“Some of the sounds that filled the abode of James Baldwin in St. Paulde-Vence, a town in the south of France. These songs document the vinyl records left behind in Chez Baldwin after his death in 1987.”

Hammer Museum curator Ikechúkwú Onyewuenyi has compiled Chez Baldwin: a 478-track playlist featuring records from American novelist James Baldwin’s record collection.

“The playlist is a balm of sorts when one is writing,” Onyewuenyi told Hyperallergic. “Baldwin referred to his office as a ‘torture chamber.’ We’ve all encountered those moments of writers’ block, where the process of putting pen to paper feels like bloodletting. That process of torture for Baldwin was negotiated with these records.”

The playlist features classic albums from Nina Simone, Donny Hathaway, Aretha Franklin, Bill Withers and many more favorites. Listen below:

Read more about this project via Hyperallergic: https://www.openculture.com/2020/12/listen-to-james-baldwins-record-collection-in-a-478-track-32-hour-spotify-playlist.html