One of the greatest Jazz guitarists of all time is Django Reinhardt. Not only was he an accomplished musician and a fantastic guitar player, but he also kept playing the guitar after a campfire incident that made him lose some mobility in his fretting hand. Which took some serious dedication to keep on going with the guitar playing afterwards. This served as a lesson to Black Sabbath’s legendary guitarist Tony Iommi, who also suffered a similar incident with his fretting hand. Regardless, Django Reinhardt released a lot of material during his lifetime and this is volume two of his legendary Djangologie set of compilations, of which there were many released after his passing. His works were amazing and inspirational to all musicians out there, so let’s take a listen to these works and hear what they sound like.

After You’ve Gone begins with some lovely violin and chugging guitar playing. This is very old-fashioned sounding, but does not mean it is dated. The playing and expertise here are marvellous. Some pleasant singing is here, as Django Reinhardt is playing along with the Quintette du Hot Club de France. A really pleasant tune to listen to with some extraordinarily Jazzy and awesome playing by Django Reinhardt and crew. The guitar soloing here is amazing and impressive, to say the least. A joyous, interesting and upbeat tune to hear, this is an instant winner of a listening experience. Great, pretty and quick-paced, there is a sweet violin section that supports the music nicely here as well. A great piece of inspirational music from decades ago, this proves that the music from the time is just as good as some of the postmodern efforts made today that are equally as good. Fantastic.

Are You In The Mood? begins with a great combination of violin and clanging guitar chords, which sound excellent. Soon enough, a slow melody emerges from the violin and the guitar led tune gets underway. Nonetheless, this is fantastic and highly enjoyable to listen to this day. Some sweet guitar playing emerges and the intricate speed runs here are fantastic. Django Reinhardt really was an underrated and legendary player, and he sounds like he had put many hours of practice and playing to good use on these songs. A really top-notch performance that is exceedingly good. Not bad for a sub three minute instrumental, this is 100% worth your time. A great and grand listen.

Limehouse Blues features both the Quintette du Hot Club de France and Stephane Grappelli. It begins with violin, chugging guitar playing and Django Reinhardt’s awesome leads going on in the background. This, again, is wonderful and excellent to listen to and has aged very well indeed. A very upbeat and fantastic listening experience, this has some of the best acoustic guitar playing that you will ever hear. A truly great piece of music, this is perfect for fans of old-fashioned Jazz guitar music. It also sounds very upbeat and euphoric. A very wonderful listening experience, and something to enjoy to the full. Very unforgettable, even upon first listening, this is a must-listen for all fans of music. Great stuff. The ending is dramatic.

Nagasaki refers to the famous Japanese city. It has some interesting, precise and colourful guitar playing from Django Reinhardt here, and again, this is a quintessential listen that sounds amazing. Some singing emerges that is really quite nice, and this tune is really cool. It will take your mind to other places way back in the past, and this is a well-played and tremendous effort for its time. A really fantastic listening experience, this works outstandingly well. The violin here is awesome and dramatically played, and the whole tune sounds animated and pretty. A joyous tune, and perfect for a dinner party with friends, this is a lovely listen and is less than three minutes long. Awesome.

Swing Guitars begins with double bass and launches straight into a glorious and cheerful tune that sounds really fantastic. This music is immortal in the sense that it will never die in terms of its appeal. Django Reinhardt plays some pretty musical leads here, and this tune really comes alive with that. All in all, a fantastic listening experience that should be heard by more people out there. A great tune, and something to swing along with. Gloriously fantastic, this sounds very well played and delivered. Wonderful music, and something to remember nicely of Django Reinhardt and co.

Georgia On My Mind is much slower and has some giddy guitar parts playing along here. A smooth and casual listen, the real star of this tune is Django Reinhardt, who plays euphorically and wonderfully along to this tune. Indeed, his licks and tricks on the guitar are amazing. Singing enters about the USA location and the whole group sounds interesting and professional. Nonetheless, a wonderful and enjoyable listening experience that sounds like an old school Vocal Jazz cut that still sounds fresh to this day. The violin quickly enters and plays a solo section here in the second half, just sounding marvellous. This is a really great listening experience that is timeless. A descriptive and beautiful musical adventure, and another fine tune to listen to. Awesome.

