DJANGO FESTIVAL ALLSTARS 2012: Live at Birdland
Three’s a Crowd, 2013

GYPSY SWING – The exuberant, chunky, guitar-and-violin led brand of swing music pioneered by Django Reinhardt in the Paris cafés of the 1930s is alive and well. Several of the genre’s top practitioners perform in this live set from the annual Django Festival in New York, playing straight-up gypsy swing but also bringing in Parisian musette, Balkan dance, Brazilian rhythm and other global flavors. Some very nice stuff.

Fo’s Picks: 1, 3, 7, 9, 10, 12, 13

1. 3:29 – upbeat accordion kicks off a chunky stomp and has a great solo
2. 3:37 – sweet violin-led ballad, sways gently
3. 4:06 – exotic solo violin sets up an upbeat bouncy Balkan-style tune
4. 6:23 – alto saxophone leads a lazy take on Django’s classic ballad
5. 3:33 – lightly swinging violin & guitar dance over strings
6. 5:20 – gently funky feel, like a road tune from a ’70s movie
7. 5:48 – accordina (mouth organ) ballad: relaxed and daydreamy
8. 5:40 – standard swings gently, guitar & violin solos go up high
9. 4:19 – uptempo fun for violin & accordion, based on “Caravan”
10. 3:28 – slinky, mysterious gypsy tune: emotive violin & guitar
11. 4:01 – lightly funky bounce: fine guitar solo in the middle
12. 3:17 – breezy waltz with a strong swing: accordion/guitar fly merrily
13. 5:03 – wheee! a very happy swing romp, great solos all around
14. 4:21 – catchy, jaunty retro-modern melody with a happy, thumping rhythm
15. 5:51 – well-known tune: gypsy-meets-bossanova sound, cello mellows it

[ Fo ] - 9 June 2013