BYG Records

BYG Records Pioneering French independent record label. Avant-Garde, Free Jazz, Experimental, Prog/Psychedelic Rock from the 60s & 70s

Pioneering French independent record label launched in 1967. Avant-Garde / Free Jazz / Experimental / Psychedelic & Prog Rock

17/07/2026

Out Now. Sunny Murray – Hommage To Africa

A Spiritual Jazz Landmark. A Cry from The Motherland.

Recorded in Paris shortly after the historic Pan-African Festival of Algiers in 1969, Hommage To Africa stands as one of the most transcendent statements of the avant-garde jazz movement.

More than an album, it is a ritual of sound - where African consciousness, free jazz, poetry and collective improvisation merge into a hypnotic, spiritual experience.

Led by drummer Sunny Murray - famed for his groundbreaking work with Albert Ayler and Cecil Taylor - the session unites an extraordinary cast of leading avant-garde voices including Archie Shepp, Roscoe Mitchell, Jeanne Lee, Lester Bowie and Grachan Moncur III. Together, they create music that feels both ancestral and forward-looking: ceremonial percussion, ecstatic horns, floating vocals and deep emotional resonance.

At the heart of the recording are two expansive compositions: ‘Suns Of Africa’, a mesmerizing, slow-burning, mind-expanding journey, and ‘R.I.P.’, a deeply soulful procession shaped by Black American musical traditions and cosmic freedom.

Rooted in the cultural awakening of the late ‘60s, Hommage To Africa rejects colonial narratives and places Africa firmly at the center - as source, inspiration and future.

👉 Deluxe LP and CD editions featuring brand-new liner notes by Kevin Le Gendre, also available as a high-resolution digital album.

Listen and buy now https://charlyrecords.lnk.to/1OLIOAq5

13/02/2026

Out Now! Jacques Coursil – Black Suite

First released in 1971 as part of BYG Records’ groundbreaking Actuel series, Jacques Coursil’s Black Suite remains one of the boldest expressions of the Black Diaspora’s creative and political awakening. Recorded in Paris on June 10, 1969, this visionary work now returns in a newly restored and remastered edition, revealing its full depth and clarity for the first time in decades.

Featuring a transatlantic ensemble - Jacques Coursil, Anthony Braxton, Arthur Jones, Burton Greene, Beb Guérin, and Claude Delcloo - Black Suite bridges the radical spirit of the American avant-garde and the intellectual fire of postcolonial Europe. Across two long, meditative movements, Coursil transforms jazz into a language of liberation, evoking the writings of Frantz Fanon, Léopold Sédar Senghor, and Aimé Césaire as well as the fierce energy of the Civil Rights era.

Born in Paris to Martiniquan parents, Jacques Coursil embodied the dialogue between African, Caribbean, and African-American identities, turning sound into philosophy and music into movement. With its blend of intellect, emotion, and resistance, Black Suite stands alongside the seminal works of Pharoah Sanders, Eddie Gale, and Frank Lowe - timeless statements of self-definition and artistic freedom.

Half a century later, Black Suite still speaks powerfully to our time: a sound of struggle and pride, of beauty and becoming - still unbroken.

Find the album here: https://charlyrecords.lnk.to/bFnFrHEu

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LP

👉 Comes in a deluxe matte laminate gatefold sleeve and polylined paper inner sleeve
👉 Restored and remastered from the original BYG tapes
👉 Insert featuring exclusive liner notes by jazz author Kevin Le Gendre

CD

💿 Comes in a deluxe matte laminate digi sleeve and printed inner wallet
💿 Digitally mastered from restored BYG tapes
💿 16-page booklet featuring archival photos & exclusive essay by jazz author Kevin Le Gendre

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