# Fela Kuti & Africa 70 — Sorrow Tears and Blood

Fela Kuti & Africa 70’s Sorrow Tears and Blood (1977) is No. 4 in our Afrobeat ranking. The full verdict, and where to hear it.

- **Released:** 1977
- **Label:** Kalakuta
- **On one list:** Afrobeat
- **Updated:** 2026-08-29
- **Artist:** [Fela Kuti & Africa 70](https://waxonia.com/artist/fela-kuti-and-africa-70/)
- **Canonical page:** https://waxonia.com/track/fela-kuti-and-africa-70--sorrow-tears-and-blood/

## What we say

### No. 4 in [Afrobeat](https://waxonia.com/genre/afrobeat/)

Recorded after the soldiers came. The groove is as buoyant as ever and the lyric is a list of what they left behind, and the gap between the two is the whole point.

## Analysis

12 sections, the first drop of 2 at 0:33, 3% of the way in, 23% of it spent climbing.

- **Tempo:** 99.4 BPM — holds throughout
- **Key:** C minor
- **Dynamic range:** 5.5 dB — moderate range, typical of a modern master
- **Length:** 16:41

- `0:00` A · **intro**, instrumental — opens the record below its own average energy
- `0:33` B · **build** (bar 14), instrumental — energy and brightness climbing without a break — playing: drums, bass, other
- `1:50` C · **steady** (bar 45), instrumental — holding a level — the groove, neither rising nor falling — playing: drums, bass, other
- `5:09` C · **steady** (bar 128), instrumental — holding a level — the groove, neither rising nor falling — playing: drums, bass, other
- `8:16` C · **build** (bar 206), sung — energy and brightness climbing without a break — playing: drums, bass, vocals, other
- `10:52` C · **lift** (bar 270), sung — a short rise that does not resolve — a fill or a transition, not a build — playing: drums, bass, vocals, other
- `11:25` D · **breakdown** (bar 284), sung — energy falling away mid-record, percussion thinning — playing: vocals
- `12:00` C · **peak** (bar 298), sung — sits at the top of this record's range — playing: drums, bass, vocals, other
- `13:37` B · **peak** (bar 338), instrumental — sits at the top of this record's range — playing: drums, bass, other
- `14:20` C · **steady** (bar 356), instrumental — holding a level — the groove, neither rising nor falling — playing: drums, bass, other
- `15:09` C · **steady** (bar 377), instrumental — holding a level — the groove, neither rising nor falling — playing: drums, bass, other
- `16:00` A · **outro** (bar 398), instrumental — the closing fall — playing: other

**Drops** at 0:33 (bar 14), 12:00 (bar 298). A drop is a moment, not a stretch.

**What is playing.** Separated into parts by a source-separation model, so each lane is the instrument it names.

- **drums:** the drum kit, separated from the mix
- **bass:** the bass part, separated from the mix
- **vocals:** the voice, separated from the mix
- **other:** everything else — synths, guitars, keys, strings

Measured from the YouTube master on 2026-08-29. Section labels describe how the energy
moves, not musical form. Anything we were not confident enough to state is omitted
rather than hedged.

## Listen

[Search Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/search/Fela%20Kuti%20%26%20Africa%2070%20Sorrow%20Tears%20and%20Blood) · [YouTube Music](https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=9EXbJDodN9Y)

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Hand-curated by Waxonia. We host no audio; all links point to streaming platforms.