Re:Context! with Joe Boyd

Music and words in conversation

Behind music is often a world of ideas, influences and stories. The brand-new series Re:Context! features leading writers who have recently published non-fiction books on jazz, improvisation or global and the wider culture around it.

With Lies Steppe, they discuss how music connects, shapes or moves us. Double bassist Lara Rosseel provides the musical accompaniment.

This edition's guest: Joe Boyd

Joe Boyd is a legendary producer and label boss, born in Boston in 1942. He has worked with icons such as Nick Drake, Fairport Convention, R.E.M., Pink Floyd, Toots & the Maytals, Maria Muldaur and Billy Bragg - as well as producing films such as Jimi Hendrix and the soundtrack to Deliverance. With his Hannibal Records label and countless productions in the Balkans, South America and Africa, among other places, he shaped what would later be called 'world music' for decades.

In his latest book, And the Roots of Rhythm Remain (2024), Boyd provides a definitive history of how non-Western music has influenced Western pop culture. From Havana to Lagos, Kingston to Calcutta, he describes encounters with revolutionary musicians and producers, and shows how this music changed jazz, rock and soul forever.

A compelling story of migration, appropriation, curiosity and exchange, with a keen eye for politics and personal anecdote. Boyd is joined by the voices of Brian Eno, Ry Cooder and Robert Plant, who hail the book as 'a gift to the world' and 'a lesson that should be taught in schools'.

A collaboration between Ha Concerts and Paard van Troje

Photo © Andrea Goertler