John Jorgenson Quintet
Known as the "U.S. ambassadors of gypsy jazz."
There wasn't always a thing called gypsy jazz, but the John Jorgenson Quintet embodies it in its truest form, and they have a lot of fun doing it. Gypsy jazz is a string-driven swing sound based on a movement in France in the 1930s, specifically the work of Django Reinhardt and Stepane Grappelli. There are festivals worldwide honoring it, a Festival Dhango in France, a Django Fest Northwest on Whidby Island in Washington state, and the Djangofollies in Belgium, so yes, it's a real thing. A big thing. Blending fast guitar licks with a saxophone, drums, clarinet, bouzouki, vocals, and pedal steel, the Quinted takes it to a new level.
When all of the band members are acclaimed, have won awards, and have made their name on their own, of course, it will be a soaring sound to behold. The aggregation of this level of talent in the John Jorgenson Quintet brought them the title of "U.S. ambassadors of gypsy jazz."
John Jorgenson was a well-known guitarist with many touring bands and was working on an album in the studio when Elton John asked him to join him on tour for 18 months. The year-and-a-half world tour became six years on the road with Elton John. As Jorgenson began to miss playing gypsy jazz and bluegrass, he left the tour, though he has continued to work with Elton John intermittently.
Jorgenson is humbly appreciative of being included in the Musicians Hall of Fame & Museum, which showcases some of his instruments, clothes, and his favorite custom road case. Also included is a gift from Elton John, a Marshall speaker cabinet that Jorgenson had been seeking, to go with his vintage Marshall head. He says, "for musicians to see the stuff that makes the sound that they love, it's magic."
