v.a. - Digital Ethiopia pt.1 [likembe.blogspot.com compilation] [ethiopia]

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   R   E   U   P   L   O   A   D   

          Back in the '80s Ethiopian music was extremely hard to come by outside of Ethiopia. Mahmoud Ahmed's brilliant Ere Mela Mela was released on LP by the Belgian label Crammed Discs around 1985, and later in the decade the exile singer Aster Aweke released Aster, recorded in the UK with mainly non-Ethiopian backup musicians. That was just about it, unless you were lucky enough to know Ethiopians who could supply you with scratchy, poorly dubbed cassettes from the motherland.

       All that changed in the '90s when political change opened the country up. A fine collection of traditional and modern music, Music From Ethiopia (Caprice CAP 21432) came out in 1992, and within a few years the incredible Ethiopiques series opened the world's ears to the classic sounds of "Swingin' Addis" from the '60s and early '70s

    

          When it became possible for Ethiopian musicians to travel freely it was only natural that they would gravitate to U.S. recording studios, and in the last 15 years there has arisen a robust market in CDs made here. For the most part these are "under the radar" - not available through the usual "World Music™" outlets like Sterns. The main issue I have with these American recordings is the overwhelming use of synthesizers. That said, many of these productions are surprisingly sophisticated, a far cry from the rinky-dink keyboards and drum machines of much contemporary African music.

1. Tlahoun Gessesse - Ewdish Neber (5:40)
2. Tlahoun Gessesse - Meleyayet Mot New (4:17)
3. Menelik Wossenachew - Gash Jembere (9:12)
4. Menelik Wossenachew - Yeayne Tesfa (6:35)
5. Mohammed Tawil - Si-Si (7:26)
6. Mulatu Astatke w. Teshome Mitiku - Wello (8:30)
7. Tilaye Gebre - Yenigat Kokeb/Yelelit Berehane (9:30)