Hot Club of San Francisco: Postcards from Gypsyland

Description

The Hot Club of San Francisco plays the gypsy jazz music of guitarist Reinhardt and violinist Grappelli and the original Hot Club de France. This unique jazz form recalls Paris in the 1930s and offers a swinging beat with a sweet melody. The Hot Club performs many of the original works by Reinhardt and Grappelli and incorporates original works by guitarist Paul Mehling and violinist Evan Price.

Guitarist Mehling has been dubbed the godfather of American gypsy jazz. He discovered the music of Reinhardt and the Quintet of the Hot Club of France in grammar school. Decades later, the music that took root in his young soul finally bore fruit. Paul is the founder and guiding spirit of the The Hot Club of San Francisco. Over the years, the band has put out many well-known albums of gypsy-flavoured jazz, consistently reimagining the classic Beatles tunes.

Fontaine is a professional vocalist who developed a passion about jazz music because of the performance by Ladies and the Dukes of the Big Band Era, and she was eventually drawn to the gypsy swing of Reinhardt and The Hot Club of France. It wasn’t long before she picked up the guitar. In 2004, she moved with her family to the Bay Area and has since become highly sought after not only as a vocalist but also as a rhythm guitar player of the The Hot Club of San Francisco.

Price is one of the most respected jazz violinists of his generation. As a young competitive fiddler, he won his share of awards, having been named the U.S. Scottish Fiddling Champion, Canadian Junior Fiddle Champion, and Canadian Novelty Fiddling Champion. He joined the ensemble in 1998.