Owner content reviewed — 2026-10-15T13:12:28Z by admin. Coverage measures presence, not accuracy. Content review does not certify rights or musical perfection.
See what is here and what is missing
✓ Recording evidence
✓ Key & form
✓ Chart
✓ History
✓ Playing notes
✓ Practice plan
✓ Backing track
✓ Django recording
✓ Django solo study aid
✓ Illustration
✓ Sources
✓ Difficulty
Django's Recordings
Django recordings for this tune. Uploader dates and take labels remain source claims; only an evidenced exact association enables a row’s Listen control.
1 historical recording entries · source text preserved
Entry
Year
Recording / session / release evidence
Listen
01
1935
Blue Drag, April 1935, P 77351 ,"Fremeaux FA 303, JSP 341, Classics 727, Vogue 668003-1, RDC 40032-2"," - QHCF - Stephane Grappelly (v), Django Reinhardt, Roger Chaput, Joseph Reinhardt (g), Louis Vola (b)."
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A dash means no video has been associated with this exact historical recording. Tune-level listening resources remain available above.
History & Listening
Joe Myrow's Blue Drag, credited as a 1932 composition in performer release notes, sits comfortably between a song and a dance-floor mood piece. This archive identity contains Django's April 1935 entry, matrix P 77351. A separately stored Blue Drag No. 2 identity remains separate. The tune offers a practical lesson in restraint: a descending bass line can create motion while the melody and accompaniment stay relaxed.
Tune details
Music: Joe Myrow
Source-attributed publication / composition: 1932
Original key: Not established
Study level: Intermediate; descending bass and contrasting bridge
Melody & head
Compare how the original ensemble and modern guitar-led performances handle space and the descending line.
Flattening the moving tonic harmony into an unchanging minor chord.
Compare how the original ensemble and modern guitar-led performances handle space and the descending line.
Session evidence
Blue Drag, April 1935, P 77351 ,"Fremeaux FA 303, JSP 341, Classics 727, Vogue 668003-1, RDC 40032-2"," - QHCF - Stephane Grappelly (v), Django Reinhardt, Roger Chaput, Joseph Reinhardt (g), Louis Vola (b)."
The inherited D-minor chart uses a descending line beneath the tonic area. Preserve that voice leading instead of replacing every cell with a static D-minor chord. The contrasting bridge needs its own chord tones before the minor opening returns. Check the video key before playing with the chart.
Chart & Form
The inherited D-minor chart uses a descending line beneath the tonic area. Preserve that voice leading instead of replacing every cell with a static D-minor chord. The contrasting bridge needs its own chord tones before the minor opening returns.
Existing chart and separate archive identities preserved. The harmonic comments describe the inherited study chart, not a newly transcribed 1935 arrangement.
Blue Drag (110 bpm) - Gypsy jazz Backing track / Jazz manouche
Guitare Improvisation
Swing · 110 BPM · 5m · Video available when checked; creator-described attribution.
Creator-described gypsy-jazz play-along. Check the key and full arrangement before joining in; the guide chart may use another key. Tempo is the creator’s stated value.
Blue drag 1935 solo by Django Reinhardt - Augusto Creni
augusto creni
source-described; accuracy not independently verified
Creator presents a study of Django’s recorded solo. Use it alongside the original recording; exact transcription accuracy has not been independently reviewed.
Track the descending inner/bass line independently of the melody.
Use C♯ to articulate A7 resolving to D minor.
Keep F audible when the music returns to its minor tonic.
Pitch choices
Begin with the named chord tones. Add passing notes only after the melody and cadence are secure.
Play one chorus with only the moving bass, a second with guide tones above it, and a third with short melodic replies. Keep the same tempo and dynamic throughout.
Comping & voicings
Play a gently weighted pulse and make the descending line economical. Separate the bass notes from the upper chord so the movement does not sound like unrelated grips.
Voicing note sets
Dm: D–F–A; Dm6: D–F–A–B.
A7 shell: A–C♯–G.
Keep the accompaniment clear
First establish an even pulse; add rhythmic variation only when the melody leaves space.
