Ejigayehu 'Gigi' Shibabaw - Gigi [2001] [ethiopia]

   R   E   U   P   L   O   A   D   

        Ejigayehu Shibabaw, known by her stage name Gigi, is one of the most successful contemporary Ethiopian singers worldwide. She has brought the music of Ethiopia to wider recognition and developed it in combination with a wide variety of other genres often in collaboration with her husband Bill Laswell, a bassist and producer.

       Gigi was born and raised in Chagni in northwestern Ethiopia. She has described learning traditional songs from an Ethiopian Orthodox priest in the family home. She lived in Kenya for a few years before moving to San Francisco in about 1998.

       Gigi recorded two albums for the expatriate Ethiopian community, but it was her 2001 album, titled simply Gigi, that brought her widespread attention. She had been noticed by Palm Pictures owner Chris Blackwell, who had years earlier introduced reggae to the mainstream through his former label, Island Records. Blackwell and Gigi's producer (and later, husband) Bill Laswell, decided to use American jazz musicians (including Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Pharoah Sanders, and others) to accompany Gigi on the album.

      The result was a fusion of contemporary and traditional sounds. The album was a critical success internationally and generated controversy in her home country for such a radical break with Ethiopian popular music. This release was soon followed by Illuminated Audio, an ambient dub style remix of the album by Laswell.

      2003 saw the release of Zion Roots, under the band name Abyssinia Infinite. Bill Laswell played guitar and keyboard (instead of his usual bass), and several of Gigi's family members contributed vocals. The album was a return to a mainly acoustic sound for Gigi, incorporating instruments such as the krar and the tabla. The track "Gole" is in Agaw, the language of Gigi's father's village.

    Gigi is married to her producer Bill Laswell, and they have a son, Aman, who has accompanied his parents with vocals. Her younger sister, singer Tigist Shibabaw, died under unknown circumstances in 2008.

Gigi - Gud Fella

Gigi - Vocals
Bill Laswell - Producer, Bass, Guitar, Keyboards
Abonesh Adenew, Dawit Melesse, Hebest Tirunehe, Imani Uzuri, Mizanekristos Yohannes, Tigist Shibabaw - Backing Vocals
Thomas Gobena - Bass
Hamid Drake, Mikias Abebayehu - Drums, Percussion
Karsh Kale - Drums, Tabla, Keyboards
Mark Taylor - French Horn
David Gilmore, Nicky Skopelitis, Zakki Jewad - Guitar
Abegasu Shiota, Amina Claudine Myers, Dereje Mekonnen, Herbie Hancock - Keyboards
Abdou M'Boup, Aiyb Dieng, Melaku Gelaw, Setegne Satenaw - Percussion
Henry Threadgill, Pharoah Sanders, Wayne Shorter - Saxophone
Art Baron - Trombone- Accordion






01. Ejigayehu 'Gigi' Shibabaw - Gud Fella (5:35)
02. Ejigayehu 'Gigi' Shibabaw - Mengeoegna (5:33)
03. Ejigayehu 'Gigi' Shibabaw - Tew Ante Sew (4:20)
04. Ejigayehu 'Gigi' Shibabaw - Abay (5:18)
05. Ejigayehu 'Gigi' Shibabaw - Bale Washintu (5:35)
06. Ejigayehu 'Gigi' Shibabaw - Guramayle (4:27)
07. Ejigayehu 'Gigi' Shibabaw - Sew Argen (5:16)
08. Ejigayehu 'Gigi' Shibabaw - Aynama (5:05)
09. Ejigayehu 'Gigi' Shibabaw - Kahn (3:47)
10. Ejigayehu 'Gigi' Shibabaw - Zomaye (4:00)
11. Ejigayehu 'Gigi' Shibabaw - Abet Wubet (4:07)
12. Ejigayehu 'Gigi' Shibabaw - Nafeken (5:23)
13. Ejigayehu 'Gigi' Shibabaw - Adwa (5:02)

Ethio Cali - Live at The Blue Whale [2014] [usa+eth]

Ethio Cali is a Los Angeles-based Ethio-Jazz ensemble, led by trumpeter, arranger, and composer Todd Simon.  The ensemble’s sublime sound is inspired by the golden age of Ethiopian music of the 1960’s and 70’s, filtered through a lens that is uniquely Los Angeles.  Acknowledging the diverse musical foundations of Ethio-Jazz, the ensemble also draws inspiration from the rhythmic and melodic textures across Africa, Central/Latin America and the Caribbean.

Ethio Cali features:

Todd Simon – Trumpet, Flugelhorn, Music Director

Randal Fisher – Tenor Saxophone, Baritone Saxophone, Flute

Mark de Clive-Lowe – Keys

Alan Lightner – Steel Pan

Damon Aaron – Guitar

Pat Bailey – Bass

Kahlil Cummings & Steve Haney – Percussion

Te’Amir Yohannes Sweeney – Drums

Tylana Renga – Violin

Ethiocali

            Ethio Cali – Live At The Blue Whale is an album composed of songs selected from various performances at The Blue Whale jazz venue located in the Little Tokyo neighborhood of Los Angeles. 

           The recordings on this cassette are lo-fi in nature. They were recorded on a portable Webcore tape recorder by our friend, supporter, and avid field recorder, Moises Garcia. During each of our shows Moises would set up his recorder in various locations and record each of our sets. Sometimes he would hang the microphone from the ceiling and other times he would tape it to a wall. All of this happened unbeknownst to the members of Ethio Cali. 

          Months later, we heard these recordings during a casual late night hang in Highland Park. We were all taken aback by what we heard. The hiss, hums, and wobbly quality of the recordings had a vintage and endearing appeal that we couldn’t deny. We decided to share these recordings in hopes that you’ll appreciate some of the special and candid moments we’ve shared together on stage during this past year. We thank you for taking the time to listen. 

