The debut recording of the Chicago-based Alfonso Ponticelli & Swing Gitan is in the spirit of the brilliant Gypsy jazz music of guitarist
Django Reinhardt with violinist
Stéphane Grappelli. The baker's dozen tracks were recorded over several dates (both live and in the studio) between 1996 and 2003, with variations in personnel and instrumentation. Violinist
Johnny Frigo appears as a guest on a burning take of "The Sheik of Araby," the dramatic "Valse Manouche," and Ponticelli's engaging Gypsy swinger "For Luna"; these are among the last recordings
Frigo made prior to his death. Ponticelli also adds a bit of novelty in his approach to Gypsy swing by overdubbing several instruments on three tracks with effective results. The leader delights his audience with his Gypsy-flavored arrangement of "Harlem Nocturne," a piece associated with 1950s strip bars and the old Mike Hammer television detective series. ~ Ken Dryden