AH YES, THE OL' ETHIOPIAN PARTY JAMS TRICK.

I had a hankering for some Mulatu Astatqé. Dang me if it didn't become an Ethiopian smorgasbord. It hits the spot when you're in the mood for something that you didn't know that you were in the mood for. Foreign. Exotic. Cool. Here's a mix and a handful of of songs. Eat up.

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 Listen:
Mulatu Astatqé - Yekermo Sew mp3 at Oh Color Me In
Mulatu Astatqé - Yegelle Tezeta mp3 at Tumblr
Getatchew Mekuria and the Ex - Yeharerwa mp3 at Soul Safari
The Mix:
In Ethio Mood Again - Mix by Nicky mp4 (via Mediafire) at My Passion For Ethiopian Music
Song list here.
In Ethio Mood Again - Mix by Nicky (streaming) at Mixcloud Song list here

KILLAH. TERRIBLE. DREADFUL.

When the Covid-19 shit really started to hit the fan, the Ethiopians' "Hong Kong Flu" came to mind and once it did it's just been, to paraphrase Dillinger, running around my brain. It was posted here eight years ago, but worth a listen again now. After hearing the song over the years, and and taking a cursory look at Hong Kong flu entry at Wikipedia, I realized it how serious it was. Just a few years ago I was re-reading the liner notes from a compilation, and I remember thinking then, oh, man, that was some serious shit. Good thing that won't happen again. It fucking did.

"Hong Kong Flu" is a public service song of sorts, it cracks   me up in a I shouldn't be laughing at this sort of way. The way it sounds so lighthearted, all while singing "It's a killah, woa-oh, uh-huh, it's a killah, woa-oh, uh-huh, it's terrible and dreadful mon,..." But you know what? Those are the lines that have been stuck in my head the past few days.

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Listen:
The Ethiopians - Hong Kong Flu mp3 at Beware of the Blog
The Ethiopians - The Whip mp3 at Dinosaur Gardens
The Ethiopians - Knowledge Is Power mp3 at Kazoo Wailers (?)
The Ethiopians - Everything Crash mp3 at Music Like Dirt
The Ethiopians - Free Man mp3 at Tumblr

IT'S A KILLAH

Last night I ran into a couple early Lee Perry produced tunes, one of which was by the Ethiopians, one of the often overlooked reggae vocal groups. It reminded me that I've never posted one of my favorite Ethiopians' songs, "Hong Kong Flu," about the Hong Kong Flu, which spread in a world wide pandemic in 1968, killing roughly a million people. The Ethiopians cut, a public service song of sorts, always cracked me up in a "I shouldn't be laughing at this" sort of way. The way it sounds so lighthearted, all while singing "It's a killah, woa-oh, uh-huh, it's a killah, woa-oh, uh-huh, it's terrible and dreadful mon,..."

When I found that song, I wasn't prepared for the song that was posted along with it. "Fatty Fatty" by Clancy Eccles, at first listen is a nice little early reggae number that I've heard it many times before. But the version posted at Beware of the Blog is one I hadn't heard before. It's a X-rated version, and let's just say the guesting female vocalist gives Donna Summer's performance on the long version of "I Feel Love" a run for it's money.

So here's the stuff. The Ethiopians' "Awake" and the Faithful Brothers' "Iniquity Workers" should be of interest to some of you Lee Perry fiends. Both are early pre-Black Ark productions, and until a recent reissue, available only as Jamaican issued 45s.

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Listen:
The Ethiopians - Awake mp3 at For the Sake of the Song Early Lee Perry production
The Faithful Brothers - Iniquity Workers mp3 at For the Sake of the Song Early Lee Perry production
The Ethiopians - Hong Kong Flu mp3 at Beware of the Blog
Clancy Eccles - Fatty Fatty (X-rated version) at Beware of the Blog