleled six-decade music photography archive. Corio has spent almost 50 years in recording studios, backstage dressing rooms and major cultural events, documenting the 20th century’s most groundbreaking musicians.
20 × 16 in. (51 × 41 cm) print with 18 × 12 in. (46 × 30 cm) image silver gelatin exhibition print.
Edition of 25. Hand-signed by photographer David Corio.
£155 from every sale of this print is donated to mental health charity Rethink Mental Illness (charity number 271028).
“This was a wild night with an almost entirely Nigerian crowd here to see their hero. Fela had not played in London since the early 1960s, and this was the first show with his band Egypt 80. He would only play a few more shows here, and I was lucky to see him that night. Leading a powerful horn section on his saxophone, he led his large band through a Afrobeat’s greatest hits set. Also on stage were Fela’s 30 singing and dancing wives, enhancing his mythic stature. The show lasted over four hours – short compared to the all-nighters at The Shrine, Fela’s compound and venue in Lagos. As the Academy had no photo pit I got as close as possible to the front of the stage. It was a difficult situation as the crowd kept throwing pints of lager up in the air to celebrate the opening bars of each new tune. I like this photo as it clearly expresses just how powerful a force Fela was in African music and politics.” David Corio
Since he was 16 years old, pioneering photographer David Corio has built an unparalleled six-decade music photography archive. Corio has spent almost 50 years in recording studios, backstage dressing rooms and major cultural events, documenting the 20th century’s most groundbreaking musicians.