National Geographic Music (National Geographic)

Fans of the legendary Ethiopiques series—which re-issues Ethiopian recordings from the '60s and '70s—had a rare treat on Wednesday night when Lincoln Center hosted the New York debut of three giants of that golden era of Ethiopian pop music.

Singers Mahmoud Ahmed (pictured) and Alèmayèhu Eshèté ran down their afropop classics backed by Boston-based ensemble The Either/Orchestra, while saxman Gétatchèw Mèkurya teamed up with Dutch avant-punk ensemble The Ex for a set of wild cross-cultural improvisations. The bill was rounded out by Kenyan-American collective Extra Golden, who put a new spin on the exuberant, laid back benga music of Kenya.

This impressive triple bill drew over 5,000 people to Lincoln Center's Damrosch Park bandshell—an unusual mix of Ethiopian expatriates, indie rockers, world music aficionados and curious neighbors drawn out by the gorgeous late summer weather. By the time that Extra Golden took the stage at 6 pm, the crowd was already beginning to spill out into the aisles.

The sextet lit things up with an impressive set of full of high flying East African guitar pyrotechnics. The plaintive, high-pitched vocals of Opiyo Bilongo were a melodic and melancholy counterpoint to the bright and sparkling three-guitar attack of Ian Eagleson, Alex Minoff and Onyango Jagwasi. Extra Golden had the crowd dancing in their seats—and it didn't hurt that they had an ode to Barack Obama in their arsenal to help reel in this Upper West Side audience.

Next up was one of the most anticipated sets of New York's entire summer concert season: singers Mahmoud Ahmed and Alèmayèhu Eshèté backed by the Either/Orchestra. Ahmed and Eshèté are bona fide musical legends in Ethiopia, and the many Ethiopian expats and immigrants in the audience were primed to see them. After a brief instrumental set from the Either/Orchestra—who have dedicated themselves to learning the Ethiopian pop repertoire and backed many of the greats since their first tour of Addis Ababa in 2004—bandleader Russ Gershon brought out Eshèté.

Dressed In a baggy grey suit and dazzling white shirt, and crowned by an unruly mop of black hair that looked like Little Richard's pompadour gone to seed, the impish Eshèté cut an almost comical figure. Until he opened his mouth to sing. The diminutive 61 year old was once known as the James Brown of Ethiopia; and while he may have lost his once-limber moves, he still had the pipes and range of a man half his age. Eshèté belted out his Amharic-language hits one after another with no let up—usually with the help of the Ethiopians In the seats down front, who still remembered every word.

After Eshèté came Mahmoud Ahmed, and the contrast couldn't have been more marked. Ahmed was tall and grave, a pillar of dignity with a close-cropped head of white hair and a traditional white kaftan. His voice, too, had aged remarkably well, and his grittier, more urban pop sound—including his great hit "Ere Mela Mela"—got the crowd back on its feet and spilling into the aisles. Either/Orchestra had really locked in on its groove by then, too, and Ahmed's set was by far the stronger of the two. By the end Ahmed was almost priestly, with arms outstretched, leading the whole crowd in a call-and-response chant that left Lincoln Center ringing with the words "A-bet! A-bet! A-bet!"

The inevitable encore between Eshèté and Ahmed felt like a bit of a letdown afterwards. But the pair's obvious affection for one another and delight in making their New York debut together was infectious.

Next up was an entirely different sort of cross-cultural collaboration. At 73, saxophonist Gétatchèw Mèkurya is one of the giants of Ethiopian pop and a pioneer of "Ethio-jazz". He was performing here with Dutch avant-punk art rockers The Ex, who have been underpinning their improvisatory sound with African drumming for over 25 years. Mèkurya and The Ex have been performing together since 2004, when the band invited Mèkurya to join them for their 25th anniversary concert in the Netherlands. The rest is hipster history.

Fresh off a small U.S. club tour to celebrate the release of a DVD, Mèkurya and The Ex were in fine form at Lincoln Center, and tight as only a real touring outfit can be. They kicked off their set with the Ethiopian instrumental classic "Musiqawi Silt" and then veered off into the stratosphere. The Ex's core foursome was bulked out with additional horns, and Mèkurya took full advantage of the opportunity to lead them on an improvised musical steeplechase. He traded licks with both the horns and the "baritone guitars" of Terrie Ex and Andy Moore. Their choppy, art-damaged chords somehow plugged perfectly into Mèkurya's swirling modalities, while Katherina Ex's drumming was both nimble and heavy-handed; like Moe Tucker stranded in the Congo.

The concert was presented as part of the Lincoln Center Out of Doors program in conjunction with New Jersey-based radio station WFMU. The influential freeform radio station has been celebrating its 50th anniversary with a series of free summer concerts around the New York area.

"It's been a dream of mine to present these Ethiopian artists in New York for nearly a decade and a half, and the concert completely exceeded my dreams." said Lincoln Center's Bill Bragin. "The audience was incredible - young and old, Ethiopians who knew every word hearing cultural heroes for perhaps the first time in NY, indie hipsters who were there for the Ex's guitar squall, jazz fans there for Either / Orchestra's brilliant arrangements. The music truly leapt over oceans."

WFMU's Rob Weisberg, who hosted the on-air simulcast of the event, agreed. "It is a thrill to have three big guns of the Ethio Golden age playing a free concert no less, in NYC, at Lincoln Center. [It's] unprecedented to have three together, and 'FMU helped make it happen. And we get to broadcast it around the world via the web. And I get to be the host! I mean, pinch me, I must be dreaming!"