Django Reinhardt & Stéphane Grappelli
Stéphane Grappelli (vln);
Django Reinhardt (g solo);
Jack Llewellyn, Allan Hodgkiss (g);
Coleridge Goode (b)
1946 February 1 - Decca, London
Django and Stephane were reunited in London in February of 1946 and recorded eight titles together which included the joyful Echoes of France as well as NUAGES. Delaunay's original discography listed only one take of Nuages but it later became known that two takes were recorded. The sleeve notes of London CD 820 591-2 show that Take 1 was issued in September 1947 backed with Loves Melody but that Take 2 was not issued until February 1964 on a Decca LP ACL1158. Grappelli seemingly was as uneasy with the introduction as Rostaing had been in 1940 and on both the Decca LP and the London CD the intro was ommitted (take 2). Daniel Nevers, in his sleeve notes to Fremaux FA13, states that Take 2 was issued on the original 78 but that Take 1 was issued, probably by mistake, on a few records. However it is the music that counts and what we have here is the opportunity to hear Django on consecutive takes of the same melody. Legendary players such as he never disappoint! We are treated to two completely different and extraordinary solos showing that Django and Stephane had the ability to bring out the best in each other whenever they recorded together. On Take 1 Django begins his solo with one of his show stopping phrases followed by a run which starts low down on the sixth string and ends high on the first. Someone once asked Django to demonstrate this and after a few attempts to figure out what happened in between could only be certain that SOMETHING happened, but he knew not what! Django goes on to construct the most delicate of solos suitable for this melody. The rest of the track is standard arrangement and Stephane does not solo. The solo to Take 2 begins, similar to the December 1940 version, in harmonics. The remainder of the solo is just as delicate and beautiful as Take 1, but completely different. The genius that was Django. - Dave Gould
