Any Django fans?
He's an amazing gypsy swing guitarist, I especially like his work with violinist Stephane Grappelli.

Twin Forces!...seriously...I don't know who you think you are, but if you're going to wander into these forums and insist on writing multiple well thought out posts on a wide variety of music and then have the temerity to invoke the likes of Gram Parsons and Django Reinhardt, I'm really just going to be forced to welcome you with open arms.

I'm often puzzled as to why Reinhardt isn't better known. "Nuages" alone should be enough to assure any musician immortality in the world of jazz. His recordings with Grappelli only cement the deal. Add to that the fact that he was a virtuoso guitarist who only had partial use of his fret hand and one would think his story would be more widely known outside of jazz circles.

I suspect the poor sound quality of so many of his best recordings has not helped matters over the years. As our own Peewee has wisely pointed out elsewhere, you can be a great fan and scholar of music and still find it hard to listen to music recorded under poor conditions no matter the genius behind it.

Thanks for sending me to my CD shelves in search of an old friend that I've not listened to for far too long.

klt, if you haven't already, you really need to check Django out.

Oh, and Twin Forces!...welcome to the forums...seriously.

Now Playing: "Minor Swing" Django Reinhardt The Indispensable Django Reinhardt (1949-1950) (RCA)

My introduction to Django was Sean Penn's movie, Sweet and Lowdown I think was the name. I have a one disc comp, but would love recommendations for an essential purchase...there's alot out there, and I'd like to narrow it down if possible.

Sweet and Lowdown was indeed the movie, Db.

Like a lot of the great, early jazz musicians, Django has received the JSP treatment, which means his essential early recordings are collected in a 5-CD set titled The Classic Early Recordings in Chronological Order. I've seen it retail for under $30. Like most JSP collections the packaging leaves much to be desired, but they have a real commitment to offering up the best possible sound quality, which is important for recordings of the 30s, and this collection is no exception.

The later recordings have much better sound quality. For those I like the collection I was listening to last night, The Indispensable Django Reinhardt, 1949-1950 from RCA. Those were some of the last recordings Django made with violinist Stephane Grappelli and they're wonderful.

Now Playing: "She's So" Royksopp Melody A.M.

Heh, thanks a lot for the warm welcome, LinnTate! I absolutely LOVE talking about music with people.

Sweet and Lowdown was great! I thought it was hilarious how whenever Sean Penn's character Emmett Ray saw Django, he would faint! I wish there were more movies about swing musicians from the 1930s!

Django is amazing! I also have a Tribute To Django album by Sarane and Matelo Ferret, a French album released in 89 I think. Good stuff.

For any of the folks who may be reading this that want to get their first taste of Django, pick up Djangology and Djangology 49. They're a great way to get your feet wet.

Just like everyone else on here, I love Django. His stuff with Grapelli is really great. It is sort of embarassing to think back on, but I first got into Django during the retro-swing revival of the 90s. No matter how cheesy and short lived that fad was, it was a lot of fun to go out and hear live bands playing their new version of swing or a night of classic recordings while dancing the whole time.

Love him, love him, love him. For a great start, I'd suggest the 5 disc box set - Hall of Fame on Past Perfect. It has almost everything - Swing Guitars disc, Improvisations disc (you can't help being moved by Rose Room, Chicago, Runnin' Wild), Stompin' at Decca, Echoes of Spain (flamenco) and the obvious Djangology disc.

Best Django 20 bucks can buy. ejazzlines.com has it in stock I guess.