Mulatu of Ethiopia (Vinyl)

Ethiopian musician, composer, and arranger Mulatu Astatke is a household name in his native country, where he is known as the father of Ethio-jazz - a unique blend of pop, modern jazz, traditional Ethiopian music, Latin rhythms, Caribbean reggae, and Afro-funk.

Before he became known to international audiences through his tracks on the excellent Ethiopiques CD anthologies - he had an American release with this 1972 instrumental album, on which he's billed as "Mulatu of Ethiopia."

Like much of the best of the circa-early-'70s contemporary Ethiopian music on Ethiopiques, it's a fine, at times captivating blend of late-'60s American soul and jazz with Ethiopian music, resulting in something not quite comparable to anything else. It is undeniably funky, with wah-wah guitar and organ aplenty. There's plenty of contemporary jazz in the arrangements, too, the sax runs sometimes showing the influence of the likes of John Coltrane. Yet there's a melancholy minor cast to the melodies that marks this off as something quite different, and the rhythms likewise have irregularities that are more African than American.

Richie Unterberger - All Music (4 Stars)