Physical Edition: Listen All Around: The Golden Age of Central and East African Music

Format: 2-CD Set + Hardcover Book

A historic musical journey into the heart of Africa’s vibrant rumba scene, Listen All Around presents 47 newly transferred and remastered recordings made by ethnomusicologist Hugh Tracey between 1950 and 1958 across Central and East Africa.

Recorded in the Congo, Kenya, Tanganyika, and Zanzibar, these tracks capture a musical golden age where traditional sounds met modern influences. From Congolese rumba to dansi, benga, and more, the collection features electric guitars, string bands, jazz orchestras, and vocal ensembles in full creative bloom — shaping the future of African popular music.

What’s Included:

• 2 CDs with 47 remastered recordings (1950–1958)
• Hardcover book (84 pages) with:
• Essays and track annotations
• Over 50 archival images
• Cultural context on the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Tanganyika, and Zanzibar

Notable Performers Include:

• Kalenga Antonance — reflective opener “Mamboleyo”
• Ilunga Patrice & Misomba Victor — rich vocal harmonies
• Coast Social Orchestra — Afro-Arab and East African dance blend
• Lang Obiero — soulful Kenyan voice
• Dar es Salaam Jazz Band — Tanzanian pioneers of urban dance music
• Mwenda Jean Bosco — Congolese guitar innovator and early rumba star
• Chemutoi Ketienya & Kipsigis Girls — captivating “Chemirocha III”

About the Recordist:

Hugh Tracey (1903–1977) was a British-born ethnomusicologist and founder of the International Library of African Music (ILAM) in 1954. A pioneer of African field recording, he documented styles that had never been recorded before, leaving behind one of the most significant archives of African music in the world. Listen All Around is a collaboration between ILAM and Dust-to-Digital, offering a rare and immersive portrait of Tracey’s mid-century fieldwork.

Praise & Reviews:

• “This compilation tactfully condenses the music of numerous cultural and national identities into a meager two hours. It’s worth your time.” — PopMatters
• “Listen All Around is full of moments like this — homespun and mellow, reflecting times gone by while embracing what’s to come.” — Bandcamp, Album of the Day
• “The Dust-to-Digital team has sifted through hundreds of songs to release a terrific collection… focusing on Tracey’s field recordings from 1950–1958 of rumba music and its variations… This older, sweeter music still sounds fresh, however, and viewed through today’s lens, it also seems so innocent.” — KCRW – Rhythm Planet
• “That variety is best illustrated by the three versions of a single song… Coast Social Orchestra’s ‘Nali Kisafiri’ is a radiant and rolling delight.” — Brainwashed

Winner of the Association for Recorded Sound Collections (ARSC) Award for Excellence in Historical Recorded Sound Research.