This article appeared in Time Out: Fela Kuti envisioned Afrobeat as an almost revolutionary force, and while it never quite achieved that ambitious goal, years after Fela’s death the music he pioneered remains as vibrant and exciting as ever, as channeled by bands such as the Chicago Afrobeat Project, which recently celebrated its tenth anniversary and plays behind a fantastic new record, Nyash Up. We suspect that in some quarters blues veteran Sugar Blue is still touted as the Guy Who Played Harmonica on “Miss You” by the Rolling Stones, but in blues circles he’s known as the man who took Little Walter’s innovations on that same instrument clear into the stratosphere.
9pm, Double Door, $10–$12