Wow! Huge selection is a huge dilemma

JAMF

Wow, Michael. Thanks for getting so much hard-to-find-in-the-US gypsy music together on 1 site. :shock:

I'm really intrigued by a number of artists I've never heard of before. But I'm finding very little information on them. So, I have no indication of whether to "invest" or not.

I wonder if there's some kind of rating and comments function the board could facilitate. The ratings and comments could appear next to each title. That way people "in the know" could enlighten and help guide people like me to new and exciting artists.

Just a thought/request.

JAMF

MichaelHorowitz

I don't think we'll be able to have a review function on the shopping cart. It would take a lot of labor and $ to add a complicated feature like that. That's why I have the CD review section on the forum. So...start reviewing!

The two rare CDs I'm really blown away by right now are:

1) Philippe Nedjar: Shadow of Your Smile

Nedjar plays a Favino with a Stimer. I'm not the biggest Stimer fan, but he sounds great. He's been around the Paris scene since at least the 70s (Ted can provide more bio). A perfect hybrid of Django tradition and modern jazz. He's also into the Unaccompanied Django pieces. He does Improv. # 5 and the entire solo Nuages arrangement. Definitely worth checking out, especially if you're sick of the speed demon approach of the modern players. Nedjar is anything but that....very tasty and true jazz musician.

2) Jean-Yves Dubanton and Jean-Claude Laudat: Mon pote le Gitan

What can I say? All medium tempo and slow tunes. Lots of vocals and accordion. So much taste. Guitar solos that sound great and are actually playable by mere mortals! And best of all, it's Gypsy jazz that your wife or girlfriend will actually like!


There'll be a lot more CDs coming in the future. I add titles almost every day.

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CalebFSU

If I can make a suggestion. Do yourselves a favor and pick up a copy of Ninine Garcia's cd. Probably one of the best disc's I have bought in a long long time. Great playing, original tunes really good stuff. It is too bad I am can't get to Paris anytime soon to see him, but I hope I can talk someone into recording his set in Samois on video. Shows what you can do with an epiphone archtop and some heavy Flatwounds.

I also want to second Michael's recomendation of Phillipe Nedjar's disc. Also very good playing. A great Jazz album.

P.S. Michael any word on the Trio Reinhardt disc?

MichaelHorowitz

CalebFSU wrote:

I

P.S. Michael any word on the Trio Reinhardt disc?

Working on it.....

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JAMF

Very cool. Those are the kind of off-the-beaten-path suggestions I'm looking for.

I see the new topic function lets you do a poll. Maybe we could poll for everyone's obscure favorites. People could add their comments to the poll.

Charlie Ayers

Is the N. Garcia playing all electric?

Thanks,
Charlie

CalebFSU

I am pretty shure that he is playing his Epi Joe Pass on all the tunes, although he is pictured in the inside with a Sel\Mac. Maybe someone knows definitively. I will say this his tone is even throughout the album (which could have been done in the studio) all the songs sound like they were done with the same guitar.

stubla

I hope you guys over there realise how lucky you are to have such a great selection at your fingertips--theres no where like it in the UK....:-(

Anyway--i'd also add the 2 Rodolphe Raffalli cds to a must have list
Hes a poet of the guitar and has extraordinary knowledge,amazing soul and fresh and immaculate repertoire.
...hey....and he isn't even a gypsy!
Stu

MichaelHorowitz

Yes, Raffalli is a must have. Again, an anti-speed player. Very tasteful and very European (lots of waltzes and other euro-ethnic repertoire.)

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stubla

Michael Horowitz wrote:

Yes, Raffalli is a must have. Again, an anti-speed player. Very tasteful and very European (lots of waltzes and other euro-ethnic repertoire.)

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Yes but i think you really mean 'anti speed for speeds sake' yes Michael?
Nothing wrong with speed if its at the service of the music--i think we all agree with that!
Whats great about Raffalli is the sheer breadth of his music making
He played for sometime in Paris with an amazing argentine guitarist who sadly died young --Martin Torres("la guitare de Martin Torres--Arion label 1977).Raffalli's 2nd superb cd has an incredibly moving version of one of the greatest argentine folklore songs "Alfonsina y el Mar".

I also heard him play some mean western swing in Samois last year!
I first met him in about 1996--he was playing some dive(maybe someone can remind me what it was called) near the Pompidou centre--it had a theatre upstairs and the basement was where Rodolphe played--with the great Serge Camps on rhythm gtr
Serge was playing a clapped out classical and got the most amazing pompe and tone out of it(i picked it up and played it--i got about half the volume Serge got!!)--there were about 8 people in the audience!
Rodolphe is a lovely guy as well.
Stu

MichaelHorowitz

Michael Horowitz wrote:

Yes, Raffalli is a must have. Again, an anti-speed player. Very tasteful and very European (lots of waltzes and other euro-ethnic repertoire.)

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stubla wrote:

Yes but i think you really mean 'anti speed for speeds sake' yes Michael?
Nothing wrong with speed if its at the service of the music--i think we all agree with that!

No, I love fast playing. You can't achieve that frenetic, ecstatic emotional state any other way. But, there are other things about music I enjoy as well. A nice melody, played with good phrasing and tone can say so much. Raffali seems to rely more on that approach. Also, he's Corsican so he's got that Mediterranean thing going on,

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