{"product_id":"emahoy-tsege-mariam-gebru-souvenirs-gold","title":"Emahoy Tsege Mariam Gebru - Souvenirs (Gold)","description":"\u003cp data-start=\"0\" data-end=\"114\"\u003e“Crows of the sky, please tell me \/ What is found above the clouds?” — \u003cstrong data-start=\"71\" data-end=\"100\"\u003eEmahoy Tsege Mariam Gebru\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cem data-start=\"102\" data-end=\"111\"\u003eTell Me\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"116\" data-end=\"338\"\u003eThe first vocal album by beloved Ethiopian nun, composer and pianist \u003cstrong data-start=\"185\" data-end=\"214\"\u003eEmahoy Tsege Mariam Gebru\u003c\/strong\u003e, this collection presents profound and deeply moving home cassette recordings made amidst political upheaval and turmoil.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"340\" data-end=\"726\"\u003eThese are songs of wisdom, loss, mourning and exile, sung directly into a boombox and accompanied by Emahoy’s unmistakable piano. Though written and recorded while still living at her family’s home in Addis Ababa, Emahoy sings of the heartache of being far from home, a reflection on the 1974 revolution and Red Terror in Ethiopia, and a presentiment of her future exile in Jerusalem.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"728\" data-end=\"1049\"\u003eIn the 21st century, Emahoy has become known worldwide for her utterly unique melodic and rhythmic style. Commonly misinterpreted as “jazzy” or “honky tonk,” Emahoy’s music actually comes from a deep engagement with the Western classical tradition, mixed with her background in Ethiopian traditional and Orthodox music.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"1051\" data-end=\"1367\"\u003eThese songs, recorded between 1977 and 1985, are different from anything previously released by the artist. Rich with the sound of birds outside the window, the creak of the piano bench and the thump of Emahoy’s finger on the record button, they create a sense of place, of being near the artist while she records.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"1369\" data-end=\"1610\"\u003eEmahoy’s lyrics, sung in Amharic, are poetic and heavy with the weight of exile. “When I looked out \/ past the clouds \/ I couldn’t see my country’s sky \/ Have I really gone so far?” she asks in \u003cem data-start=\"1563\" data-end=\"1608\"\u003eIs It Sunny or Cloudy in the Land You Live?\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"1612\" data-end=\"1743\"\u003eHer vocals are delicate and heartfelt, tracing the melodic contours of her piano on songs like \u003cem data-start=\"1707\" data-end=\"1741\"\u003eWhere Is the Highway of Thought?\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"1745\" data-end=\"2075\"\u003e\u003cem data-start=\"1745\" data-end=\"1770\"\u003eTenkou! Why Feel Sorry?\u003c\/em\u003e, a career highlight that closes out her self-titled \u003cstrong data-start=\"1823\" data-end=\"1846\"\u003eMississippi Records\u003c\/strong\u003e album, is revisited here with vocals. Originally composed for her niece, Tenkou, the lyrics clarify the song title listeners have wondered about for so many years: “Don’t cry \/ Childhood won’t come back \/ Let it go with love.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"2077\" data-end=\"2169\" data-is-last-node=\"\" data-is-only-node=\"\"\u003eEmahoy dreamt of releasing this music to a larger audience before her passing in March 2023.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"MISSISSIPPI","offers":[{"title":"Gold Vinyl LP","offer_id":58084695933273,"sku":"SDZ-46076","price":30.99,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0588\/3455\/0945\/files\/Emahoy-Tsege-Mariam-Gebru-Souvenirs-LP.png?v=1779122720","url":"https:\/\/spindizzyrecords.com\/products\/emahoy-tsege-mariam-gebru-souvenirs-gold","provider":"Spindizzy Dublin","version":"1.0","type":"link"}