A Musical Tale
Zamrock was a musical genre that started in the early 1970s in Zambia. Heavily influenced by groups such as Deep Purple and Cream, it blended Western rock (wailing guitar with plenty of fuzz, in particular) with African influences. Classic albums like Amanaz's Africa (one of my favorites) defined the genre.
Fela Kuti, a Nigerian musician, was influenced by Zamrock, and his song Zombie (which I've linked to before), is one of my nominations for the greatest song ever recorded. Ginger Baker (Cream's drummer) went to Africa to collaborate with him. Fela Kuti's genre was technically afrobeat (which used African rhythms as well as western funk and jazz), but the Zamrock influence was significant.
Brian Eno heard Fela Kuti's album Afrodisiac and played it for David Byrne, which then changed the course of the Talking Heads, as their album Remain in Light was heavily influenced by afrobeats.
From America to Africa and back, all resulting in some of the best music ever recorded.
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