Ed-3/18

This week I've been listening to an album recorded in Germany, live with a big band featuring European gypsy guitar phenom Biréli Lagrène. Biréli was a child prodigy gypsy jazzer, who is arguably (and aficionados of GJ argue, believe me) the best gypsy jazz player living today. I'll get a bit deeper into this fascinating field in another post. You can see five of the best gypsy jazzers in this YouTube video. Biréli (the guy in the white shirt) and two other reigning GJ giants, Angelo Debarre (the guy who starts the song) and Stochelo Rosenberg trade licks in this outstanding version of There Will Never Be Another You during the same performance.

But the live album I've been listening to shows Biréli's chops as a straight-ahead jazz player. I uploaded this version of Caravan (be sure to stay on the page long enough to let the file load into online player).

I don't know much about the album--there are announcements of personnel in German--but whoever did the arranging was really good and, as you'll hear by listening to the version of Caravan, there are some other great musicians playing there. If any of my friends here wants a copy of it, let me know, and we'll figure out a way to get it to you

It's a statement about how little I've listened to jazz in the past twenty years that I'm just now getting to know Biréli's playing. He's been around for a long time. Did a live album with Jaco Pastorius in 1986. Played with a lot of folks, like Larry Coryell. and Gil Evans. The fact that he can move freely between straight-ahead jazz and the very restrictive genre of gypsy jazz shows him as a truly remarkable player.

Finally, if you find yourself interested in the live performance videos, watch Bereli's solo.