Flattening the moving tonic harmony into an unchanging minor chord.
Practice room
Start at 80–110 bpm; keep the relaxed swing character
Your assignment
Play one chorus with only the moving bass, a second with guide tones above it, and a third with short melodic replies. Keep the same tempo and dynamic throughout.
Loop these changes
Opening descending line
Final dominant → Dm
Bridge → final A section
Metronome
Count quarter notes first. Then place the click on beats 2 and 4 at half the click rate, keeping the phrase length unchanged.
Transposition
Move one short cadence to a nearby key by naming its chord tones, then return to the chosen study key.
At the session
D minor (inherited chart); 32-bar AABA study form. Agree the arrangement, pickup and ending before counting in.
Start together
Count a clear tempo and use the final cadence of the agreed arrangement.
Finish together
Cue the final tonic together; agree any tag before starting.
Flattening the moving tonic harmony into an unchanging minor chord.
Flattening the moving tonic harmony into an unchanging minor chord.
Arranging the tune
Solo guitar
Keep the melody uppermost and begin with a single bass note under each harmony. Dm: D–F–A; Dm6: D–F–A–B.
Trio or larger group
Play a gently weighted pulse and make the descending line economical. Separate the bass notes from the upper chord so the movement does not sound like unrelated grips.
Vocal considerations
No vocal arrangement is prescribed; use the instrumental melody as the phrasing reference.
This player guide combines inherited recording evidence and editorial study notes. Musical study notes are editorial suggestions; compare them with the recording.
Independent study-chart context; no chart reproduced.
Illustration credit & provenance
Original Djangopedia illustration · AI-assisted, 2026
Original AI-assisted editorial artwork inspired by the tune’s mood. It does not depict a documented historical event.
Generated with the native image-generation tool on 2026-10-15; original editorial artwork, not a historical photograph.
Prompt: Use case: illustration-story. Create one original illustration for a Djangopedia jazz tune guide. High-resolution landscape 3:2, 1536x1024 or larger. Shared collection art direction: original mid-century modern graphic shapes, Art Deco geometry, expressive angular silhouettes, flat color blocks, confident outlines and subtle screenprint grain, imaginary 1930s–1950s atmosphere. Not an imitation of any artist. No text, logos, watermark or historical documentary claims. Keep faces and focal objects within generous crop-safe margins. A relaxed pair of elegantly dressed dancers taking low gliding steps across a patterned dance floor, their long shadows curve like a descending bass line. Small upright bass at the edge of the stage. Low, languid movement. Turquoise, midnight blue, warm cream and a little burgundy. No moon or city panorama.
Research & rights notes
Original published key and exact video take remain unconfirmed.
No claim that the separately indexed Blue Drag No. 2 is a newly verified different composition.
Original composition/recording rights not independently cleared. Video metadata and musical suitability are separate checks.
Blue Drag (110 bpm) - Gypsy jazz Backing track / Jazz manoucheGuitare ImprovisationSwing · 110 BPM · 5m · Video available when checked; creator-described attribution.Creator-described gypsy-jazz play-along. Check the key and full arrangement before joining in; the guide chart may use another key. Tempo is the creator’s stated value.✓ Featured
BLUE DRAG (110BPM) THE STEPHANE WREMBEL BAND - PLAY ALONG SERIESStephane WrembelSwing · 110 BPM · 2m25s · Video available when checked; creator-described attribution.Creator-described gypsy-jazz play-along. Check the key and full arrangement before joining in; the guide chart may use another key. Tempo is the creator’s stated value.Select video
Joscho Stephan Trio // Blue Drag (feat. Matthias Strucken)Joscho StephanVideo available when checked; creator-described attribution.Performer attribution follows the video title and channel description. Proposed listening selection; no popularity ranking implied.✓ Featured
Angelo Debarre. Blue Drag (Festival Django Reinhardt 2013)Alain CaronVideo available when checked; creator-described attribution.Performer attribution follows the video title and channel description. Proposed listening selection; no popularity ranking implied.Select video