DJANGO REINHARDT – 1937-1938 | The Classics Chronological Series – 777 (1994) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Here's another in a long line of chronological Reinhardt discs on the Classics label. This time up, more from the Quintet of the Hot Club of France, featuring Reinhardt cohort and violinist Stephane Grappelli, guitarist Roger Chaput, and bassist Louis Vola. Having already cut many sides for the Ultraphone and HMV labels, Reinhardt and company were now recording for Decca; most of these performances were taped in London. Highlights include such Reinhardt and Grappelli staples as "Daphné," "Souvenirs," and "Paris Swing," not to mention fine renditions of "Honeysuckle Rose" and "Sweet Georgia Brown." There are also cuts spotlighting French harmonica great Larry Adler and trumpeter Philippe Brun. With many Reinhardt collections to choose from, this somewhat below-par addition to the Classics series is probably best left to completists. Stephen Cook       Tracklist + Credits :

DJANGO REINHARDT – 1938-1939 | The Classics Chronological Series – 793 (1994) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Packed with three beautiful Reinhardt/Grappelli guitar/piano duets, one gorgeous unaccompanied guitar improvisation, 15 solid Quintet sides, and the legendary Rex Stewart "Feetwarmers" session of April 5, 1939, this excellent volume of chronologically reissued Django Reinhardt recordings occupies a position somewhere between "magnificent" and "essential." After a vigorous jam on "Them There Eyes" and a pleasantly swung "Three Little Words," intimations of developing modernity suddenly erupt during "Appel Direct," also known as "Appel Indirect" or "Direct Appeal." Django delivers some downright devilish picking during this brisk exercise in dexterity. Crossing the Channel for a return trip to England, Django and Stéphane's Quintette -- now billed as the "Quintet" on British and American Decca records -- waxed three sides on the 30th of August 1938. The French artists' vigilance and unwavering allegiance to Afro-American music is clearly spelled out in their choice of material. Slim Gaillard and Slam Stewart had recorded possibly their most famous song, "Flat Foot Floogie," in February of 1938. Fats Waller & His Continental Rhythm waxed their four-alarm version in London a few months later on August 28, and the Quintet's mellower rendering, with an arresting solo guitar intro, was set down for posterity two days later, along with "Lambeth Walk," which had been recorded by Duke Ellington on August 9th. Django's unaccompanied "Improvisation No. 2" is a sequel to a similarly striking experiment dating from April of 1937. Back in Paris in March of 1939, the Quintet waxed nine more choice sides, taking on a whole stretch of Tin Pan Alley while presenting various compositions of their own devising. But the real treasure in this package lies among the final five tracks. Rex Stewart, Barney Bigard, and bassist Billy Taylor collaborated with Monsieur Reinhardt on five exquisite performances that rate among the finest in the entire "Djangologie." The combination of three seasoned Ellingtonians and one gypsy jazz genius is a rare treat not to be missed. arwulf arwulf     Tracklist :

DJANGO REINHARDT – 1942-1943 | The Classics Chronological Series – 905 (1996) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

This is Django Reinhardt during the war years, without the services of perennial partner Stephane Grappelli and leading a large band in Paris (Grappelli would return for stretches after the war). Even sans his friend's simpatico violin, Reinhardt is still impressive on these 21 quality sides, picking nicely throughout. Heavy on his own material, set highlights include a two-part "Improvisation No. 3," "Belleville," and "Douce Ambiance." The sound remains anchored in Reinhardt's earlier Hot Club days of the late '30s, touched by a bluesier-than-normal strain and some hardened swing. A nice bet for dedicated listeners. Stephen Cook      Tracklist :

DJANGO REINHARDT – 1947 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1001 (1998) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

