Compared to the rest of Africa, South Africa’s music scene is a greater cross-pollination of styles supported by a more established recording industry. Though it’s rich in regional styles, this vocal-based music bears strong European-American influences that are impossible to characterize as a whole. During the ’60s, singer Miriam Makeba and trumpeter Hugh Masekela put their country on the map with international hits “Pata Pata” and “Grazing in the Grass,” respectively. As this collection shows, South African music has always been noteworthy, regardless of how many are unknown outside their homeland. In addition to stalwarts Makeba (“Unhome”) and Masekela’s African-Western brewed jazz (“Chileshe”), Legends includes such icons as the Soul Brothers and Mahlathini & the Mahotella Queens who deliver strong vocals and prancing keyboards thrusting to an African groove. Also of worldly stature is the a cappella choral group Ladysmith Black Mambazo who are magnificent on “Abantwana Basethempeleni,” a traditional Zulu song sung by male laborers of the ’20s.

After that, the only formula is that there is none. Lucky Dube, the country’s most popular reggae performer, pulsates to a major vibe on “My Game.” West Nkosi skies impressively on pennywhistle on the instrumental “Mazuzu.” Interestingly, this pennywhistle brand of music, called township jive, was the rage in the ’50s before the great sax squeeze. There’s even a singer-songwriter element with the soft-voiced Vusi Mahlasela who finds his way eloquently up and down a guitar neck. Until now, it’s been easy to overlook the music of South Africa because of its sordid political history. Now here’s a second chance.