Django Reinhardt was never one to follow anyone else’s fretwork. Every innovator inevitably spawns a legion of impersonators, however, and these days it seems that every locality has its own “Hot Club” spinning out lockstep gypsy jazz (a term that Reinhardt wouldn’t have recognized, let alone endorsed). The Hot Club of Detroit, though not without its debts to the great guitarist, is the rare edition that takes its inspiration from Reinhardt’s spirit rather than being a slavish knockoff. The drumless group’s latest — Junction (Mack Avenue), due out in August — takes its furthest strides afield, though its work with French vocalist Cyrille Aimée (who just so happens to hail from Reinhardt’s hometown) wouldn’t feel out of place in a Parisian café.
Sat., July 28, 8 and 10 p.m., $20-$22, Chris’ Jazz Café, 1421 Sansom St., 215-568-3131, chrisjazzcafe.com.
