Jan 24/08
Eritrea Week: Mixtape
This is the last day of Eritrea Week.
I don’t know enough about much of the music I’ve collected this week to write full posts so I decided to make you a mixtape instead. This way you get more music and, hopefully, people will be able to educate us in the comments about the tracks I pick.
First of all we’ll hear a track by Tesfay Mehari. What a killer opening – could someone please translate what he’s saying? In my head I imagine a Barry White thing going on.. until the drum machine kicks in, then the sexiness just fades away.
Next some tunes by famous Eritrean musicians, Sami Berhane, Bereket Mengisteab and Wedi Tikabo:
Sami Berhane – Gezana
Wedi Tikabo – Hagarey Nimen Tefqri
Bereket Mengisteab – Milena
Tsehaytu Beraki you’ve heard before but I don’t know what this one is called. Any ideas?
I’ll also include an Ahmed Mohamed Osman track. There’s a chance he might be Sudanese. Let me know.
Lastly, a mystery Eritrean track that sounds a lot like one of the best TV theme songs ever, Airwolf:
Unknown – Unknown
Theme from Airwolf
I checked the logs, by the way, and this week brought in visitors from Eritrea. This means that according to Analytics, Benn loxo du taccu has now been visited by people from pretty much every single country in the world, except the obvious exceptions.
Thanks for tuning in to Eritrea week.
Tags: eritrea
Great job on the Eritrea Week Matt!
The song by Tsehaytu is a recording of Laley Bola, a newer recording is found here:
http://www.subdist.com/audio/lalebola.mp3
It’s more rootsy and far better in my opinion.
Mohamed Osman is Eritrean.
To balance the heavy representation of Tigrigna music on Eritrea Week you can always check out some fantastic stuff on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BSiYL1rB8Lg
One more Wedi Tuquabo, I just can’t help it: http://www.eriband.com/songs/amntayu.mp3
Back again… for those who want more Eri MP3s:
http://www.eriband.com/admin/esongs.php
http://meadna.com/MUSIC/
[...] Listen to Eritrean music: “This is the last day of Eritrea Week. I don’t know enough about much of the music I’ve collected this week to write full posts so I decided to make you a mixtape instead.” Share This [...]
Awet,
Thanks for all the links. That Abedela video is great, and I’m downloading the MP3s now..
If you ever feel like doing a guest post on Benn loxo with more Eritrean music, please feel free to get in touch.
Cheers
Matt
Cheers Matt!
Yes, Abdala is fantastic. It’s enough if you know only the word “Hurriya”, Independence. You’ll get the spirit of the song.
I believe the documentary footage is from the liberation of the port town of Massawa, one year before the full liberation of the country.
The EPLF Cultural Troupe did some amazing music that could render some really cool reissues. It would be a pity if it just remained in Eritrean archives.
And it’s there for sure, the EPLF were very good at archiving. It was a matter of preserving the legacy of the revolution.
I guess this is one reason why decent copies of the music of early artists like Tewelde Redda is so hard to track down. It was pre-EPLF days, just the music against the censorship of Haile Selassie.
One of the musical greats that hasn’t been getting due credit is Bereket Menghistab. He started as a commercial artist, much like Tewelde Redda, but joined the Struggle. There is no way around him. The man is an absolute legend.
Here’s a video from 1984: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cnMEzeWp414
And another video from 1998, at the beginning of the Badme war. State propaganda is hardly ever pretty, great song though: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cnMEzeWp414
I’ll see if I can come up with some interesting theme for a post on Benn loxo, I’ll contact you then.
Awet n’hafash!
Hi Matt,
It’s a bit late in the week now, but I wanted to say how pleased I was to see Eritrean week going on here. It always seems rather over-looked – most people I mention it to don’t even know where it is.
You asked earlier if anyone has been to Asmara. I was there in 1996. In fact, I saw Yemania Bahia performing on Orthodox New Year’s Eve at the legendary Mocambo night club. Well, it’s legendary in my mind anyway – I carry the ticket in my wallet to this day.
TBH I can’t remember much about it – it was that kind of night – but I do remember being knocked out by the incredible music – the ‘camel-walk’ rhythm being totally new to me – and by the incredible warmth of the locals. I remember the cool shoulder-shuffling dance. And I remember the typical Eritrean positive thinking: it was pointed out to me that even the poor guys in wheelchairs, wounded in the struggle, could join in with the shoulder shuffling!
