- Naxosdirect.ca

The World's Leading Classical Label Direct To You

Read reviews, listen to the music, and purchase the

Customer Service Toll Free 866.489.4152

Flash 9 required. Click to download.

Narrow your search
with our Music Browser

Classical Music

        Ballet
        Chamber Music
        Choral
        Concertos
        Film Music
        Instrumental
        Musicals
        Opera / Operetta
        Orchestral
        Vocal

Jazz

Jazz Contemporary
Jazz Icons

Wind Band

World

        Ballad
        Bhuddist
        Chinese Music
        Classical (World)
        Early Music (World)
        Folk
        Gamelan
        Gypsy
        Hindustani
        Jazz (World)
        Klezmer
        Vocal (World)
        World

Sale on select Chandos titles

Sale on select BBC Legends Items

Naxos Classics Clearance Sale

Sale on select Naxos American Classics

Sale on Charles Dickens DVD Box Set

Sale on select box sets

Clearance on Complete Beethoven Edition

Sale on the Jazz Icons Series

Clearance

Penguin Guide

200 Essential Recordings

Recently Released

Upcoming Releases

SACD

DVD

        Ballet DVD
        Classical Concert
        Classical Documentary
        Dance Documentary
        Opera DVD

Audio Books

        Anthologies / Collections
        Arts
        Biographies
        Children's Classics
        Classic Fiction
        Great Epics and Tales
        History
        Junior Classic Fiction
        Junior History
        Literature
        Music Biographies
        Music Education
        Non-Fiction
        Philosophy
        Plays - Others
        Plays - Shakespeare
        Poetry
        Religion
        Samplers
        Sports
        Wine Guide

NaxosDirect Podcasts

Video Librarian Reviews

Labels

Naxos Label

        Naxos American Classics
        Naxos Best Of...
        Naxos Box Sets
        Naxos Cinema Classics
        Naxos Classics
        Naxos DVD
        Naxos DVD-Audio
        Naxos International
        Naxos Jazz
        Naxos Limited Edition
        Naxos Milken Archives
        Naxos Night Music
        Naxos Opera
        Naxos Orchestral
        Naxos Special Release
        Naxos Wind Band Classics
        Naxos World

Composers

Conductors

Ensembles

Orchestras

Choirs

Artists

Instruments

Producers

Home

Jazz

Jazz Icons

$0.00

This item is not currently available.

This item is currently out of print.

Link to this Link to this page

DJANGO REINHARDT Vol.5 'H.C.Q.Strut' Original Recordings 1938-1939 Classic recordings by The Quintet of the Hot Club of France By mid-1938, the...

Read more about this recording

DJANGO REINHARDT Vol.5

'H.C.Q.Strut' Original Recordings 1938-1939

Classic recordings by The Quintet of the Hot Club of France

By mid-1938, the Quintet of the Hot Club of France was not only the top jazz band in Europe but one of the most exciting music groups in the world. Although only fifteen months away from breaking up due to circumstances way beyond their control, guitarist Django Reinhardt and violinist Stephane Grappelli were at the height of their musical partnership.

Jean Baptiste "Django" Reinhardt was born 23 January 1910 in Liverchies, Belgium. A member of a gypsy family that traveled all over Europe, Reinhardt grew up hearing music (mostly traditional gypsy melodies) and early on took up the banjo. He had a natural musical ability, began doubling on guitar, and played dance and folk music in establishments in France. But a major tragedy almost finished his career before it had started. While he was asleep one night in his caravan, a fire erupted and Django was seriously burned, resulting in two of the fingers on his left hand becoming permanently unusable. Doctors in a hospital suggested amputating his hand altogether, but luckily some friends snuck him out one night and he was able to recover by himself. Reinhardt spent all his time relearning the guitar, figuring out how to finger chords with just two fingers and a thumb, and developing a completely new style. Around this time he discovered jazz and the joy of improvising through the records of Louis Armstrong.

By 1930 Reinhardt was back to playing music, and the following year he met Stephane Grappelli when they were both hired to play in the same orchestra. The violinist was almost exactly two years older (being born 26 January 1908 in Paris) and a major contrast to Django in that he was well schooled, sophisticated and reliable. However both musicians shared a love for performing and for swinging jazz. Grappelli had been a professional musician since 1923 and had gained plenty of experience in dance bands before meeting up with the gypsy guitarist.

