Gypsy Swing & Hot Club Rhythm II for Guitar

Gypsy Swing & Hot Club Rhythm II for Guitar by Dix Bruce. Play along with a Hot Club-style recorded band and learn 12 MORE great Gypsy Swing/Hot Club standards (see song list below left) in the style of Django Reinhardt, Stephane Grappelli and The Quintette of the Hot Club of France.

Book with CD plus downloadable audio 

This book is sold by Mel Bay Publications.
Click the button below to view and purchase the book from Mel Bay.

Additional Details

This is volume II of our popular Gypsy Swing & Hot Club Rhythm set. Just like with the original set, you’ll play along with a great Gypsy Swing Rhythm Section and learn chords, comping, and melodies, then let the band back you up as you practice chords and soloing.

Beginners can practice basic skills while more advanced players can hone their improvisation chops, each at their own individual learning pace. You’ll learn moveable closed position swing/jazz chords and practice playing them with the swing guitar comp. We’ve also included information on basic chord substitutions along with exercises on transposing melodies and chord progressions to different keys. These are essential skills for any swing/jazz musician. You’ll also explore some basic chord melody passages! But we’ve added more: Gypsy Swing & Hot Club Rhythm II has downloadable bonus music, lyrics, TAB, and MP3s!

Among the twelve selections in a variety of keys are some of the most popular songs in the style. See the Table of Contents below. We’ve got “Indiana,” “Limehouse Blues,” and “El Choclo” the great tango. “Clouds and Shadows” is a chord melody etude based on Django’s “Nuages.” “St. James Infirmary” and “Django’s Djazz Blues” will let you work out on minor and major blues changes in a variety of different keys.

In fact, “Django’s Djazz Blues” works through seven different keys. “Margie,” “Whispering,” and “Stumbling” are wonderful melodies and chord progressions played by swing and jazz musicians all over the world. “Tiger Rag,” with its four key changes, will challenge the most advanced player but it’ll be more fun than you can imagine!

Book/recording set includes standard notation, tablature, chord diagrams, lyrics, playing tips, and more. Each song is presented on the CD or in the downloadable audio at slow and regular speeds. First you’ll hear the melody played on guitar at a slow speed with just guitar backup, then it’s repeated at regular speed with the band.

First you’ll hear the melody played on guitar at a slow speed with just guitar backup, then it’s repeated at regular speed with the band. The back up band is a classic “Hot Club”- style rhythm section with two acoustic rhythm guitars, string bass.

Split track mixing on the recording allows the student to hear just the melody (while reading along in the book) or just the rhythm section, or both for maximum flexibility and specific study.

Finally the band plays several choruses and you play all the leads. Songs may be repeated, at slow or regular speed, as many times as you wish in order to perfect phrases, melodies and solos in a band context. Potential for improvement is unlimited. We’ll jam all night long!

Mandolin version also available.

Downloadable extras from the book.

The band, l. to r.: Jason Vanderford, Marty Eggers, Dix Bruce.

Watch a video of Dix Bruce jamming along with and soloing on “Whispering,” a song from Gypsy Swing & Hot Club Rhythm Vol. II by clicking here. It shows how to work with the book and the Hot Club Swing band recordings. We’ll jam all night long!

Samples:
Sample pages
Audio sample 1
Audio sample 2

Watch Dix demonstrate how to work with the Gypsy Swing & Hot Club Rhythm sets on guitar.

Table of Contents:
Gypsy Swing & Hot Club Rhythm II
How to work with the book and CD
Swing Guitar Rhythm
Limehouse Blues
Chinatown, My Chinatown
St. James Infirmary
Clouds and Shadows
Margie
Whispering
El Choclo
(Back Home Again in) Indiana
Django’s Djazz Blues
Red Wing Swing
Stumbling
Tiger Rag

Customer comment:
Dear Dix,
First time, ever, writing a letter like this. But, felt compelled to… I’m 61 years old and started playing guitar about 3 1/2 years ago … The music that makes me happy to be alive is Gypsy Swing. I have bought DVDs by ***, ***, and about three others. Also books on Django and books on arpeggios etc., etc., etc.. All of this was so over my head, so overwhelming, so frustrating. Most of the technique and scales and arpeggios were disjointed and had really no similarity to the music I was listening to. Not their fault, just over my level … Three weeks ago I came across your book/CD “Gypsy Swing and Hot Club Rhythm for Guitar.” … I started with “Avalon” — right away I liked the format with the chord diagrams, the melody, and the finger number placements [tablature] for the melody. Now, what’s most amazing is that I spent hours watching the *** tapes and still (for some strange reason) could not get the “le Pompe” sound. (Granted I blame myself or my level of understanding). Yet immediately I picked it up from you, Jason, and Steve… After playing “Avalon” and “The Sheik” I immediately ordered the second book/CD. I’ve spent 3 weeks so far with the 1st book and plan to spend a lot more tiime with it before I move on. I love the use of the 7th and 6th chords. “Swingin’ Like ’42” is just what I’m talking about. The melody is great. I can play it medium slow but it still sounds great. That’s the Django sound.
G.N. Long Beach, NY

“…Thanks for the (downloadable) ‘extras’ for the Gypsy Swing book. A good mix of easy and challenging songs, songs & tunes I know and some I hadn’t heard before, in keys I usually avoid. Thanks…”
S.H. Urbandale, IA