Reference Recordings - RM-2503 - 45RPM - 200 Gram Virgin Vinyl

Limited Edition -  Pressed at QRP - Two Disc - Gatefold Sleeve

Cut by Kevin Gray on a custom Cutting Lathe designed by Nelson Pass

The impression that the musicians are there in the room, full-sized, is downright eerie. That and the lively swing of these fine musicians make this recording a must-have." - Rejskind, Ultra High Fidelity

With Yerba Buena Bounce, its tenth album, The Hot Club of San Franciso confirms its reputation as America's longest-running and finest gypsy jazz ensemble. Inspired explorations of Django Reinhardt's tunes, originals and more, are captured here on glorious sounding half-speed mastered 200g 45RPM 2LP.

The Hot Club of San Francisco is a quintet of accomplished and versatile musicians who celebrate Django Reinhardt's and Stephane Grappelli's renowned Hot Club de France. The ensemble borrows the all-string instrumentation of three guitars, violin and bass from the original Hot Club, but breathes new life into the music with innovative arrangements of classic tunes and original compositions from the group's superb lead guitarist, Paul Mehling. Hearing the ensemble takes the listener back to the 1930s and to the small, smoky jazz clubs of Paris. The music of The Hot Club of San Francisco has entranced audiences around the globe for more than a decade.

Mandolinist David Grisman, father of Dawg music and good friend of The Hot Club, makes a special guest appearance on two tracks. The set is further enhanced by bandoneon virtuoso Seth Asarno, and two bonus tracks feature the quintet augmented by three Dixieland horns!

Recorded by multi-Grammy-nominated "Prof." Keith Johnson at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley, California, the Yerba Buena Bounce sessions benefited from the historic ambience, scene of hundreds of classic jazz and rock recordings. Using his own custom-built microphones and electronics (as always), Johnson was able to utilize some of Fantasy's unique facilities, such as a legendary echo chamber, to add luster to his always life-like soundscapes.

"It's the synergies, combination of highly competent execution, accessibility and the fact that they swing harder than anyone else out there that make The Hot Club of San Francisco the Count Basie of gypsy Swing." - Monterey Jacques, Djangology.net

"Tremendous playing on a variety of wild Gypsy swing songs." - Mike Holmes, Epinions.com

"San Francisco has the earned reputation as a city that is unique and goes its own independent direction. I think that can also be said of the Hot Club of San Francisco, a creative band that masters Gypsy Jazz, but gives it new shape, sound, and inspiration on this entertaining release." - Harvey Barkan, L.A. Jazz Scene

"The impression that the musicians are there in the room, full-sized, is downright eerie. That and the lively swing of these fine musicians make this recording a must-have." - Rejskind, Ultra High Fidelity

Disc mastering is done at half-speed to insure maximum accuracy. The lathe system has custom electronics by Nelson Pass. The simple signal path contains no compression, equalization or unnecessary circuitry. RR Chief Engineer and Technical Director, "Prof." Keith Johnson consulted on the design of the system and helped with the rebuilding of the lathe and electronics, which is owned and operated by long-time mastering expert Paul Stubblebine. "Prof." Johnson has pronounced it equal to the challenge of our master tapes!

Once successful results were achieved in disc mastering, Reference Recordings faced the difficult task of choosing the best plating and pressing facility to manufacture the discs. Fortunately, the new Quality Record Pressings plant in Salina, Kansas was coming on line, and they felt that waiting for this plant to open was well worth it. A crack team of experts was assembled to design and run the plant, employing many unique techniques and features that clearly set QRP apart from all other pressing plants. The 200-gram deluxe vinyl pressings from QRP are truly exceptional.

Multiple Configurations for Reference Mastercuts
Depending on program lengths, some releases are cut at 45 rpm, some at 33-1/3 rpm. Some are single discs, some double. All feature deluxe gate-fold jackets crafted by Stoughton Printing . An unusual feature of new RR masterings is called the "FDS finish": the end of each side will have a 30-second band of silent grooves before the "pull-away." No one today uses a record changer, and the silent grooves allow time to lift the arm before the always-somewhat-noisy tie-off. (Some 1950s vintage Capitol Full Dimensional Sound pressings sported this feature.) RR founder, J. Tamblyn (Tam) Henderson deserves special recognition for identifying the value of this unique production feature and reintroducing it with the new Mastercuts.

