African acoustic guitar masterpieces, expanding on Mississippi’s beloved “African Guitar Box.” In 1979 and 1980, a young British-Kenyan musician named John Low hit the road to learn finger-style guitar from his heroes. He traveled across Kenya, Tanza…
Intensely expressive free-verse vocal laments over sliding violins, hammered santouri, guitar, and oud - the hybrid sounds of the Mediterranean in the early 20th century. “Aman Aman” cry the singers on these recordings, their voices preserved on 78rp…
The MerKaBa Brotherhood are Roman Norfleet (The Cosmic Tones Research Trio, Be Present Art Group) and Andre Raiah (Brown Calvin of Brown Calculus, Be Present Art Group). The duo draw from esoteric texts, sacred imagery, and mystic thought, shaping so…
Includes deluxe 12-page booklet with unpublished photos, lyrics, translations, and liner notes written by NTS radio host Jamal Khadar. Before there was a Zambia, there was Alick Nkhata. Born in Kasama in 1922 to a Tonga father and Bemba mother, Nkhat…
In the late 1980s, singer Bizimungu Dieudonne, his wife Agnes Uwimbabazi, and a backing band of family and friends self-released a visionary cassette, featuring stuttering electric guitars, loping bass lines, and call and response vocals. Their combo…
Portland trio offering a distinctive contribution to the lineage of Great Black Music. All is Sound - now reissued - positions itself at the intersection of several African-American musical traditions: the meditative modality of Alice Coltrane's ashr…
First-time reissue of Willem Nyland's rare private-press piano improvisations. The Dutch chemist-turned-Gurdjieff disciple recorded these spiritual teachings on specially tuned piano in 1960s upstate New York
**Clear vinyl editions. Old-school tip-on jacket with metallic silver foil stamping along with a 12-page booklet featuring extensive liner notes from scholar and pianist Thomas Feng.** From beloved composer Emahoy Tsege Mariam Gebru, a revelatory new…
A breathtaking journey into Arvo Pärt’s sacred minimalism. This LP features rare and moving renditions—including a radically slowed performance of Silentium—that illuminate the composer’s most intimate, time-suspending work.
A lost classic of the Ethiopian Golden Age, reissued in full for the first time! On this 1976 gem of a record, Aselefech Ashine and Getenesh Kebret’s voices intertwine in close harmony, the two “beauties” singing in duet across 10 gorgeous tracks. Th…
Big Tip! “You’re living in a dream, Coley…” Surreal, layered, Lynchian landscapes by Birmingham, Alabama poet, Johnny Coley. On his Mississippi Records debut, Coley takes a completely improvised and semi-hallucinatory journey down decrepit southern t…
Big Tip! Our obsession with underground Greek music continues with 10 ultra-rare recordings of heartbreak and vice from rembetiko legend Giorgos Katsaros. Katsaros, who by some accounts lived to be over 100 years old, carried the old songs of Greece …
Home recordings made between 1977 and 1985 by Emahoy Tsege Mariam Gebru, the Ethiopian nun and pianist: her first album of songs, sung in Amharic at the piano about exile and the 1974 revolution.
Big Tip! LP (clear amber). 8-page insert. The lost soundtrack to “Chess of the Wind”, Iran’s banned 1976 queer-gothic-class-horror masterpiece, restored by the director and released for the first time. A masterpiece of world cinema, Mohammad Reza Asl…
Premiere LP by Portland's finest practitioners of Great Black Music. A spiritual record for the ages. Roman Norfleet And Be Present Art Group play deeply felt sometimes earthy and sometimes cosmic music. A trio (sax, drums and organ) are augmented by…
Assiko Golden Band de Grand Yoff is the sprawling drum collective tearing up Dakar’s nightlife scene. Senegalese poet Djiby Ly (Wau Wau Collectif) is backed by fourteen different percussive instruments plus horns, winds, balafon, and the occasional a…
2024 Stock. First volume of solo piano compositions by Emahoy Tsege Mariam Gebru, finally back in print. Born to an aristocratic family in Addis Ababa in December of 1923, Emahoy spent much of her youth and young adulthood studying classical music i…
From beloved composer Emahoy Tsege Mariam Gebru, a revelatory new album of piano pieces, unreleased or virtually inaccessible until now! Emahoy Tsege Mariam Gebru is a true original – an Ethiopian nun whose recordings have funded orphanages back hom…
