The majority of Ethiopian music production on vinyl was released in the years 1969-1978. In the relatively flexible political climate at the end of Haile Sellassie's reign, Amha Eshèté founded the first Ethiopian record company and released around 250 titles of the then flourishing Ethiopian popular music during the above period. When the military junta came to power in 1974, the liberal climate
… was quickly over. Amha Eshèté left for the United States, along with countless musicians. However, now that the Marxist dictatorship has come to an end since 1991, Addis Abeba's nightlife is beginning to buzz again. Francis Falceto is working with Amha on a series of ten CDs about Ethiopian music. Finally, the rest of the world can hear the music that was made in Ethiopia during those golden years. Although it is unmistakably Ethiopian at the base, the great influence of jazz and Latin is particularly striking. Mulatu Astatqé, Muluqèn Mèllèssè, Mahmoud Ahmed, Sèyfu Yohannès, Tèshomè Meteku and Gétatchèw Kassa make this first CD an unforgettable listening experience. (GO)more
