The way in which anything is described – the words used to explain it and the context that it’s placed – serves to define it as much as reality does. One’s perception can differentiate the object, person or idea from the norm or even another person’s. So in describing music, whatever adjectives get tacked onto genre names serve to explicate a work almost as much as the work itself. Of course that’s a bit over blown, after all it’s just music. But in terming the work by Django Reinhardt gypsy jazz, historians, writers and myself have worked to set the person and the player into a sort if generic setting – traveling around in caravans, having dances ‘round the fire during the evenings and even pilfering food, clothes or goods. And while that’s more than unfair, the stigma that Django carried around probably helped in the strictest of marketing terms.

Going to see a gypsy play music seems dangerous. Might he launch himself into the crowd at some personage who hasnâ??t displayed the proper sense of deference towards a performance ala a 1930â??s Axl Rose? Nope, he wonâ??t. But be assured that some equated going to a show by this formidable guitarist to seeing Ota Benga.

Forgetting all of this, mostly because itâ??s inane blather, Wrath of the Grapevine has a pretty unwieldy post focusing on not just Django, but all that could be fitted into the category of Gypsy Jazz. Of course the guitarist is probably the most famous individual proponent of this medium, but be assured that he only accounts for a small portion of this kind of work.

Djangoâ??ll probably be remembered as an incredible soloist â?? he presaged bop solos as much as anyone else â?? but his melodic playing and ridiculous chording should be noted as well. Having been injured â?? similarly to how Leo Kottke was in the â??70s â?? Django needed to relearn how to play guitar. But possessing such acumen for the instrument, this didnâ??t really present too huge an obstacle for the French born guitarist.

Django's father was an entertainer, and although, he didnâ??t push this upon his son, the younger Reinhard would go on to form the Quintette du Hot Club de France along side Stephan Grappelli in the mid thirties. Accompanying these two was another Reinhardt on guitar and a bassist. To propel their music, Djangoâ??s brother most frequently functioned as the rhythm section, chording along with the bassist as the lead guitarist and Grappelli traded solos over top of whatever intricate melodic line they concocted.

During World War II, the band was split up with Grappelli in London and Django stuck in occupied France. Of course his music was probably part of what the Germanâ??s wanted to extinguish, but that just never occurred. After the war, the duo was reunited and were tapped to tour the States with Duke Ellington. The impending fame didnâ??t serve to distract either player, but as Django eventually was married and had a child, he become a bit withdrawn and in the early fifties seemingly retired.