** 160 gram vinyl, old school tip-on jacket + 8-page booklet ** A new LP collection of incredible performances by the virtuosa of theremin, Clara Rockmore, accompanied by her sister Nadia Reisenberg on piano. Recorded in 1975 and never before releas…
** 2xLP set in deluxe gatefold jacket with extensive liner notes by Nathan Salsburg of the Lomax Archive. First edition, 160 gram black vinyl ** A stunning 2xLP collection of music documented during Alan Lomax’s final American field recording session…
** 2021 Stock. Includes a 12 page color booklet with rare photographs, full lyrics, and extensive notes ** Marika "Politissa" Frantzeskopoulou was a Greek singer from Constantinople, reknowned for her precise, fluid and graceful performances and dept…
A trip through the productions of pioneering genius Joe Meek. Here we have a mix of hits that have appeared on comps before and real out-there obscurities. Designed to be highly listenable. Never a dull moment amongst these songs that cover subjects …
Compilation of Mississippi's favorite Arvo Part pieces. All sparse and beautiful arrangements. Some solo piano pieces, some duets with piano, violin cello and viola and one string quartet. The pieces on this record are all unique to the style of A…
"At last! The second LP in our ongoing series of releases from Mariam Tsege Gebru! More 1960s recordings of her truly unique solo piano performances. Mariam Tsege Gebru is a true original - her playing is somewhere between Erik Satie, Debussy, lit…
Compilation of early gospel recordings spanning from 1927 - 1955. Sanctified blues by the Two Gospel Keys, Mother McCollum, Blind Rosevelt Graves, Lottie Bracey, Sister O.M Terrell & Rev. IB Ware. Beautiful slow country gospel by the Anglin Brothers …
In celebration of Alan Lomax's 100th birthday, Mississippi Records is proud to present a 6 LP box set featuring 100 of his finest field recordings. Previously unreleased tracks by Bob Dylan, Bascom Lamar Lunsford, Southern Drum and Fife Corps, Bil…
One man band Jesse Fuller's first recordings from 1954! Jesse Fuller was a truly unique one man band who played blues, spirituals, ballads and folk songs. On these recordings we find Jesse playing guitar, harmonica, kazoo and the footdella (a bass th…
During the 1970s, Tilahun Gessesse enjoyed a successful career in his native Ethiopia. Blessed with a sublime voice, he specialized in creating popular hybrids of hot American styles - most notably soul and jazz - with traditional Ethiopian styles. S…
First ever vinyl collection of the legendary 'Kostis,' the most enigmatic of all Greek rebetika artists of the early 1930s. Truly unique guitar duets and black-humor prose chronicling the hash dens, prison culture and pickpockets of old Athens. Vi…
Lurking around the Northwest music world for years playing with the likes of the Black Cat Orchestre, Earth, David Byrne, Terry Riley, Nirvana and a ton of other musicians, here we have Lori Goldstons' beautiful cello playing in its purest form - …
A classic and seldom heard LP from Bamako! Not just your average Malian LP, Le Tioko-Tioko features has to be heard to be believed organ, hypnotic guitar and amazing sweet vocals. A truly great LP and must have for fans of Malian music. A faithful…
Ishilan n-Tenere is a compilation of recordings of guitar music from three regions of Senegal and Mali -- Fouta Toro, Timbouctou, and the Adrar d'Ifoghas. Each region differs in language and culture, but all have a popular music based on the guita…
Beautiful sounds in a style we've never heard before – music played on the saung gauk, which is a special leaf-shaped Burmese harp – mixed with some light background percussion and ethereal vocals from Su Wai herself! The notes of the harp have t…
"I'm sorry, but any record that opens with a vintage rebetika track is pretty much sold for me, and since this record does, the rest doesn't really matter, it's already awesome. Yep the first track on this killer re-issue is from Marika Papagika and …
The first Mississippi compilation, in print again for the first time in over 7 years. Here we have some of the absolute best performances of country blues and ballads ever put out, dating from 1926 - 1953. Early 78's that speak of the universal human…
Compilation of absolutely must-have country blues from Mississippi. A mix of well known artists playing their signature songs and more obscure musicians. Highlights include Bukka White's elemental "Fixin' to die", Lottie Kimbroughs' seldom heard "Don…
The Indian Music Of Chiapas, Mexico'. In the mid 1970's Richard Alderson made these amazing recordings in Chiapas, Mexico. A very unique blend of ancient music and modern rhythms. Here we have modern Mayan people singing folk songs accompanied by gui…
Amazing sounds from the subcontinent – a selection of mid-century recordings that focuses on the incredible vocal range in Indian music, served up by a set of singers we might never have known otherwise! The voice is almost the lead instrument he…