Alemayehu Eshete is sometimes called the Ethiopian Elvis, a nickname he owes to 'Tikur Gissila' ("Black Panther") an Ethiopian rock-'n-roll song from 1961 and Eshete's first big hit. The fact that the song became such a big hit was largely due to it being one of the first Ethiopian songs with a really proud pan-African message (also the hobbyhorse of the former leader of Ethiopia Emperor Haile Selassie I, who founded the Organization of African Unity in 1963). Meanwhile, Alemayehu Eshete's career spans over four decades and his country changed from an empire to a Communist dictatorship and finally into a fledgling democracy. For this 'Best Of' compilation AIT Records collected ten of Eshete's best known songs. Mind you, all the songs were re-recorded for this album, so lovers of vintage "Ethiopalia" will find little they like.