I recently discovered the African Music Archives of the University of Mainz in Germany and have spent the weekend trawling though it, looking for new additions to add to the website. My German is just about adequate enough to order a meal and get directions but no more, so navigating the archives online catalogue has been a bit hit and miss. I’d hoped to find all the East African records in one convenient place that I could cross-refer to entries already on this website. No dice. Instead I have made a start at trawling through by individual label and artist, which is a much more time-consuming business.

But it’s worth it as the university collection is large and full of records I haven’t encountered before, including no less than 16 45rpms by Mbaraka Mwinshehe on Polydor. I’ve added lengthy listings to the Equator Records, Moto Moto and Polydor pages in particular, as well as a couple of new labels, Simba wa Bara and Border Guards.

Along the way I realised that the website now has more than 5,000 records listed, a target I have been carrying around in my head for a while. So I shall have a glass of wine tonight to celebrate and consider what’s a reasonable target to aspire to hit in the next few months.