Sonic Editions

Black History Month. A time to remember the contributions of those who fought, in the face of bigotry and oppression, for a better, fairer world. A chance to celebrate the ever-changing, irrepressible richness of Black culture in America, Britain, and across the globe. Here at Sonic, we're taking the opportunity to search through our archive and bring you the very best we have to offer - from Blues legends Muddy Waters and Howlin' Wolf, to civil rights icons James Baldwin and MLK, all the way to modern maestros like Tupac, Snoop and Biggie. Below you'll find a small sample of our collection.

Smiling Muddy Waters, 1974

John Rockwood

Muddy Waters has been called 'the father of Chicago Blues'. Born on a small plantation in Mississippi in 1913, Waters grew up within earshot of legends like Son House and Robert Johnson. In 1943, after recording some of his work for the Library of Congress, he moved to Chicago to pursue a career in music, and by 1946 he'd made his first records. During the '50s, Waters and his band - Little Walter Jacobs on harmonica, Jimmy Rogers on guitar, Elga Edmonds on drums and Otis Spann on piano - recorded tracks that became Blues standards, tracks like 'Hoochie Coochie Man' and 'I'm Ready'. He even travelled to England, where his performances led to a resurgence of interest in the genre, and had some pretty big consequences a few years later...

John Rockwood documented the blues scene for over 40 years, with a focus on Chicago and Detroit. He is based in Toledo, Ohio, and was involved in a Blues revival there in the 1980s. 

Martin Luther King - Washington March

Francis Miller, Life Picture Collection

Martin Luther King Jr. was the leader of the American civil rights movement. Born in Atlanta to a family of Baptist ministers, he was inspired by the example of nonviolent protest set by Mahatma Gandhi in India, and brought those methods to a still-segregated America. He led the Montgomery Bus Boycott in 1955, the Selma to Montgomery Marches, and, in 1963, the March on Washington (above) where, on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, he delivered his famous 'I Have a Dream' speech. Dr. King's legacy is one of commitment to an ideal, of peace and mutual respect, of hope. A legacy that still lives today.

Francis Miller was a combat photographer during WWII. After the war he started work for Life and is responsible for capturing some of the most iconic images of the twentieth century.

James Baldwin, 1968

David Gahr

James Baldwin was an American writer and civil rights activist who spent much of his life in France. Born in Harlem, he was frustrated almost to despair by the lack of opportunity, the bigotry, and the hatred he encountered throughout his youth, and so, with forty dollars in his pocket, at the age of 24 he left New York for Paris. It was in Paris that he first published Go Tell it on the Mountain, a semi-autobiographical novel which was widely praised. In the mid-'50s he returned to the US to contribute, however he could, to the budding civil rights movement. He wrote plays, essays and reviews, and in '65, on a trip to Cambridge, participated in a famous debate with William F. Buckley. The students present at the debate voted overwhelmingly in Baldwin's favour.

David Gahr was a veteran of WWII and prominent music photographer, known for his iconic and authentic portraits of folk, blues, jazz, and rock musicians from the 1960s onwards. Here, Baldwin poses for Gahr outside of his home in New York City.

Tupac at Club Amazon

Al Pereira

Named after a famous Peruvian revolutionary, Tupac Amaru Shakur was the son of former Black Panther activists. A student at the Baltimore School of Performing Arts, he studied jazz, acting, poetry and ballet. His debut album, 2Pacalypse Now, explored issues like drug abuse and teenage pregnancy in a way that was highly controversial. His third album, Me Against the World, sold 240,000 copies in its first week.

Al Pereira is a photographer known for capturing iconic images of hip-hop and rap artists in the '90s. Starting out as a stringer for UPI, he covered news, politics and sport in Boston before focusing on music. Club Amazon was a legendary, now-defunct NYC spot that hosted the likes of Tupac, Biggie and Redman.