Central Africa, Stenco – label history & gallery

Stenco

LABEL HISTORY

Maurice Salomon Stein, a French businessman who had established a store for fashion clothes in Brazzaville and with business interests in a hotel and professional photography, founded the Stenco label in 1962. A great admirer of Congolese music he decided to open a bar Le Super Jazz and to establish a recording studio. The initial Stenco recordings were releases by EMI Pathé Marconi in France in the Pathé EG series and dates from 1962. All later recordings were releases on the Stenco label. The Pathé albums in the STX series – in part based on Stenco recordings (the other half was licensed from O.K. Jazz) – were released around 1965. Maurice Salomon Stein left the Congo in 1964 because of ill health. But it would appear as if the recording studio was in operation for another couple of years. The last discs on the Stenco label were released in 1966.

Special thanks to Jean-Jacques Stein for background information.

Discographical note
The Stenco catalogue numbers do not follow a normal numerical progression. E.g. Bantous N° 3 and Cercul Jazz N° 3 have an identical number, B 3103 and CJ 3103 respectively. Only the prefix in front of the number differs. Consequently, the re-created catalogue for releases on the Stenco label has been arranged by orchestra in the following order: Les Bantous – Cercul Jazz – Los Batchichas – Negro Band – Fiesta Negro – Afro-Succès.