I travelled all over the country and this warmth and optimism was present everywhere. I often wonder how those people are doing now…
Eritrea remains one of my absolute favourite destinations. And not just for the superb selection of tapes in Bar Diana or the ricotta and honey breakfasts at The Modern Snack Bar.
Thanks again for bringing all this back to me. I’ll be enjoying myself for ages trying to catch up with all those links, so a special ‘cheers’ to Awet.
Julian
Selamat julian!
A big cheers to you too, preferably suwa (home-brewed Eritrean “beer”)!
The people you think of are managing. They would be doing a hell of a lot better if it wasn’t for the “situation” imposed upon them by Ethiopia and the International community.
You mention the warmth, the positive attitude. This is something good since I feel that I might have been a bit too edgy here at Benn loxo’s Eritrea Week.
Matt has done a truly excellent job of bringing Eritrean music to people who might never even have heard of the country before.
However, we Eritreans tend to become defensive when confronted with assumptions about our country, or questions about identity. Even when they’re made in good faith.
There has been so much bad faith coming our way for the last 130 years.
Anyone interested in researching the subject further is might want to watch an Australian (?) documentary on YouTube. Unfortunately the voice-over is missing so there is some uncommented Tigrigna, 90% is in English: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BoVMup_UenI
[...] Listen to Eritrean music: This is the last day of Eritrea Week. I don’t know enough about much of the music I’ve collected this week to write full posts so I decided to make you a mixtape instead. [...]
Julian, Awet and everyone else, thanks for all your comments this week. The feedback has been amazing. Needless to say this isn’t the last time we’ll hear Eritrean sounds on Benn loxo.
Cheers
Matt,
Thanks again, I think you have tapped an interesting musical source. Eritrea (and its music) is very much overlooked indeed, as stated before by Julian. A lot of the music from the sixties isn’t preserved, but let’s hope to be able to find some ‘lost’ songs never the less. There must be more in private collections. Where for instance is the music of Mat’a? This theatre and music group was the start of modern music in the Eritrea in the 1950’s and 1960’s. I found some information about a compilation, Mat’a Vol. 1-4, but I don’t think it is still available. Maybe in Eritrea? Does anybody know? Awet? One of the founders of Mat’a, Asres Tesema, still living in Asmara wrote a book about the history of Eritrean music, but it needs to be translated. More researched is to be done. But you gave it a great start and let’s hope more gems will be found in the future. As soon as I have any news, I’ll let you know.
Marc
Thanks for bringing Eritrean music, the hidden treasure, to light.
Matt, listen to this Eritrean music, all in one, all the differnt eritrean cultural dance are performed on this video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7AcjY_Ximr0&eurl=http://meadna.com/business%20page/MEADNA-VIDEO/abubeker-hagerey.html
Ahmed Mohamed Osman or Wedi Sheki, is a famous tigre singer. he is one of the best eritrean musicians/singers/songwritters.
how in the world can he be sudanese. he has never even written arabic song or sung arabic music. and did i already say he is was raised in Sahel with teh rest of eritrean musicians. dude double ur facts before saying something stupid.
Hi matt!
I can give you same more song of my mind which I used ……….
Tsahtu Berki”aydeln kalay aydeln salasay” in 70s.Yemane Baria “ny Meqaber bTsoytey”Beyne Free”qtan meanta”Bereket mengsteab “Fanna and Eanbaba”
……_……
Hi Matt:
Nice Job. Thank you for bringing the black star (Yemane Baria) to life. After Yemane’s death, I remember a magazine promised $ 1 million dollars for anyone who could find Yemane Baria.
Hi Matt,
Here is a nice website I found. Over 7,000 Eritrean songs from almost all ethnic groups.
http://music.eriplanet.com
enjoy.
It is realy interesting program and of the musicians I love are
Abraham Afewerki
bereket mengistab
meserat aynom
kahsay berhe
etc
I know we eritreans r doing well in music and movies but i’ m afraid that we r shifting our all intentions to arts like those of black Americans who have wasting all their times involvinng in the entartaining arts.I gues U know why they have been practicing this not coz they have not talents in other fields but they had no space that permits them to participate. i could have been happy if the PRESIDENT were also abled to sing for peace and lovel. but the dictotor is spoiling our peaple preaching about war and grandiosity.the young is wasting his precious time will inherit to his children nothing…sorry to say but i”m gland with art in eritrea.