Note: Half-speed Mastering involves a capturing process in which the original recording master is played back at exactly half of the recorded speed. A sequenced cutting lathe is then timed at exactly half of the playback speed. This process allows twice as much time to carve a groove that accurately represents the sound on the master tape. Half-speed mastering allows for cleaner reproduction and also permits extended high frequency response, extending into the ultrasonic region.

"Yerba Buena Bounce" crackles with hot solos and intimate musical explorations! This is the 10th album by the Hot Club of San Francisco, America's longest-running and finest Gypsy Jazz ensemble. The album contains explorations of Django Reinhardt's tunes, plus originals and more. The shimmering, lifelike sound is some of Professor Johnson's finest: you'll swear the group is in the room with you! As a special bonus, two tracks feature mandolinist extraordinaire David Grisman.

The Hot Club of San Francisco is a quintet of accomplished and versatile musicians who celebrate Django Reinhardt’s and Stephane Grappelli’s renowned Hot Club de France. The ensemble borrows the all-string instrumentation of three guitars, violin and bass from the original Hot Club, but breathes new life into the music with innovative arrangements of classic tunes and original compositions from the group’s superb lead guitarist, Paul Mehling. Hearing the ensemble takes the listener back to the 1930s and to the small, smoky jazz clubs of Paris. The music of The Hot Club of San Francisco has entranced audiences around the globe for more than a decade. Their performances have been hailed as “intricate, scorching, and often brilliant” (Acoustic Guitar).

Mandolinist David Grisman, father of Dawg music and good friend of The Hot Club, makes a special guest appearance on two tracks. The set is further enhanced by bandoneon virtuoso Seth Asarno. Two bonus tracks feature the quintet augmented by three Dixieland horns!

Recorded by multi-Grammy-nominated “Prof.” Keith Johnson at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley, California, the Yerba Buena Bounce sessions benefited from the historic ambience, scene of hundreds of classic jazz and rock recordings. Using his own custom-built microphones and electronics (as always), Johnson was able to utilize some of Fantasy’s unique facilities, such as a legendary echo chamber, to add luster to his always life-like soundscapes.

"Reference Recordings has gone out of their way to make this double album of special audiophile interest. First, both discs are 200 grams, rather than the usual 180 gram audiophile standard for vinyl reissues. Then each of the four sides ends in a couple minutes of quiet grooves so you won’t have to deal with the noisy swishing at the center label if you don’t jump up immediately at the end of each 45 rpm side. The good-natured battles between lead guitar and fiddle are heard in nearly all the tracks. It’s a pleasure to hear the musicians so clearly free and unencumbered by misguided current leadership. As the note-writer says "The beauty and joy and swing of this music is infectious!"" - John Henry, audaud.com, 5/5 Stars!!

The Hot Club Of San Francisco Yerba Buena Bounce

LP1
1.  Mystery Pacific - Django Reinhardt/Stéphane Grappelli
2.  Hot Lips - Henry Busse/Lon Davis/H.W. Lange
3.  I’m Happy Just To Dance With You - John Lennon/Paul McCartney with Seth Asarno, bandoneon
4.  Sway - Norman Gimbel/R.P. Rosas with David Grisman, mandolin
5.  Number Two - Paul Mehling
6.  Souvenir de Villingen - Stéphane Grappelli
7.  Tickle Toe - Lester Young
8.  Black and White - Django Reinhardt/Stéphane Grappelli

LP2
1.  Rythme Futur -  Django Reinhardt
2.  Lullabye - Paul Mehling with David Grisman, mandolin; Seth Asarno, bandoneon
3.  Yerba Buena Bounce- Paul Mehling
4.  Stardust - Hoagy Carmichael/Mitchell Parish
5.  Borneo - Walter Donaldson
6.  Georgia Cabin - Sidney Bechet
7.  Improvisation #2 - Django Reinhardt
8.  Some Of These Days (Jam) - Brooks Shelton