Old classics revived with high-tech edge

The Penguin Encyclopedia Of Popular Music released in 1991, edited by Donald Clarke, has more than 3,000 entries on rock, rock’n’roll, folk, soul, R&B, gospel, country and swing, and a whole host of lesser-known genres. Musicians, songwriters and producers are all in this tome.

But what you won’t find in such reference books (a publishing business that has been almost entirely superseded by websites and mobile phone apps) are any of the “other” popular (and traditional) music genres and musicians that “other” places were enjoying. Because, and this is a big surprise for many people who are not record collectors, recordings were being made across the globe, right from the beginning of the 20th century.

The US-based record label Dusk-to-Digital has produced a series of important CD compilations on early recorded music. In 2014, I reviewed a superb…