1. Avalon
2. Star Dust
3. Smoke Rings
4. Rosetta
5. I’se A Muggin’
6. Georgia On My Mind
7. Nagasaki
8. Crazy Rhythm
9. Bugle Call Rag
10. Sweet Sue, Just You
11. Japanese Sandman
12. Eddie’s Blues
13. Sweet Georgia Brown
14. Oh! Lady Be Good
15. Dinah
16. Daphne
17. Baby Won’t You Please Come Home
18. Big Boy Blues
19. Bill Coleman Blues
20. Swing Guitars
Track 1: Coleman Hawkins (tenor), with the
Michel Warlop Orchestra:
Arthur Briggs, Noel Chiboust, Pierre Allier
(trumpets); Guy Paquinet
(trombone); Andre Ekyan, Charles Lisee (altos);
Alix Combelle (tenor);
Stephane Grappelli (piano); Django Reinhardt
(guitar); Eugene
d’Hellemmes (bass); Maurice Chailoux (drums)
Track 2: Coleman Hawkins (tenor); Stephane
Grappelli (piano); Django
Reinhardt (guitar); Eugene d’Hellemmes (bass);
Maurice Chailoux (drums)
Track 3: Quintette du Hot Club de France:
Django Reinhardt (guitar);
Stephane Grappelli (violin); Roger Chaput,
Joseph Reinhardt (guitars);
Louis Vola (bass); Athur Briggs, Alphonse
Cox, Pierre Allier
(trumpets); Eugene d’Hellemes (trombone)
Track 4: Garnet Clark and His Hot Clubs Four:
Garnet Clark (piano);
Bill Coleman (trumpet); George Johnson (clarinet);
Django Reinhardt
(guitar); June Cole (bass)
Track 5: Quintet du Hot Club de France: Django
Reinhardt (guitar);
Stephane Grappelli (violin); Joseph Reinhardt,
Pierre Feret (guitars);
Lucien Simeons (bass); Freddy Taylor (vocals)
Tracks 6 and 7: Quintet du Hot Club de France:
Django Reinhardt
(guitar); Stephane Grappelli (violin); Joseph
Reinhardt, Pierre Ferret
(guitars); Louis Vola (bass); Freddie Taylor
(vocals)
Track 8: Coleman Hawkins and His All-Star
Jam Band: Coleman Hawkins,
Alix Combelle (tenors); Barry Carter, Andre
Ekyan (altos); Stephane
Grappelli (piano); Django Reinhardt (guitar);
Eugene d’Hellemmes
(bass); Tommy Benford (drums)
Track 9: Dicky Wells and His Orchestra: Dicky
Wells (trombone); Bill
Coleman, Bill Dillard, Shad Collins (trumpets);
Django Reinhardt
(guitar); Richard Fullbright (bass); Bill
Beason (drums)
Tracks 10 and 11: Dicky Wells and His Orchestra:
Dicky Wells
(trombone); Bill Coleman (trumpet); Django
Reinhardt (guitar); Richard
Fullbright (bass); Bill Beason (drums)
Track 12: Eddie South (violin); Django Reinhardt
(guitar)
Track 13: Eddie South (violin); Wilson Myers
(bass)
Track 14: Eddie South, Stephane Grapelli,
Michael Warlop (violins);
Django Reinhardt, Roger Chaput (guitars);
Wilson Myers (bass)
Tracks 15 and 16: Eddie South, Stephane Grappelli
(violins); Django
Reinhardt, Roger Chaput (guitars); Wilson
Myers (bass)
Tracks 17, 18 and 20: Bill Coleman and His
Orchestra: Bill Coleman
(trumpet); Christian Wagner (clarinet, alto);
Frank ‘Big Boy’ Goudie
(clarinet, tenor); Emile Stern (piano); Django
Reinhardt (guitar);
Lucien Simoens (bass); Jerry Mango (drums)
Track 19: Bill Coleman (trumpet); Django Reinhardt
(guitar)
It is a fact universally acknowledged
that illiterate gypsies with paralysed hands
rarely succeed as jazz guitarists. Reinhardt,
however, proved the exception, surmounting
such obstacles with admirable focus and paving
an awesome reputation for himself; by the
1930s, after Eddie Lang’s death, he was widely
considered the finest in his field. Combining
his talents with those of Grappelli, a world-renowned
violinist, Reinhardt’s appeal was literally
magnetic, attracting the leading musicians
in jazz. In the few years covered on Americans
in Paris, Reinhardt recorded with many of
the greats - and flourished like never before
in their presence.
