Django Reinhardt and the Illustrated History of Gypsy Jazz [Paperback]

Michael Dregni (Author), Alain Antonietto (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1, 2006

Django Reinhardt was perhaps the greatest guitarist to ever live. A Gypsy who made his jazz guitar speak with a human voice, he was dashing, charismatic, childish . . . and doomed to die young after creating a legacy of Gypsy Jazz that remains vibrant today.
 
Gypsy Jazz is a music both joyous and sad, timeless and modern. It was born from a marriage of Louis Armstrong’s trumpet with the anguished sound of Romany violin and the fire of flamenco guitar. Created amidst the glamour of Jazz Age Paris and reaching a peak during the horrors of World War II, Gypsy Jazz gave a voice to a dispossessed people. Today, Gypsy Jazz is more popular than ever. It has a legacy as strong as the Cuban sounds of the Buena Vista Social Club, the blues of B. B. King, or the R&B of Ray Charles.
 
Django Reinhardt and the Illustrated History of Gypsy Jazz is a stylish collection of more than two hundred illustrations telling Django’s story and the history of Gypsy jazz. Running through the Paris Jazz Age of the 1920s to the current worldwide renaissance of Gypsy jazz bands (including Django’s grandsons, who are playing today), the images include rare archival photographs, modern images, posters, programs, tickets, guitars, memorabilia, paintings, and more.

Editorial Reviews

Review

This is more than just Django's history - it is the fable of gypsy jazz and the unique players in it. There are extraordinary photographs, posters, and album covers all contained here. --Curled Up With A Good Book, February 2009

This is a marvel of a book to look at, capturing not just Reinhardt and his fellow musicians... but a forgotten Europe...A book to be treasured, even by music lovers who aren't Django Reinhardt aficionados. --Songlines Book Review in January/February 2010 Issue

About the Author

Michael Dregni is the author of the New York Times bestseller Django: The Life and Music of a Gypsy Legend. He's also a guitarist struggling to play Django's music. A regular contributor to Vintage Guitar magazine, Dregni's writing has also appeared in Guitar Player and Acoustic Guitar magazines, as well as The Utne Reader and others. Alain Antonietto is the world's pioneering historian of jazz tsigane. He is the author of numerous articles on Romany music, a long-time contributor to La Revue Etudes Tsiganes, and producer of albums collecting rare Gypsy music. He is also the co-author of Django Reinhardt: Un géant sur son nuage and Django Reinhardt: Rythmes futurs.

Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Speck Press (November 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 193310810X
• ISBN-13: 978-1933108100
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 8.9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #596,613 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The lively text entertains as thoroughly as it enlightens, December 10, 2006

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Django Reinhardt and the Illustrated History of Gypsy Jazz (Paperback)

Gorgeously illustrated with black-and-white and color photographs and poster representations on almost every page, Django Reinhardt and the Illustrated History of Gypsy Jazz is the true story of a legendary figure in Gypsy Jazz, a music style that arose in the Jazz Age of the 1920's by blending the Romany violin and flamenco guitar with the trumpet and other jazz instruments. Django Reinhardt and the Illustrated History of Gypsy Jazz traces the style's evolution and the career of the man who embodied it through the horrors of World War II, when the Nazis severely persecuted the Gypsies in Europe, and onward to Gypsy Jazz's rhythm-and-blues legacy for the modern day. The lively text entertains as thoroughly as it enlightens, in this enthusiastically recommended volume for casual readers and music history buffs.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book!!, March 11, 2007

By 

Rose Marie Wojcik - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Django Reinhardt and the Illustrated History of Gypsy Jazz (Paperback)

This is very well done, and has some interesting stuff that I haven't seen in other books about Django. I especially like all the pictures and additional work that went into it to make it more visually appealing and interesting to read!!