This was a bittersweet celebration. Above the stage, the bleak statistics were flashing up on the screen: "An estimated 55 million Africans will die of Aids in the next 20 years" or "In sub-Saharan Africa, two million children have been orphaned by Aids". Below that, a wildly varied jam session was underway, and the most depressing information just happened to coincide with one of the most exuberant moments, as Cheikh Lo's lilting vocals were matched against a cool saxophone solo from Manu Dibango when they launched into Fela Kuti's Shakara and Lady.

This was the final night of the Barbican's ambitious tribute to Kuti, and a reminder that the man who, for years, used music to battle against corruption and military dictatorship was in the end killed not by soldiers but by Aids. Two years ago, a celebrity cast from Africa, Europe, Latin America and the US produced an impressive album of Kuti's songs, Red Hot and Riot, to raise money for Aids awareness, and this was their first live performance.

It began with a dreadful introductory speech, then developed into an enthusiastic, if erratic non-stop show that constantly changed direction as performers came and went, the music veering between funk, jazz and hip-hop. There were patches of brilliance, thanks to Lo (far better as a singer than drum soloist) and his Senegalese compatriot, Baaba Maal. He was backed by a kora player and by Dibango on both xylophone and saxophone, on a soaring, powerful treatment of Kuti's Trouble Sleep. It was a good night, too, for the London-based Nigerian Keziah Jones, who worked hard as guitarist and solo vocalist, and for the New York Latino band Yerba Buena, who provided the main backing work for a cast that included DJs, rappers, or the glamorous French-based duo Les Nubians.

A rousing show, but they could have done with more rehearsal time.