Secret Agent

by Tony Allen

Overview

It's no surprise that Tony Allen's new album does nothing to dim his reputation as one of the world's greatest drummers. He's the personification of subtlety, leading from the back and carefully pushing and prodding the music, but doing this so cleverly that half the time people don't even notice he's there. He's certainly a man whose four limbs operate independently, setting up cross- and counter-rhythms that add extra levels of texture and complexity to the music. On Secret Agent, recorded in his native Lagos, he's joined by a number of guests (including five different vocalists), but the core musicians working with him are producer Fixi, who contributes several instruments, and Cameroonian guitarist Claude Dibongue, who works well in this framework. It's largely Afrocentric, and definitely political, in the best tradition of Allen's late employer, Fela Kuti. Allen himself contributes vocals to the opening and closing tracks, showing he's more than a drummer, even if his voice is low-key. That he plays so well is remarkable. That he does it like this when he's almost 70 is amazing. ~ Chris Nickson

Product Details

Release Date:	05/20/2022
Label:	World Circuit
UPC:	4050538752601
Rank:	58278

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Tony Allen   Primary Artist,Drums,Vocals,Percussion
Yinka Ogunye   Percussion
Rody Cereyon   Bass
Nicolas Giraud   Trumpet
Simon Andrieux   Trombone
Fixi   Vocoder,Trombone
Seb Martel   Guitar
Abiodun Oke   Vocals
Bolla Dumoye   Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Kefee Obareki   Vocals,Vocals (Background)
King Odudu   Vocals
Orobiyi Adunni   Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Oscar Olembe   Guitar

Technical Credits

Nick Gold   Producer
Morris Kawel   Engineer,Producer
Tony Allen   Composer,Lyricist,Producer
Tom Leader   Mastering
Lukas "Blasty" Chauviere   Engineer
Chris May   Sleeve Notes
Abiodun Oke   Composer,Lyricist
Bolla Dumoye   Composer,Lyricist
Kefee Obareki   Composer,Lyricist
King Odudu   Composer,Lyricist
Orobiyi Adunni   Composer,Lyricist
Wura Samba   Lyricist
Switch   Lyricist
Ayo   Lyricist
Bola Dumoye   Composer,Lyricist