In an earlier post I wrote of the brilliant Ethiopian singer Tilahun Gessesse, posted a couple of songs from a recent CD, and promised I'd make available some of his earlier Ethiopian recordings.
Back in the '80s I was loaned three of Gessesse's cassettes. I dubbed these onto 10" tape reels (that being the best means of preservation in that pre-digital era) and was unable to listen to them for twenty years, when I got hold of a reel-to-reel tape deck and was able to digitize two of them. The third has apparently been misplaced, and when I manage to track it down I will, of course, transfer it as well.
I present one of these recordings, Sebebena, which I believe was produced by Ambassel Music Shop in the early '80s. The original inlay card was missing, but the Ethiopian friend who loaned me the cassette transcribed the song titles for me. I believe the tunes are in Amharic and Oromo (Gessesse's parents were of both nationalities), and they pose quite an interesting contrast to the recordings I made available in my earlier post. Listen to them and understand why Tilahun Gessesse is considered ". . .a living legend, the pride of all Ethiopians, and the King of Ethiopian music":
Tilahun Gessesse - Wube Abeba
Tilahun Gessesse - Sebebena
Tilahun Gessesse - Shemunaye
Tilahun Gessesse - Nedegesh Naw
Tilahun Gessesse - Sherer Bay
Tilahun Gessesse - Mene Taragewalesh
Tilahun Gessesse - Yekerb Eruc Hono
Tilahun Gessesse - Mewdeden Lingeresh
Tilahun Gessesse - Mene Yeshalele
Tilahun Gessesse - Neyeleng