Shine is back into uptempo mode, and has some frenetic acoustic guitar playing and violin to match. This is quickly followed by some lovely male singing, and this track is a real winner. All in all, this is another collector’s album that needs to be heard out there, and is a great slice of 20th century history, before everything got so postmodern. Django Reinhardt’s guitar playing is fantastically magical, and he sounds like he is on fire here. This is quickly followed by a violin solo, and the instruments fight it out for attention on this tune. Great to hear all the same, this is a joyous tune. A nice three minute long listen, and worth your ears.

In The Still Of The Night begins with a repeated single note on double bass, before the other instrumentation enters and surrounds it sweetly. From the start, this is a very awesome and different listening experience that sounds really pretty, melodic and relaxing. Music is a wonderful pastime for many to enjoy, and this song clearly reminds us of that. A really pretty tune, Django Reinhardt’s guitar playing reminds us here that simplicity and playing skills can fill up space in a song without sound effects or studio trickery. An excellent listening experience, this almost sounds like a Gypsy Jazz lullaby. Really pretty and fantastic listening, some super fast tremolo picking and interesting guitar playing are right here towards the end, before finishing up with the repeated double bass note, once again, and a singular strummed chord. Magic.

Sweet Chorus begins with some animated and slow guitar leads that are very unusual sounding. Soon enough, acoustic rhythm guitars kick in and we are on our musical journey ahead in a great fashion indeed. A very pretty, listenable and gentle tune, this sounds nothing at all like the music on today’s radio. Fresh, fine and gorgeous music, Django Reinhardt’s legacy continues to live on today and the group play perfectly here. This is amazing considering that the technology of the time didn’t really permit second takes or anything similar here. Brilliant and pure musical ear candy. It ends sweetly with some strummed guitar chords.

Exactly Like You launches straight into a pretty, mid-tempo and awesome listening experience. This sounds very well done from the start and is really cool and awesome. Soon enough, Django Reinhardt begins playing some gorgeous lead guitar to match this tune’s chords in a wonderful and sweet manner. Extremely cool, even to this day. A very upbeat and compelling listening experience, every moment here is a winner. 100% worth listening to, this is great and grand music. It ends at two and a half minutes long, great effort.

Charleston begins with some clanging guitar playing and quickly enters into an upbeat and really fantastic tune that powers along nicely. Django and crew play so well here, and it is clear from these recordings that the whole Quintette du Hot Club de France made these tunes sound completely natural to play. In any case, this instrumental is certainly worth your time and ears. Another violin solo pops up in the second half here and just sounds really cool and expertly played. Django Reinhardt is the real star of the show and plays superbly. Fantastic music to hear, once again.

You’re Driving Me Crazy is again, typically upbeat and uptempo. It is an old-fashioned and glorious listening experience that sounds fresh and amazing, to this very day. The violin and acoustic guitars duke it out for attention on this song, being friendly rivals. The guitar playing by Django Reinhardt is absolutely awesome to listen to and just sounds top-notch. Thoroughly good, this is exactly what one needs when in the mood for some traditional guitar based Jazz music. Frenetic fills are here, and this whole tune sounds really amazing and lively. An awesome listening experience, and definitely worth hearing. The outro is super exciting, and the group made a definite great impression. Excellent work.

Tears begins with some slow guitar work that is very subtle and gorgeous. This is more melodic and riff-based than you’d expect from Django Reinhardt but still works up a treat nicely. There is no real overt backing band here, except for double bass plinking away in the background, that is, until the violin enters. This is a slightly more moody and downtempo listening experience than what came before it. Still, it works very well and keeps the vibe of the album going along nicely. Towards the end is a great climatic conclusion to this tune. Brilliant.

Solitude is the last tune on this compilation and begins with some unusual guitar playing and violin to match. This is fantastic listening, to this very day. It is another slower tune, but this time has some more notable and interesting guitar playing to match it. A great musical snapshot of an era long gone by, Django Reinhardt and company certainly leave a great impression on the listener. A pretty and smooth guitar solo by Django himself is present in this song, and the whole thing sounds really quite amazing. Fine and fantastic, this is intellectual music for those of you who think that anything after 1960 is not worth your time in this world. This has a sweet ending with some great guitar work and violin to finish. Great.

This is a splendid compilation full of good, old-fashioned and wonderful music that still sounds amazing to this day. This is part two of a long series of compilations released after Django Reinhardt’s passing, showcasing his brilliant and underrated talents as a guitarist extraordinaire. Should you listen to this album? Yes, but ensure you have heard volume one of the Djanglogie series first before you hear this one. Still, this is outstanding music for what it is, and is highly memorable upon listening.

Old fashioned Jazz guitar music that is near perfect.

9/10