Monday, December 7, 2015

DJANGO. ON THE RADIO. PLUG WORTHY.

Yesterday I was out back just chillin', as they say, digging on the weather which was unseasonably warm, slight breeze, birds chirping and all that shit. I took a break from what I was reading and succumbed to a lack of proper sleep, listening to the jazz station as I semi-dozed. The show that was airing was a big band show, but it typically veers from straight big band stuff and yesterday was no exception. Bobby Darin's "Beyond the Sea" came on and it hit the spot. I like the song, but at that particular moment with no distractions I succumbed and decided that it is a really great song. I'm pretty much ambivalent about Bobby Darin, but that song at that particular moment was impossible to ignore.

A few hours later, I'm in the kitchen cooking tacos listening to the same station. It happened to be a show that featured guitar jazz, and the DJ played Django Reinhardt's version of "Beyond the Sea" ("La Mer"). I'd no clue that Darin's version wasn't the original. Maybe I should have. Reinhardt's version, with Stephane Grappelli on violin, is from the forties. I'd never heard it before. Let me tell you people, it is an insanely beautiful song, goosebump type beautiful. In our parlance, absolutely the shit.

Different song, but way cool.

A plug is due here: Jazz 88 plays a lot of good stuff on weekends. If I'm lazy I just leave it on for hours. I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the show Jazz West Coast, airing 3:00 - 5:00 Pacific time with the king of deadpan old school cool, Phil Dinsen. Believe me, once you get used to his dry subtle humor, you'll be looking forward to the back announcing for guaranteed chuckles. Plus, where else are you going to hear Bud Shank and Ken Nordine?

~ NOTE: ALL MEDIA IS HOSTED BY THE BLOGS & SITES NAMED BELOW ~
Listen:
Bobby Darin - Beyond the Sea mp3
at ATumblr (?) That mini-yelp at 2:04 always slays me.
Django Reinhardt with Stephane Grappelli - La Mer (Beyond the Sea) mp3 at ATumblr (?)
Django Reinhardt - The Sunshine of Your Smile mp3 at Pasumansky (?)
Visit:
Jazz 88 (streaming live) at Jazz 88
Jazz 88 program schedule at Jazz 88
Jazz 88 playlist archive at Jazz 88

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