Soul Food on Wax: How R&B and Jazz Have Preserved Black Food Culture

FROM TIME IMMEMORIAL, MUSIC HAS BEEN A REFLECTION OF BLACK SPIRITUAL, POLITICAL, AND CULTURAL LIFE.

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Nowhere is the relationship between music and our everyday lived experiences more

evident than in the songs dedicated to soul food and Black food culture. A rich account of our cooking and food traditions can be found in the liner notes of jazz, R&B, funk, and hip-hop records. This playlist traces the evolution of Black food culture as it has been presented and celebrated through our music.

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Songs like Louis Jordan and the Tympany Five’s “Saturday Night Fish Fry”, Horace Silver’s

“Home Cookin’” and Goodie Mob’s “Soul Food” are not just detailed celebrations of the richness

of Black food culture. These songs are reminders of the role that food and music play in the

liberatory struggle of Black people everywhere. We have and will continue to use music and

food for healing and bonding, and as complements to our social and political work. This rich,

living record of our history and food culture endures today, and it can be found by flipping

through a choice stack of old-school records.