We just did an interview with Miles from Soundway for the site, it should be up in the next month, but we just copped this bit of info from the excellent Shook Mag click the link to read more on this.

Nigeria Afrobeat Special: The New Explosive Sound In 1970’s Nigeria focuses on the nation’s most famous musical export – Afrobeat, and appropriately kicks off with the genres most famous exponent, Fela Kuti. Reissued for the first time, the original 45 recording of ‘Who’re You’ is a rougher, funkier take on the later version which was recorded at London’s Abbey Road studio for the Fela’s London Scene album.

Soundway’s other new release, Nigeria Special: Volume 2, Modern Highlife, Afro Sounds And Nigerian Blues, 1970-76 continues where Volume 1 left off with tracks covering a range of styles and influences that would gradually be distilled into the more specific afro, rock and dance genres that have been compiled in the other volumes of the Nigeria Special series. Up-tempo highlife numbers sit comfortably alongside Juju and slower native blues, this period of the country’s musical development being a time of feverish creativity that unsurprisingly resulted in altogether new sounds as artists began to add modern Western influences to their traditional native musical lineage.

Nigeria Afrobeat Special is released on February 22nd and Nigeria Special: Volume 2 is released on March 8th. Both are available to buy from the Soundway online shop.

Below is a rare radio interview with Fela Kuti recorded in London, 1970. The track featured in the original interview is ‘Who’re You’ and that is featured on the Nigeria Afrobeat compilation.