Mulatu Astatke
Ethiopiques, Vol. 4
1998
With the Ethiopian musician Mulatu Astatke, Jim Jarmusch already did some of the resuscitation for us. He prominently featured three of Astatke's songs in the 2005 film, Broken Flowers. I suspect I wasn't the only person who got hooked the first time Bill Murray blasts "Yekermo Sew" from his car stereo.
That track opens Ethiopiques, Vol. 4 (a 1998 addition to Buda Musique's ongoing Ethiopian music series), and it's a perfect blend of the album's strengths: catchy horns arrangements, almost-funk bass and fuzzed out guitar solo. I guess on paper this is "world music," but it grabs your gut just like rock n' roll.
Even on first listen, Astatke's music sounds somehow familiar. The lazy, smoky vibe echoes Bitches Brew. Some tracks - "Yegelle Tezeta," for one - veer into romantic revery, but the best songs have the fierce, pulsing groove that first got my attention.
Ethiopiques is technically a compilation, culling the best tracks from 1969-1974, but in the States it's the best Astatke that you can get your hands on. I seriously suggest you do.
