Interesting Django Recordings and Lost Footage?

spatzo

Babik gave Django's Epiphone to Fred Sharp

Teddy Dupont

I doubt very much that "Jazz Hot" was made privately. It was either financed by the Lew Grade organisation (highly unlikely) or Decca (the Quintette's UK record company) to promote the 1938 autumn tour. It had to have been made to show in cinemas otherwise there would not have been any sense in producing it. There was undoubtably more footage but how much of that was scrapped at the time is anyone's guess. There were at least two takes, probably many more, and they were made over a short period of time. Sadly, as Spatzo says, the production values and the script scenario were absolute crap. :x ......But how did it really end in the full version?

One of the researchers for Paul Vernon (Mr Contextual Bio-Discography) spent a lot of time at the BBC trying to locate Django footage and, at one stage, claimed he had found something really interesting but nothing ever came of it.

The white Epiphone footage was taken in May 1946 before Django went to America. I doubt he ever owned an Epiphone or he gave it away almost as soon as he got it. The provenance and ultimate resting place of the Epiphone Babik had is highly suspect.

The great thing about this thread is that it has got Spatzo really motivate again and in this mood, he is like a ferret up a drainpipe. Watch this space!!!

Teddy Dupont

spatzo wrote:

Babik gave Django's Epiphone to Fred Sharp

.....but then, according to Scot, it mysteriously disappeared. :?:

Svanis1337

I've had dreams about Django non-stop the last few days. I wonder if you and Spatzo have anything to do with it.

It's out there and we've got to find it!

scot

Re the Epiphone, the story has been covered here before, but one thing is certain at least in my mind: the Epiphone guitar that Babik gave to Fred Sharp isn't the one in that vignette of film. I never saw the guitar he got from Babik - when I met Fred the guitar was long gone. But he had modified it a lot, changed the pickups and added one more, that sort of thing. Fred would hedge about that guitar - he originally told me it had been stolen, but eventually I found a guitar collector in Delray Beach, Florida who claimed to have the guitar. Fred then admitted that he'd sold the guitar during a period when he had some personal problems. That's when he told me about the mods he made to that guitar. And as Teddy notes, there is only that one instance of Django playing an Epiphone - not a single still photo exists with him playing an Epi. An interesting footnote is that in a photo that I have of Fred and Babik, Babik is playing some kind of Fender solidbody, probably dating from the days when he was playing with Glenn Jack et ses Glennies...

It's hardly fair to say that Fred treated that guitar like a piece of trash. The world was a different place back then, no one ever thought twice about modifying a guitar to suit his own needs in those days.

In that photo in the bar, that's Sarrane Ferret playing the archtop. I think I have some other photos of him playing that guitar, I'll look to see if we can figure out what that one is. There is some astonishing film of Lousson in that documentary from Denmark.

Teddy Dupont

Here are a couple of videos of Lousson:-

spatzo

"The world was a different place back then" beautiful phrase Scott!

Teddy/Scott/Svanis what about the accent of the off-speaker? is it english? is it american? I'm really not able to understand the difference. At least I'm sure it is not a french guy speaking english "à la Maurice Chevalier" (like I am able to do) but it can be usefull to understand that.

I think we will have to wait the end of Bromberg's montage to go on... I spoke many times with him and really tried to understand if he had more than one tune but in those days he was cautious in his answers because of the pendent trial on the film property and couldn't speak too much. It can be quite different now and among details interesting to know in what kind of box it was eventually kept or maybe it was just free footage - just a roll of film among others. Maybe there was some sticker labelling it "Roll 1/20" :shock:

I don't even know the format was it 16mm or other, precious indication that can give indications on its destination and grade of professionalism.

Svanis1337

He does sound american to me. But We'd have to ask an englishman to be sure.

Anyway, I got a response from myfootage.com, and I need your help on this.



Many thanks Dennis Sweeney.

If you happen to have any old footage of a guitarist with a thin mustache playing with two fingers, let me know.

His name was Django Reinhardt.


Around 1930 to 1953, there weren't too many Jazz guitarists. Perhaps you could sift through some of the footage and direct me to some clips of jazz guitarists from that time?

Whether it's a big band, solo or quintet, any footage of that man would be appreciated greatly by a lot of people. There aren't many clips of him playing that is available, and few known to exist.


Thank you for sending me the wonderful footage I requested though. It's just that I didn't realize I could write to you directly. I was only trying to find some old footage of Django.


Apart from that, I've greatly enjoyed watching footage of Art Tatum, Ella Fitzgerald, Duke Ellington and Nat King Cole on your website. Many, many thanks for making those available.


Thanks again.

Richard.

This was his response:

Hi Richard -

We do have some footage of Django Reinhardt available, but it's exclusive video, due to the rarity -- What type of project are you working on? If you let me know what type of rights are required, we can provide you a price quote and preview at that time.

So Like I said, I need your help on this. I'm afraid the price might be tens of thousands of dollars, if not more. I have no experience on this kind of thing. And I'm not really working on a project so I don't know what the hell to tell him at this point.

Do remember that this is the very same site that had those Art & Ella outtakes. Even if this is footage we've already seen of Django, it might be in much higher quality.

This is good news, nonetheless. I did NOT expect this for a response.

spatzo

My answer should be something like that - but beware my english is not so good - I think Teddy (even if "Dupont" french born) could correct it in a perfect Oxfordian style...

"Dear Sirs,

I am writing a Thesis in Cognitive Musicalogy to obtain my Master's Degree, the subject I choosed is "Django Reinhardt Guitar Technique - Revolution and Tradition". I would like to use the concerned footages to understand better how Reinhardt built alone a revolutionary two fingers solo technique.

I should so use the footages solely for my internal evaluation and this might help me to determine whether I might intend later to obtain a non-comp licence for other purposes.

I would like to receive a list of the all available footages on Django Reinhardt with a complete description of its content, date and origin along with your best prices and conditions according to the relative licencing agreements you might grant me.

I would also like to have informations on how can I choose among the footages the relevant ones.

Many thanks for your help

Best regards

Richard Svanis"

otherwise just pay we will certainly follow

spatzo

Who really was Django Reinhardt?

A guitarist with a thin mustache playing with two fingers