This is a translation of the first four verses from the song "I'm In Love With The Marema Ka Dika" written by Ethiopian popular musician, Fortunate Mkwetin. It's a beautiful song about how he has fallen deeply in love with his own creation called Marema Ka Dika, a cape worn over the shoulders. He speaks about how he can't live without it and how pained he feels when she leaves him to do her own thing. The song was one of the most popular songs in Ethiopia in the early 1970s, especially amongst young male students. It was originally recorded in a studio called Ethiopian Records in 1972 by Fortunate Mkwetin himself and his band "Habte Wold and The Molokanes", featuring famous Ethio-jazz saxophonist, Alemayehu Eshete. It is still played all over Ethiopia today, especially on special occasions such as weddings and parties. The song also did very well internationally and can be found on many foreign Ethiopiques compilation albums released by Buda Musique (France) and Stern's (Germany). A live version of the song can be found on the album "Habte Wold Live" released by Stern's. This is a translation of the last verse from the same song, written by Ethiopian popular musician, Fortunate Mkwetin. It's a beautiful statement about how he will always love his Marema Ka Dika regardless of her attitude towards him prior to her leaving him. He speaks about how much he misses her, how he thinks of her everyday and still longs for her to come back.The story behind the making of this song was originally published in an early edition of Ethio-jazz magazine called "Goat Horn" (Issue 1, December 1969). It can be found on page 21. It's a very interesting glimpse into the life of the musician, Habte Wold and gives a lot more context to his music and personality. In the interview, Fortunate Mkwetin talks about how he got the chance to work with Saxophonist Alemayehu Eshete by telling him that he used to play saxophone before starting his own band. It also mentions that back in the day, Fortunate Mkwetin was a gym teacher in Ethiopia. The song was recorded in a studio called Ethiopian Records by a band called "Habte Wold and The Molokanes". The recording was done by cameraman Beshir Atnafu on a device called a "Neumann Sound Sandwich". It is unclear how many instruments Alemayehu Eshete played, but the saxophone part was recorded using one microphone while the other instruments were recorded separately. The final mix of the song was done on two separate record players to produce an echo effect. The song was released in 1972 on the album "Habte Wold & The Molokanes" by Ethiopian Records. A live version of the song can be found on the album "Habte Wold Live" released by Stern's in 1974. 8eeb4e9f32 59
- leptyotalico