Toe tappin’ stuff from the the heyday of The Jazz Age when swing was in it’s infancy. From Harlem to Paris to London.
Harlem and the Cotton Club were not the only place that had good swing in the thirties. Paris had a vibrant scene with Django Reinhart and Stephane Grapelli which gave swing a certain unique gypsy flavor This was true of most capital cities of Europe at that time. London also had its own flavor which was quirky and almost comedic in attitude.
After the First World War many black Americans found a home in France especially Paris where their abilities playing music were appreciated. This provided a base for many others to come later in the thirties (and then post war). On this compilation many of these artists were playing with Django Rinehart and his orchestra but the recordings sometimes came out under their own names.
In Britain the material was mostly derivative from records brought in from the US. The best players were well above average many of whom had hits, toured and were stars in the US at the time. For instance this video of Black Coffee with Nat Gonnella with images of the night clubs where this kind of “new” music was played.
Watch Nat Gonnella and his Georgians. These guys were all white boys. Nat went on to some success in the U.S. Many bands were filled with black players. Either Caribbean, African or in some cases ex US servicemen staying on in Europe.
For more like this hear SWING and how this style of music developed into Swing.