After being separated by the Second World War for more than five years, Django Reinhardt and Stéphane Grappelli recorded eight sides together in London on January 31 and February 1, 1946. Their next shared studio recording date occurred in Paris on May 26, 1947, resulting in the five decidedly modernistic tracks that open this volume of the Classics Django Reinhardt chronology. Django had clearly evolved at a rate commensurate with the rapid evolution of jazz itself from 1939 to 1947. His solos reveal a musical consciousness well beyond where he had been only a few years earlier. Stéphane, of course, had also experienced his own sort of artistic development. Yet the contrast between the two is noticeable and it would take the violinist many years to absorb and fully digest what he was now experiencing. On April 16, 1947, Django recorded a "Minor Blues" with the 12-piece band that had been working with him at the Boef sur le Toit, a Parisian nightclub where his own paintings -- a sensual series of landscapes and nudes -- were on display. He then led a reconstituted Quintet of the Hot Club of France, featuring clarinet/alto saxophonist Michel de Villers, through four pleasant musical episodes intended to be used as a soundtrack for La Fleur de l'Age, a film by Marçel Carne that unfortunately never reached completion. Note that this group's "Clair de Lune" is not the famous movement from Claude Debussy's Suite Bergamasque, but something just as lovely. Django's next opportunity to make records in a studio occurred in Brussels on May 21st during a tour of Belgium. The six sides cut on that day and subsequently released on the Decca label represent Reinhardt's very first recordings using an electric guitar. They also herald the return of master clarinetist Hubert Rostaing, who made great records with Reinhardt's groups during the year 1940 and reappears sporadically in the Django discography like a will o' the wisp throughout most of the decade. This excellent clarinetist was in the same league as Marshall Royal, Aaron Sachs, Hank D'Amico, or perhaps most of all Buddy DeFranco. Rostaing recorded extensively with Django during the year 1947, and their phonographic collaborations would continue until another Belgian tour in November of 1948. Everything included on this disc qualifies as jazz of the very highest order. There's bebop running through these sessions like quicksilver, and Reinhardt had begun to experiment with the quirks and expanded potentials of the electrified guitar. "Porto Cabello" is smoky, almost a tango. "Blues for Barclay," dedicated to Blue Star record label founders Eddie and Nicole Barclay, feels like a spontaneous jam session. Even Edvard Grieg's Danse Norvegienne, which sounded almost silly when they tried it on in 1940, comes across in its 1947 incarnation as effortlessly hip. arwulf arwulf           Tracklist + Credits :

DJANGO REINHARDT – 1947, Vol. 2 | The Classics Chronological Series – 1046 (1999) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The combination of an early modern jazz clarinet and the Quintet of the Hot Club of France creates a special kind of chemistry that occurs periodically throughout Django Reinhardt's recorded works. This volume in the Classics Reinhardt chronology contains an unusually high concentration of clarinetists, most notably the great Hubert Rostaing. Given his warm, personable timbre and unusual dexterity, it is surprising that more jazz lovers are not aware of this remarkable musician. The previous Django Reinhardt installment in the Classics chronology, 1947, contained no less than 13 tracks documenting the Rostaing/Reinhardt collaboration. 1947, Vol. 2 (Classics 1046) forks over 15 more examples of their best work together, along with two tracks featuring clarinetist Maurice Meunier and one greasy strut -- "Douce Ambiance" -- involving clarinetist Gerard Leveque. Reinhardt, heard playing electric guitar on all but three of the 20 tracks, sounds as lyrical and inventive as ever. "Brazil," unlike most other peoples' renditions, uses hardly any percussion, zeroing in on the melody first and foremost. It is interesting to hear Reinhardt's interpretation of "Topsy," a jam structure invented by Count Basie and Eddie Durham, who pioneered the newfangled electrified guitar back in 1938. "Gypsy With a Song" is Reinhardt's teasing response to Duke Ellington's beautiful composition "Gypsy Without a Song." The disc finishes off with two fine selections from a Quintet session involving Stéphane Grappelli. The rest of the material recorded on that date -- November 14, 1947 -- can be found on Classics 1317, which chronicles the years 1947-1951. arwulf arwulf    Tracklist + Credits :