Sunday is jazz day. I haven’t added to my Intro to Jazz Series in a while so I thought it was about time to present something new for inclusion. This post won’t be as long as some of my other Intro to Jazz entries but it is just as important. Guitarist Django Reinhardt is probably one of the most important musicians you have never heard. Along with violinist Stephane Grappelli and the Hot Club of France Quintet, Reinhardt’s version of jazz was influential in the sound of jazz and rock and roll. Reinhardt died tragically from a sudden brain hemorrhage at the age of 43 in 1953, and his most important recordings were made in the 1930s and 40s, so his music is about as old as music can get and still be heard today. His music is now known as Gypsy Jazz. The most prominent features are a focus on guitar as the lead instrument (he was one of the first musicians to use guitar as a solo instrument in jazz) and the lack of percussion. The group was made up of three guitars, bass, and violin. For this reason, this is not jazz like any you have heard before. The lack of percussion and horns requires that the rhythm guitarists swing the shit out of the tunes, and there is nothing like that sound. If you think that you don’t like jazz, listen to these tunes I have selected and see if they don’t change your mind.
You can read Reinhardt’s wiki article to learn more.
The Radio Faux Show 