Punch touring is proud to announce the UK tour by a real legend of African music. Tony Allen will be marking his 70th birthday and the 50th anniversary of Nigerian independence with a UK tour this autumn. Kicking off at the mac (Midlands Art Centre)  in Birmingham, the five date tour with his full afrobeat orchestra will play in Leeds, London, Edinburgh, Bristol and Glasgow. Tony Allen, who played at the WOMAD festival in Charlton Park on 23 July 2010, will be promoting his CD Secret Agent and playing a special showcase at London’s Barbican. This will be the third tour produced through Black Routes, the network for touring African and Caribbean music.

Full 2010 tour dates are:
30 September, Birmingham mac

1 October, Glasgow The Aches

2 October, Edinburgh HMV Picture House

3 October, Leeds Wardrobe

6 October, London Barbican Centre

7 October, Bristol Metropolis

Tony Allen’s track Asiko was heavily sampled by J Dilla. Check out the clip below:

Born in August 1940, and a self-taught musician, Tony Allen began to play at the age of eighteen, a fan of American jazz but also fascinated by traditional music and with the percussion work of Ghanaian Guy Warren, who mixed traditional rhythms with the new sounds of American bebop. Invited to audition for a jazz-highlife band by Fela Kuti in 1964, he became an original member of Kuti’s Koola Lobitos highlife-jazz band and started a decades-long musical relationship.

Allen is known as the man who put the beat in Afrobeat, Nigeria’s most influential musical export – a combination of the heavy groove and universal appeal of soul with jazz, highlife, and the polyrhythms of Yoruba music. Allen’s fusion of drum styles perfectly complemented Fela’s new African groove and he recorded over 30 albums with Fela and Africa ’70 – widely regarded as Fela’s best works. He has also worked with Manu Dibango, King Sunny Ade and Ray Lema. While often returning to the Afrobeat template that made his name, in the years since Allen has also worked with a broad range of rock acts, such as Jimi Tenor,  and, to general acclaim, with Damon Albarn, Paul Simonon as the group The Good, The Bad and the Queen.

FAITH47 was one of the key artists we worked with during BASS 2008.

See the blog article and watch the video by clicking here.

Nigeria 50 is a cultural event which will bring the best of Nigerian culture celebrating five decades of music, art, fashion, writing and style from Africa’s most exciting nation.

Nigeria 50 – African Soul, Global Style

On the 1st of October 2010 Nigeria will be celebrating 50 years of independence from colonial rule.

Nigeria 50 is a cultural event which will bring the best of Nigerian culture to fresh and eager audiences worldwide. For the very first time the fruits of five decades of music, art, fashion, writing and style from Africa’s most exciting nation will be on tour together.

This is a tour rich with the unique soul and the vibrant style of Nigeria – the most populous Black nation on earth.

Working with artists such as Tony Allen, Dele Somsimi and Lemi Ghariokwu, the tour will take place in across the UK, New York, Tokyo, Paris, Cape Town and of course Lagos.

You can download more information on the project by clicking on the links below:

Nigeria Next - Generic overview of the festival and broad aims.

Nigeria 50 Timeline - UK programme of events and activities.

If you would like more information, or would like to get involved please call Ammo on 0121 224 7444.