The World Is Shaking - Cubanismo from the Congo, 1954-55

Various Artists
The World Is Shaking - Cubanismo from the Congo, 1954-55

The London based label Honest Jon’s has been putting out top shelf reggae and world music reissues since the early ‘00s. Their releases invariably feature meticulous sound and beautiful packaging, but more importantly, the folks behind Honest Jon’s have immaculate taste in early world music. Their London Is The Place For Me series, which featured popular music from the ‘30s and ‘40s made by African and West Indian musicians in England, brought a treasure trove of previously neglected recordings to the attention of the general public. This release does the same service for the Congolese music scene of the mid ‘50s when Leopoldville and Brazzaville were vibrant centers of Congolese nightlife and scores of talented musicians cut frenetic, Rhumba inflected sides for labels like RCA, HMV and EMI. The recordings featured here document Congolese musicians’ responses to the importation of Cuban and West Indian music to Central Africa, and anticipate the development of Congolese Rhumba and Sekou in the ‘60s and ‘70s.

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