One of Britain’s most iconic folk imprints is 85 years old and to celebrate we’ve asked ten artists who have history on the label (Martin Carthy, Angeline Morrison, Seth Lakeman and others) to pick a favourite from Topic’s catalogue
Giant of Latin jazz, pianist Eddie Palmieri dismissed ‘jazz Latin’ as simply jazz with added congas. Here, Mark Sampson picks out some of his favourite Latin-flavoured recordings by jazz artists who dared to add that dancing drum
Nigel Williamson picks ten emblematic recordings featuring the ngoni, a West African lute said to be an ancestor of the banjo, made from hollowed-out wood or calabash, covered in animal hide, and strung with four-to-six strings on a fretless neck
Chris Wheatley picks out some of the world’s finest ambient soundscapes
Ten of our longest-standing contributors pick albums released during Songlines’ lifetime that are well overdue another listen
There is nothing quite like the sound of a whole room of people playing music, reflected in the countless times that an oversized genre once seemed lost has risen from the ashes. Here are a few ensembles from the past years that prove the size of your band counts
Criminally castigated and distinctly uncool, bagpipes are a mainstay of many traditional musics and are also increasingly finding favour as an experimental instrument of choice. Chris Wheatley picks out ten albums filled with more than just hot air
Driven by axé (energy) in service to the orixás (gods), these top albums, selected by Russ Slater Johnson, draw on Brazil’s African diasporic religions and spirituality
Choosing ten albums across five decades of classic British and Irish folk is a brave if doomed mission, because it’s a list that changes at each iteration, discovers Tim Cumming
Choice sides of digital dancehall and mega Afrobeat ampage primed for incendiary boogie overload
Nigel Williamson selects 10 vital albums brimming with bluegrass, clawhammer and old-time reinventions
Simon Broughton selects ten albums that explore the fertile space between classical and traditional music
Jenna Mackle selects 10 of her favourite Afro-Colombian marimba albums
A handpicked selection of Hungarian folk albums, featuring Söndörgő, Cimbaliband, Muzsikás and more
Simon Broughton selects some of his favourite exotic fiddle albums from across the globe
Nigel Williamson rounds up a list of great concept albums, from Nitin Sawhney's Beyond Skin to Angélique Kidjo's Remain in Light
Nigel Williamson conjures a magical world of legend and lore with a selection of music inspired by gods, monsters and heroes
South Korea boasts a wealth of artists who are performing both time-honoured and progressive music on traditional instruments. Here Simon Broughton selects ten of the country’s finest instrumental albums
The Beatles’ fusion of Indian music into Western pop inspired a monsoon of similarly adventurous experiments. Nigel Williamson offers a chronological selection of the most inventive albums of the last 50 years
Piano accordions, melodeons, concertinas, bandoneóns – squeezeboxes come in many forms, and have spread all over the globe, adapting to all kinds of traditions. Julian May picks his favourite squeezebox albums
Pachamama’s radical message is being channelled, oscillated, mixed and mashed by a new wave of South American musicians, DJs, rappers and ravers. Chris Moss selects the top ten highlights
Buena Vista Social Club made such an impact since its release that countless similar projects revisiting nostalgic styles or reforming veteran bands have followed in its wake. Simon Broughton selects the best of them
Traditional Irish music is in fine fettle with a constant stream of fresh new talent emerging from the Emerald Isle. Here Michael Quinn introduces ten of his top Irish albums
Qawwali is a devotional music in Pakistan and popular around the world. Simon Broughton picks the best recordings of traditional qawwali, plus some interesting fusions
Field recordings may have started life as the preserve of the ethnomusicologist, but they have influenced countless musicians and become vital for documenting disappearing musics. Mike Gavin highlights ten of the best field recording compilations
Daniel Spicer chooses ten of the genre’s top albums to get your groove on
Calypso has its roots in canboulay music brought to the Caribbean by African slaves, but the style is constantly being revitalised and reinterpreted. Charles de Ledesma traces its history and chooses his top ten albums
Chris Moss picks out 10 giants upon whose shoulders today’s generation of musicians stand
The kora has become the defining instrument of West Africa. Simon Broughton picks his ten top albums, including Ballaké Sissoko, Seckou Keita, Sona Jobarteh and more
Chris Moss teases ten of his all-time favourite flamenco albums into the bullring, featuring Camarón de la Isla & Paco de Lucía, Manolo Caracol, Lola Flores and more
As we hurtle ever faster and ever deeper into a global climate crisis, Chris Moss highlights ten releases from artists who are doing their bit to help
Featuring albums from The Abyssinians, Rocky Dawuni, Inna de Yard, Bob Marley and The Wailers, and more...
