Jazz attracted me because in it I found a formal perfection and instrumental precision that I admire in classical music, but which popular music doesn’t have.
~Django ReinhardtDjango Reinhardt was the first hugely influential jazz figure to emerge from Europe — and he remains the most influential European to this day…
~Richard S. Ginell (allmusic.com)
A tribute video from youtube – w/ video of our man:
Continue reading Jan 23: The late Django Reinhardt was born in 1910
| Bob Dylan: Blonde On Blonde (released May 16, 1966) (read more)The closest I ever got to the sound I hear in my mind was on individual bands in the Blonde on Blonde album. It’s that thin, that wild mercury sound. It’s metallic and bright gold, with whatever that conjures up. That’s my particular sound. ~Bob Dylan (to Ron Rosenbaum – Nov 1977) |
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| Bob Dylan & The Hawks: Gaumont Theatre, Sheffield, England 16 May 1966 (read more) |  |
| Beach Boys: Pet Sounds (May 16, 1966) (read more)[Pet Sounds] blew me out of the water. I love the album so much. I’ve just bought my kids each a copy of it for their education in life…I figure no one is educated musically ’til they’ve heard that album…it may be going overboard to say it’s the classic of the century…but to me, it certainly is a total, classic record that is unbeatable in many ways…I’ve often played Pet Sounds and cried. I played it to John [Lennon] so much that it would be difficult for him to escape the influence. ~Paul McCartney (recalling his first impressions of Pet Sounds) |
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| The Who released “Live At Leeds” May 16, 1970 (read more) Rolling Stone [Magazine] hailed it as the best ever live album, and they may still be right… ~Chris Jones (BBC – 2007) |
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| Jean “Django” Reinhardt; 23 January 1910 – 16 May 1953) was a pioneering virtuoso jazz guitarist and composer. Reinhardt is often regarded as one of the greatest guitar players of all time and is the first important European jazz musician who made major contributions to the development of the idiom. Using only the index and middle fingers of his left hand on his solos (his third and fourth fingers were paralyzed after an injury in a fire), Reinhardt invented an entirely new style of jazz guitar technique (sometimes called ‘hot’ jazz guitar) that has since become a living musical tradition within French gypsy culture. With violinist Stéphane Grappelli, he co-founded the Quintette du Hot Club de France, described by critic Thom Jurek as “one of the most original bands in the history of recorded jazz.” Reinhardt’s most popular compositions have become jazz standards, including “Minor Swing”, “Daphne”, “Belleville”, “Djangology”, “Swing ’42″, and “Nuages”. |  |
Spotify Playlist – |
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Jazz attracted me because in it I found a formal perfection and instrumental precision that I admire in classical music, but which popular music doesn’t have.
~Django ReinhardtDjango Reinhardt was the first hugely influential jazz figure to emerge from Europe — and he remains the most influential European to this day…
~Richard S. Ginell (allmusic.com)
a tribute video from youtube – w/ video of our man:
another one – w/ some fantastic audio clips:
| Birth name | Jean Reinhardt |
|---|---|
| Born | 23 January 1910, Liberchies, Pont-à-Celles, Belgium |
| Died | 16 May 1953 (aged 43) Fontainebleau, France |
| Genres | Jazz, Gypsy jazz, Romani music |
| Occupations | Guitarist, Composer |
| Instruments | Guitar, Electric guitar |
| Years active | 1928–1953 |
| Associated acts | Stéphane Grappelli, Quintette du Hot Club de France |
Jean “Django” Reinhardt (French pronunciation: [dʒɑ̃ɡo ʁenɑʁt]; 23 January 1910 – 16 May 1953) was a pioneering virtuoso jazz guitarist and composer.
Reinhardt is often regarded as one of the greatest guitar players of all time and regarded as the first important European jazz musician who made major contributions to the development of the idiom. Reinhardt invented an entirely new style of jazz guitar technique (sometimes called ‘hot’ jazz guitar) that has since become a living musical tradition within French gypsy culture. With violinist Stéphane Grappelli, he co-founded the Quintette du Hot Club de France, described by critic Thom Jurek as “one of the most original bands in the history of recorded jazz.” Reinhardt’s most popular compositions have become jazz standards, including “Minor Swing”, “Daphne”, “Belleville”, “Djangology”, “Swing ’42”, and “Nuages”.
Minor Swing – Django Reinhardt & Stéphane Grappelli:
Belleville:
Peche à la Mouche (1992) – recorded 1947-53
Legend has it that guitarist Django Reinhardt was at his absolute peak in the 1930s during his recordings with violinist Stephane Grappelli and that when he switched from acoustic to electric guitar after World War II, he lost a bit of his musical personality. Wrong on both counts. This double CD documents his Blue Star recordings of 1947 and 1953 and Reinhardt (on electric guitar) takes inventive boppish solos that put him at the top of the list of jazz guitarists who were active during the era.
~Scott Yanow (allmusic.com)
Continue reading Today the late Django Reinhardt was born in 1910 – 103 years ago