Just as Reinhardt was king
of the guitar, so Coleman Hawkins was considered
the leader when it came to the tenor sax;
and listening to the first two tracks of this
collection, it’s easy to see why this should
be the case. Exuberant and highly charismatic
in style, Hawkins’s playing is truly unique
and filled with a love for the music that
seeps through every note. The accompaniment
of Michel Warlop’s orchestra is likewise second
to none, with Reinhardt’s frantic and daring
rhythms driving the music fearlessly forward.
The playfulness, inventiveness and breathtaking
precision for which the guitarist became renowned
are evident here in abundance. In ‘Stardust’,
particularly, it is also confirmed that Reinhardt
was well ahead of his time; unlike many musicians
of this era, he refuses to settle for comfortable
monotony, preferring instead to seek expression
through constant and varied experiment.
In saying this, much of the
collection’s appeal arises from the simple,
light-hearted joy that makes its way on to
many of the tracks - particularly the work
with Freddie Taylor. Although ‘I’se a Muggin’
doesn’t break any boundaries - and is, it
could be argued, bordering on silly - its
catchy melody and humorous character leave
the listener with a powerful impression. And
in such warm and witty numbers, Reinhardt
and Grapelli show real connection, building
on each other’s phrasing and themes, expertly
raising the intensity level. The astonishing
empathy between the two musicians - and indeed
within the group as a whole - is illustrated
best at the end of the tune, when they take
it in turns to punctuate the chorus with a
series of skilfully discordant fills that
perfectly capture the mood of the piece.
The songs recorded with Dicky
Wells admittedly fail to capture such charisma.
Making up for this lack, however, is the technical
brilliance displayed on them. Adopting a traditional
big band style, ‘Bugle Call Rag’ is tight
and precise, and richly textured in arrangement.
Although Reinhardt’s role is comparatively
small, and predominately rhythm-orientated,
the tune also gives us the perfect example
of his ‘attacking’ chordal style - a trait
more commonly associated with modern jazz
guitarists than with those of the 1930s. Even
when part of the rhythm section, Reinhardt
adds excitement, and brings a new life to
songs like this with his jovial spontaneity.
Although his guitar may not
have been loud, this style of his gave Reinhardt
a presence that has rarely been equalled since.
Combining rhythm with virtuosity, mixing styles
and textures, his music possesses a substance
and force that make it endlessly fascinating.
Hence, when we listen to ‘Eddie’s Blues’ -
a duet with violinist, Eddie South - we get
the the sense of total completion we would
only expect from larger band. Reinhardt’s
fellow musicians, indeed, seem more than aware
of this extraordinary skill, and in the case
of Bill Coleman’s orchestra - with whom last
three tracks here are recorded - they are
utterly prepared to showcase it. ‘Big Boy’s
Blues’ is a striking example; everything gradually
dies down to a hush, leaving only a steady,
unintrusive drumbeat to back up Reinhardt’s
solo. Given full licence to follow his instincts,
musical magic naturally ensues.
Americans in Paris appeals
on many levels: as a portrait of the jazz
scene’s development in Europe; as a best-of-the-1930s
compilation; as a timeline of Reinhardt’s
musical development, traced through various
leading bands... But you simply don’t need
to be an expert in jazz to enjoy this collection
to its fullest; the ability to smile, tap
your feet and appreciate a catchy riff or
two should more than suffice in most cases.
Robert Gibson
CD Reviews
Naxos Jazz Legends, 8.120734
