Various Artists – Every Tone a Testimony: An African American Aural History

Various Artists – Every Tone a Testimony: An African American Aural History (2001) – 2-CD Set

Genre: Spoken Word
Styles: Historical Speeches, Poetry, Folk, Blues, Gospel, Jazz
Format: 2 CDs
Label: Smithsonian Folkways Recordings
Catalog Number: SFW CD 47003

Every Tone a Testimony explores African American life and culture through music, speeches, poetry and prose. Released in 2001, this Smithsonian Folkways collection features 59 tracks across two CDs, with approximately two hours and 27 minutes of audio. Compiled and annotated by Robert H. Cataliotti, it draws from archival recordings spanning the 1920s through the 1990s. (folkways.si.edu)

The collection brings together oral traditions, accounts of resistance to slavery, musical expression and voices from the civil rights movement. Contributors include Langston Hughes, Paul Robeson, Lead Belly, Brownie McGhee, Sonny Terry and Martin Luther King Jr., alongside readings of historical works by performers including Ruby Dee.

Combining documentary material with folk, blues, gospel and jazz, this anthology offers a broad listening experience for collectors of historical recordings, educators and listeners interested in African American cultural history. The release was issued with a 40-page booklet providing context for the recordings. (folkways.si.edu)

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