In 1933 Reinhardt and Grappelli crossed paths for the second time and a jam session backstage made them notice their special musical chemistry. Soon they were co-leading the all-string Quintet Of The Hot Club Of France which consisted of Stephane's violin, Django's acoustic guitar, two rhythm guitarists and a bassist. It quickly became obvious to listeners that Reinhardt was the world's best jazz guitarist and that Grappelli was on a par with Joe Venuti, the pacesetting jazz violinist.

This compilation has the most rewarding recordings by Reinhardt and Grappelli from the last period of the original Quintet of the Hot Club Of France. Though there had been musical magic from the time of the group's first recordings in late 1934, after three and a half years together, the comfort level was so high that by June 1938 the musicians were constantly challenging each other. The Reinhardt/Grappelli original Swing From Paris starts off the programme with an advanced line that almost sounds like bebop, as does the violinist's opening break. The next six selections were recorded during the Quintet's late-summer visit to England. The Flat Foot Floogee had become a big novelty hit when guitarist-singer Slim Gaillard recorded it with bassist Slam Stewart six months earlier. Django and Stephane ignore the novelty elements and simply swing the tune. Lambeth Walk was both a walking dance and a charming melody from the 1937 British musical Me And My Gal. The co-leaders effectively take turns being the lead voice throughout this delightful performance.

Both Reinhardt and Grappelli had opportunities to lead their own record dates in the 1930s, usually with groups smaller than the Quintet. Seven of the guitarist's selections are on this set including the next four numbers, three of which have Grappelli accompanying Reinhardt on what was his first instrument, the piano. Irving Berlin's I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm would have its most famous recording a few years later by Les Brown's orchestra in a rather explosive arrangement. In contrast, Django's rendition is lyrical, at least until the tempo doubles for the last chorus. Please Be Kind is associated with Benny Goodman, who recorded the love song with Martha Tilton's vocal in early 1938, but that version is quite straight compared to Reinhardt's tour-de-force. Louise is still owned by the legendary Maurice Chevalier but it is difficult not to enjoy Django's variations, especially when he plays the melody over minor chords for a half-chorus. For Improvisation, Reinhardt is heard by himself, mostly playing chords in a spontaneous piece that holds up well.

The full Quintet returns for the first of its five 1939 sessions. The romping Reinhart/Grappelli piece Hungaria bears more than a passing resemblance to "Bye Bye Blues" and features the band getting hot. Jeepers Creepers is slightly more relaxed with Django stretching himself. He makes every note count and sounds so effortless that it leads to one wondering why no other guitarist of the period (at least until Charlie Christian emerged later in the year) was on his level. My Melancholy Baby, long maligned as the No.1 song requested by drunks, is actually a superior tune as the Quintet shows in swinging fashion. The romantic Time On My Hands has Grappelli caressing the melody and Reinhardt uplifting the tune with his fresh ideas and inspired accompaniment of the violinist. Django's Twelfth Night is one of his better originals and it cooks from start to finish. Tea For Two is a song that would remain in Grappelli's repertoire for the next six decades with this interpretation being quite loving.

On 30 June 1939, Django Reinhardt recorded seven selections in several different settings, five of which are included here. The Quintet plays the guitarist's Stockholm which sounds quite modern for the period in its chord voicings. Grappelli and rhythm guitarist Pierre Feret sit out for a medium-tempo I'll See You In My Dreams, which is entirely a showcase for Reinhardt's creativity with a trio. On the introspective Echoes Of Spain, Django's unaccompanied guitar hints at what he could have accomplished had he chosen to play classical music instead of jazz. The Quintet returns for a particularly infectious reading of Noel Coward's The Younger Generation and Reinhardt plays another quiet but sophisticated guitar solo on his Naguine.

By the time the Quintet of the Hot Club of France gathered in a London recording studio on 25 August 1939, World War II was under way. The Man I Love is quite unusual for the Quintet since the bulk of this performance has Grappelli switching to piano, dueting with Reinhardt before the other members of the group join in during the last chorus. Concluding both this reissue and the recorded legacy of the classic band is H.C.Q.Strut, an original similar to "Jeepers Creepers" that offers listeners one last chance to hear the Grappelli-Reinhardt musical partnership in its early period.

Shortly after the record date, Django Reinhardt spontaneously decided to return home to France while Stephane Grappelli opted to remain in England. They would not see each other or record together again for seven years. Both would have many major musical adventures in their future but they will always be most famous for their accomplishments with the Quintet of the Hot Club of France.

Scott Yanow

- author of eight jazz books including Swing, Jazz On Record 1917-76, Classic Jazz and Trumpet Kings

Disc 1

Swing from Paris

Your name:
Your email:
Friend's Name:
Friend's Email:
Write a personalized message:

Your name:
Rating:
Title:
Review: