TONY ALLEN – SECRET AGENT

If your idea of a drummer recording a solo album stops at Phil Collins, please leave the room now. Tony Allen taught himself to play the drums at the elderly age of 18 and by 23 had linked with the legendary Fela Kuti. Now 70 Allen releases his tenth solo album and shows that age has not wearied him. As the man who put the “beat” into Afrobeat, Allen’s trademark cross and counter-rhythms abound on Secret Agent, and we even get a couple of doses of his low-key vocals on the opening and closing tracks. While Allen shares the politics of Kuti, this album doesn’t have the bite of his former employer (nor his offspring’s recent releases). More groove based, Secret Agent showcases Allen’s ability to subtly drive a band from behind the kit without ever needing to intrude, setting the pace and orchestrating the moves. It might not seem a compliment, but sometimes you forget who you are listening to, and that is actually the mark of a great artist (and true secret agent).

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