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Chasing Afrobeat: The Journey and Exploration
With “More Songs About Building And Food,” produced by Brian Eno, and “Fear Of Music,” the third studio recording, also co-produced by Eno, Byrne encountered African beat.
The first song “I Zimbra,” the first track on “Fear Of Music,” was the first step in the fusion of Afrobeat and rock that the band would follow. Byrne completed the song by adding a groovy rhythm and melody to a nonsense poem by Hugo Bal, the German poet who led the Dadaist movement. Robert Fripp of King Crimson plays guitar, and congas, surdos, djembes, and other percussion instruments from around the world are also used.
In 1980, the band released the classic album “Remain In Light,” a fusion of Afrobeat and rock that reached its highest point. It featured Adrian Breaux, who played with King Crimson and Nine Inch Nails, on guitar, and Jon Hassell, known for “The Fourth World,” on trumpet.
Just prior to the release of “Remain In Light,” the band began touring live with a big band formation, including support musicians as seen on “Stop Making Sense.”
In 1981, Byrne and Eno, who had begun their solo careers, released a co-production, My Life In The Bush Of Ghosts. Meanwhile, husband and wife Franz and Weymouth formed Tom Tom Club as a side project.” Wordy Rappinghood” and “Genius of Love” were hits.
