Django in England

daftgeordie · Post by **daftgeordie** » Fri May 28, 2010 12:32 pm

I was talking to a guy the other day who said that, as a young boy, he was taken by his father to see Django Reinhardt play. The venue was in St Albans at a place called the Waterend Barn and the year was 1952. Can any of you Django historians verify this.....or is his memory playing tricks?
Thanks.

Post by **Teddy Dupont** » Fri May 28, 2010 1:22 pm

All the records indicate Django's last visit to the UK was in 1948 when he toured with the English Quintet and Grappelli before continuing the tour in Scandinavia. So it would be a revelation if you friend's memory was accurate. However. Bert Weedon also told me he played with Django in the UK in the early 50s but I sensed his memory had seen much better days.

1952 was a very low key year for Django with very few recorded gigs and no known musical activity between April and November.

daftgeordie · Post by **daftgeordie** » Fri May 28, 2010 1:33 pm

Thanks Teddy. I was hoping it would be true, but thought it unlikely. However, perhaps this chap's and Bert Weedon's memory's aren't failing them? He seemed very sure. He also said that he saw Stephane Grapelli play about 20 years ago and the main thing that he remembered about that gig was that Grapelli was plastered! Was he known for liking a drink or two?

Post by **Teddy Dupont** » Fri May 28, 2010 5:43 pm

I think it is extremely unlikely Django was in the UK in 1952 but these leads are always worth following up just in case. Perhaps the next time you see this guy you could ask him what he remembers about the gig - the musicians/instrumentation Django performed with and whether he played electric or acoustic guitar.

daftgeordie · Post by **daftgeordie** » Fri May 28, 2010 11:12 pm

I've already asked him for more details and will wait for his reply. If there's anything forthcoming I'll let you know. Cheers.