Mahmoud Ahmed

Mahmoud Ahmed: Ethiopiques 19

by AAJ Staff
September 8, 2005

Mahmoud Ahmed Ethiopiques 19 Buda Musique 2005

Ethiopian popular music went through an intense creative flowering during the early '70s, cross-referencing traditional styles with jazz, funk, rock, and whatever else could be used to get people moving. Listening to these groups three decades later makes for a weirdly out-of-body/out-of-mind experience. Familiar pop culture elements (vamps, swing, horn fanfares, funky beats) interlace with melodies that sound like they were being sung two thousand ...