Nigel Williamson selects ten albums that best showcase the inimitable Touareg desert groove sound
Ten classic albums that exemplify the diversity and virtuosity of music in the Balkan region, featuring Fanfare Ciocărlia, Kočani Orkestar, Taraf de Haïdouks, Esma Redžepova and more
Cuba has always been a musical powerhouse, featuring Afro-Cuban All Stars, Buena Vista Social Club, La Lupe, Los Van Van and more
Jim Hickson selects ten top live-in-concert world music albums, featuring Fatoumata Diawara & Roberto Fonseca, Oum Kalthoum, Ozomatli, Radio Tarifa and more
Garth Cartwright aims to get you swaying in the aisles with these ten top classic gospel collections, featuring Mahalia Jackson, The Blind Boys of Alabama, The Edwin Hawkins Singers and more...
Tabla players, often confined to an accompanying role, have shone in their own right on a plethora of recordings. Liam Izod picks out some of his favourite albums
Garth Cartwright cranks up the sound system for some bass-laden bliss. Here are his top ten classic dub long-players to check out
Tim Cumming looks back over the best folk albums reviewed in Songlines in 2020, which have sustained us through this locked down year
While guitarist Afel Bocoum steps out of Ali Farka Touré’s shadow and into the spotlight with his latest release Lindé, Nigel Williamson selects ten other excellent albums by Malian guitarists
Simon Broughton picks out some highlight recordings from the South Korean music scene, including albums by Jambinai and Black String
The amazing sounds of Mongolian and Tuvan throat singers have captivated audiences around the world. Michael Ormiston recommends ten of the best albums that chart its development
Haitians have always turned to music to vent their emotions, heal their hurts and celebrate. Maria Bakkalapulo recommends albums that give you a taste of what the country has to offer
Marja Mortensson is helping to breathe new life into the Sámi tradition of joik. Here, Merlyn Driver highlights ten more excellent albums by Sámi artists
Charlotte Algar highlights 10 essential singers from this musical island nation, including Daymé Arocena, La Lupe, Celia Crúz and many more
Simon Broughton recommends some of the best Romanian albums, from Taraf de Haidouks and Fanfare Ciocărlia to The Balanescu Quartet
Andy Channing picks some of his favourite recordings from the Indonesian islands of Java and Bali
The discovery of South Asian music by the likes of John and Alice Coltrane and Pharoah Sanders had a big effect on US jazz, and it seems the musical connection works both ways. Jim Hickson picks some favourite albums
From storytelling azmari bards to grooving Ethio-jazzers, Ethiopia has inarguably produced some giants of the world music scene. Jim Hickson picks out some cornerstone recordings from the country’s rich musical history
Chris Moss chooses his favourite albums from Mexico, from Lila Downs to José José
There are almost 60 million displaced people and refugees living worldwide. Nigel Williamson selects ten artists who have all released albums while living in exile
Sufi music occurs all across the Islamic world. Simon Broughton chooses the standout recordings, going for the more traditional and spiritual examples
The bright star rising from West Africa in the form of Noura Mint Seymali is just one of the continent’s long and impressive list of women singers. Nigel Williamson picks ten favourite albums
Mokoomba might be the latest bright young band from Zimbabwe, but before them there have been some truly legendary artists and releases. Nigel Williamson selects ten classic albums
The urban arts scene is flourishing in India but it’s still underground enough that it can be hard to come across some of the music. Here, Amardeep Dhillon takes us through his list of essential Desi hip-hop listening
Hip-hop has truly travelled the world; musicians can be heard spitting rhymes in just about every language. Charlotte Algar rounds up the top ten hip-hop albums that should be on every fan’s shelf
Over the past century, black American artists have sung out against injustice. Garth Cartwright chooses ten albums that express discontent, from the age of Jim Crow to the current Trump administration
Yousif Nur selects ten artists experimenting with traditional Arabic music to create exciting new beats
Greek rebetika was recently inducted onto the UNESCO Cultural Heritage List, so Maria Lord selects the best ten albums that show how the style has evolved over the years
As Argentinian tango comes to the Proms, and with the form currently undergoing a revival in Buenos Aires, Chris Moss selects ten timeless albums
Over the decades, countless albums have demonstrated the indelible contribution the Windrush generation has made to popular music. Charles de Ledesma selects ten that sum up this dramatic period of history
Jahnavi Harrison selects Indian vocalists who have all performed at the Darbar Festival over the last decade
Afrobeat is seeing something of a resurgence – with the release of a Fela documentary and new albums from two of the genre’s greats. Max Reinhardt gets into the groove and highlights ten of the best albums.
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