CORY REYNOLDS | DATE 11/5/2026

Iconic Folkways records documented the world of sound

Featuring 450 color reproductions over 208 pages, Folkways Records is new from Soul Jazz Books. Between 1949 and 1986, Folkways released more than 2,000 albums documenting “all the sounds of the world,” as Albert Einstein challenged founder Moses Asch to do in 1940. “Folkways’ world of music and sound is also a world of protest,” Stuart Baker writes. “While never affiliated with a political party, Asch’s outlook was that of a radical: progressively left-wing, an almost anarchistic figure. An anti-capitalist capitalist. Most record companies exist exclusively to make money. Asch’s ambition and Folkways agenda were very different—to document the world of sound.” All covers in this collection are by the label's most iconic designer, Ronald Clyne.