Side A: 

1) Green Tej 
2) Ambasselita 
3) Mela Mela feat. Dereb The Ambassador 


Side B: 

1) A Mother's Love feat. MdCL 
2) Fitsum Dink Lij Nesh 
3) Ambassel (Fast) 

v.a. - Music Of Ethiopia [Eto Records - MG 4989] [vinyl rip] [ethiopia]

Music Of Ethiopia - World Folk 

Music Of Ethiopia - A 01 - Dinbush Gellan [a Love Song] (2:23)
Music Of Ethiopia - A 02 - Harrari Festival (1:58)
Music Of Ethiopia - A 03 - Yefikir Kaitema [an Amhara Symphony] (3:42)
Music Of Ethiopia - A 04 - Hiliawsho (1:52)
Music Of Ethiopia - A 05 - Ahay Lominai [a Love Song from Eritrea] (2:03)
Music Of Ethiopia - A 06 - Denai Belew Belew (2:54)
Music Of Ethiopia - A 07 - Bare Konda [a Concert] (1:19)

Music Of Ethiopia - B 01 - Demamai [a Gojam Love Song] (1:23)

Music Of Ethiopia - B 02 - Addis Ababa Yejanhoy (1:10)

Music Of Ethiopia - B 03 - Tinitina [Tigre Song-Dance] (2:11)

Music Of Ethiopia - B 04 - Gamai (1:19)

Music Of Ethiopia - B 05 - Yambulo [Song-Dance of the Wollamos] (1:15)

Music Of Ethiopia - B 06 - Wollamo Shilela [a Song of Patriotism] (1:09)

Music Of Ethiopia - B 07 - Hileliawsho (1:00)

Music Of Ethiopia - B 08 - Lembo (1:11)

Music Of Ethiopia - B 09 - Imimha [a Chant for Eskista] (0:41)

Music Of Ethiopia - B 09 - Aderegna [a Solo in Falsetto] (1:38)

Yezina Negash - Mengedegnawu [2009] [ethiopia]

Yezina Negash - Gojjam

Yezina Negash - 01 - Gela (5:13)

Yezina Negash - 02 - Gojam (6:06)

Yezina Negash - 03 - Sekota (6:19)

Yezina Negash - 04 - Yagere Leg (5:44)

Yezina Negash - 05 - Enresew (5:40)

Yezina Negash - 06 - Gonder (7:04)

Yezina Negash - 07 - Mengedegnawu (5:24)

Yezina Negash - 08 - Godamu (4:40)

Yezina Negash - 09 - Yene-Alem (6:20)

Yezina Negash - 10 - Sintun Asalefo (6:18)

Yezina Negash - 11 - Tefatenaw (6:41)

Yezina Negash - 12 - Gedamu (5:04)

Nebiyu T. Kebede - Rhythm of Life [2005] [ethiopia]

                                                          R E U P L O A D  

       Nebiyu T. Kebede started playing keyboard at the tender age of 10. Growing up in Italy during the 80s where MTV was just starting to influence young kids, he and his brothers were strongly drawn to the music scene. Once back in Ethiopia, his interest in music further developed when his brothers started playing for their school bands. Looking at the interest that the brothers had in music, except his sister Liya Kebede which was interested in modeling, his parents bought them a keyboard. 

       With a gift for playing music by ear, he quickly taught himself how to play everyone's favorite tunes, including Tizita and the instrumentals that used to play on Ethiopian Television. Even though his brothers (Samson Kebede and Ermias Kebede) used to play for their high school's band at St. Joseph, he never went the route of the performer but kept his interest at home.

      Later on in college he discovered his ability to write melodies while spending long hours at the school's recording studio. To balance off the demanding studying required pursuing a degree in computer science, he spent many hours in the recording studio learning the art of arrangement and the science of recording music as well. Since then, he built his own recording studio and production company called Rhythm And Soul productions - all while maintaining his day job as a software consultant.

        After college, the passion for writing continued and Berhane Nesh was the first single released at the Ethiopian Soccer Tournament in 2000. Following the good reception from the single, his first album Mood Swings / Ye Simet Kana was released in 2001. It was sponsored by Ethiopian Airlines and sold aboard their flight for 4 years consecutively until the release of the new album Rhythm Of Life / Tirita which replaced it. 

     During the years, his interest in guitar and bass grew as well. From his collaborations with Abera Alemu (guitar) and his brother Ermias Kebede (bass), both from Abogida band, he witnessed the flavor the two instruments added to his Mood Swings album. Since then he has started practicing guitar and bass to a point where he recorded guitar tracks on his new Rhythm of Life album and on other CDs he produced for other artists, like Danny Gofferae and Neway Afe.

      He is currently working on his third album as well as producing other artists as his demand for  his musical touch grows...

Nebeyu Tesfaye - Enate [ethiopia]

Nebeyu Tesfaye - Tizita

Nebeyu Tesfaye - 01 - Medina (6:23)
Nebeyu Tesfaye - 02 - Wede Harar Guzo (5:53)
Nebeyu Tesfaye - 03 - Birtukane (8:38)
Nebeyu Tesfaye - 04 - Tizita (6:29)
Nebeyu Tesfaye - 05 - Yefeker Shemane (6:28)
Nebeyu Tesfaye - 06 - Nunuye (5:20)
Nebeyu Tesfaye - 07 - Tetintu Tiz Alegne (5:53)
Nebeyu Tesfaye - 08 - Yagere Lidge (6:47)
Nebeyu Tesfaye - 09 - Yedenkal (5:06)