Hot Club de France Quintet featuring Django Reinhardt & Stephane Grappelli: Minor Swing

Sunday is jazz day and we’re going back almost 90 years for a classic composition by Django Reinhardt. Reinhardt was one of the first great jazz guitarists. His Hot Club de France Quintet featured Reinhardt on guitar and Stéphane Grappelli on violin. This recording also features Joseph Reinhardt & Eugène Vées on guitars and Louis Vola on bass. In other words, 3 guitars, a bass, and a violin. Jazz combos composed entirely of rhythm instruments are rare to find in modern jazz, but they are always the best. The tune is simple, but notice how much space and freedom is given to the soloists when the structure is so minimal. I have a personal connection to this tune, and if I could rule the world then music like this would be played live every Friday night to packed houses in cities across America.

To learn more about Django Reinhardt, check out his Wikipedia article.

To listen to all of the songs of the day, check out the Radio Faux Show Song of the Day playlist.

• Uncategorized