The Classic Early Recordings in Chronological Order

I just recieve my box set today and I just have to say. What a value ! It is not just a good value it is probably the best set around for Django Reinhardt. I am looking forward to try their other box set for Django.

This is a great overview of Django and Grapelli's output. If you're going to own only one moderate-sized box set, this is an excellent choice. Diehard completists should move on up to Fremaux's Intégrale series.

Let's be honest - how many times have you read rave reviews of some supposed pre-war (or for that matter, post-war) virtuoso, bought a CD, only to be horribly disappointed to find the guitar-playing positively feeble after years of exposure to Hendrix, Satriani, etc? One can still respect those players of earlier generations for the contributions they made when guitar-playing was in its infancy, but all sentiments aside, judged objectively, for me and many others only one player of yesterday competes with later or present day virtuosos - Django Reinhardt. I say that just to reassure anyone who hasn't heard his playing that he really is up there with the greatest of all times, including modern-day players. He was truly a phenomenon. I've heard people raving over the primitive licks of some or other old bluesman, obviously enraptured by the historic value of the recordings more than the objective quality, the popping and scatching of those old 78s preventing any objective judgement. No danger of that here. If there's just one 'older' guitarist you listen to, it's got be Django, preferably the first 5 years or so of his career. And no guitarist can consider himself complete who hasn't had a close listen to his best work. His style is so idiosyncratic that it's unlikely you'll pick up much as far as technique goes, but for improvisational ideas, this whole set is a guitar treasure.

A mixture of various recordings, not all of them good. Still there are a few gems amongst them.

Django Reinhardt's music is a study in Jazz influence, improvisation and sheer exuberance. These recordings take you through his early years and maturity as an astonishing guitarist. If you understand guitar and what it took for him to play as he did, your appreciation for the technical virtuosity cannot but respond to his work.

The digital re-masterings themselves faithfully reproduce the original sounds, complete with all of the surface noise that attended those early 78's. For the purist this is no problem because the desire is to not have any of the music also filtered. For those who are into casual listening or background music while you drive, especially if you listen at high volume, you might find it a bit distracting.

One of the most delightful aspects of Reinhardt's group is Stephan Grappely's Jazz violin. We don't think of the violin as a jazz instrument very often, but these folks made it work wonderfully in group. Reinhardt shared the lead often with his band and it gives the music a diversity which enables sustained listening without boredom.

Good group, good selections, good music.