Les Double Six (also known as the Double Six of Paris) was a French
vocal jazz
Vocal jazz or jazz singing is an approach to jazz using the voice.
Vocal jazz emerged in the early twentieth century, with its roots in Blues. Popular blues singers such as Bessie Smith and Ma Rainey had a great deal of influence of jazz vocalis ...
group established in 1959 by
Mimi Perrin
Jeannine "Mimi" Perrin (2 February 1926 – 16 November 2010) was a French jazz pianist and singer, and translator.
Perrin received private musical instruction, including piano as a child and pursued English studies at Sorbonne. In 1949, she con ...
. The group established an international reputation in the early 1960s. The name of the group was an allusion to the fact that the
sextet
A sextet (or hexad) is a formation containing exactly six members. The former term is commonly associated with vocal ensembles (e.g. The King's Singers, Affabre Concinui) or musical instrument groups, but can be applied to any situation where six ...
used
double-tracking
Double tracking or doubling is an audio recording technique in which a performer sings or plays along with their own prerecorded performance, usually to produce a stronger or bigger sound than can be obtained with a single voice or instrument. ...
techniques to enhance and "fatten" the sound, very much like
Brian Wilson of the
Beach Boys
A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological sources, such as mollusc shell ...
did in the recording studio. The membership of the group varied from recording to recording. The six members would all sing once to a recording track, then sing the exact duplicate performance again to a second track, "doubling" each individual vocal part.
Singing in French, they performed
jazz standards
Jazz standards are musical compositions that are an important part of the musical repertoire of jazz musicians, in that they are widely known, performed, and recorded by jazz musicians, and widely known by listeners. There is no definitive list ...
, particularly themes by
Quincy Jones
Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (born March 14, 1933) is an American record producer, musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and film and television producer. His career spans 70 years in the entertainment industry with a record of 80 Grammy Award n ...
and
Dizzy Gillespie, adding the poetic or humorous lyrics written by the imaginative Perrin.
Inspired by several American groups, the singers
vocalized in the manner of instruments, reconstructing brilliant improvisations of saxophones, trumpets or trombones.
The group was not long-lasting. Because of Perrin's health problems (she had contracted
tuberculosis
Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, i ...
in 1949), Les Double Six dissolved in 1966. They recorded four albums between 1959 and 1964. Many members of the group went on to join the
Swingle Singers, which notably reproduced the works of
Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the ''Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wor ...
in the jazz vocal style.
The Double Six were nominated for Best Vocal Group Performance at the 1965
Grammy Awards for their LP ''The Double Six of Paris Sing Ray Charles'', but were beaten by
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developmen ...
' "
A Hard Day's Night".
Members
''(changing according to session, but generally in sextets)''
*
Mimi Perrin
Jeannine "Mimi" Perrin (2 February 1926 – 16 November 2010) was a French jazz pianist and singer, and translator.
Perrin received private musical instruction, including piano as a child and pursued English studies at Sorbonne. In 1949, she con ...
(founder)
* Monique Guérin
* Louis Aldebert
*
Ward Swingle (future arranger of the Swingle Singers)
* Jean-Louis Conrozier
*
Roger Guérin
*
Christiane Legrand
Christiane Legrand (21 August 1930 – 1 November 2011) was a French soprano.
Biography
Legrand was born in Paris. Her father Raymond Legrand was a conductor and composer renowned for hits such as ''Irma la douce'', and her mother was Mar ...
* Claude Germain
*
Jacques Denjean
Jacques Denjean (25 May 1929 – 21 December 1995) was a French composer and arranger, active in the 1960s and 1970s.
He worked with artists such as Dionne Warwick, Françoise Hardy, Nana Mouskouri, Johnny Hallyday, Barış Manço, Maria del Ma ...
* Jean-Claude Briodin
*
Eddy Louiss
* Claudine Barge
* Robert Smart
*
Bernard Lubat
* Jef Gilson (
[Dr. Lloyd Miller associate of Jef Gilson in Paris in the early 1960s] arranger)
Discography
*''The Double Six Meet Quincy Jones'',
Columbia Records, 1960
# "For Lena and Lennie" ("En flânant dans Paris")
# "French Rat Race" ("La course au rat")
# "Stockholm Sweetnin'" ("Un coin merveilleux")
# "Boo's Bloos" ("Au temps des Indiens")
# "
Doodlin'" ("Tout en dodelinant")
# "Meet Benny Bailey" ("Au bout du fil")
# "Evening in Paris" ("Il y a fort longtemps")
# "Count 'em" ("T'as foutu l'camp")
''All songs written by
Quincy Jones
Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (born March 14, 1933) is an American record producer, musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and film and television producer. His career spans 70 years in the entertainment industry with a record of 80 Grammy Award n ...
, except "Doodlin'" written by
Horace Silver
Horace Ward Martin Tavares Silver (September 2, 1928 – June 18, 2014) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and arranger, particularly in the hard bop style that he helped pioneer in the 1950s.
After playing tenor saxophone and piano at sc ...
. The US-release on
Capitol Records in 1961 was entitled ''The Double Six of Paris''.
*''The Double Six of Paris: Swingin' Singin,
Philips Records
Philips Records is a record label founded by the Dutch electronics company Philips. It was founded as Philips Phonographische Industrie in 1950. In 1946, Philips acquired the company which pressed records for British Decca's Dutch outlet in ...
, 1962 (recorded 1960–1961)
# "Tickle Toe"
# "
Early Autumn"
# "Sweets"
# "
Naima
"Naima" ( ) is a jazz ballad composed by John Coltrane in 1959 that he named after his then-wife, Juanita Naima Grubbs. Coltrane first recorded it for his 1959 album '' Giant Steps'', and it became one of his first well-known works.
History
Co ...
"
# "Westwood Walk"
# "
Night in Tunisia"
# "A Ballad"
# "
Scrapple from the Apple
"Scrapple from the Apple" is a bebop composition by Charlie Parker written in 1947, commonly recognized today as a jazz standard, written in F major. The song borrows its chord progression from " Honeysuckle Rose", a common practice for Parker, as ...
"
# "Boplicity"
# "
Moanin'
''Moanin'' (originally titled ''Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers'') is a jazz album by Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers recorded in 1958 for the Blue Note label and released in 1959.
Background
This was Blakey's first album for Blue Note ...
"
# "
Fascinating Rhythm
"Fascinating Rhythm" is a popular song written by George Gershwin in 1924 with lyrics by Ira Gershwin.
It was first introduced by Cliff Edwards, Fred Astaire and Adele Astaire in the Broadway musical '' Lady Be Good.'' The Astaires also recorded ...
"
''The first two albums were reissued together in 1999 on
RCA Victor International as ''Les Double Six'' with an additional previously unreleased bonus track.''
*''
Dizzy Gillespie and the Double Six of Paris'', Philips, 1963
# "Emanon"
# "
Anthropology
Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including past human species. Social anthropology studies patterns of be ...
"
# "Tin Tin Deo"
# "One Bass Hit"
# "Two Bass Hit"
# "
Groovin' High
"Groovin' High" is an influential 1945 song by jazz composer and trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie. The song was a bebop mainstay that became a jazz standard, one of Gillespie's best known hits, and according to ''Bebop: The Music and Its Players'' author ...
"
# "Ooh-Shoo-Be-Doo-Bee"
# "
Hot House"
# "
Con Alma
"Con Alma" is a jazz standard written by Dizzy Gillespie, appearing on his 1954 album '' Afro''. The tune incorporates aspects of bebop jazz and Latin rhythm, and is known for its frequent changes in key centers (occurring every two bars), while s ...
"
# "
Blue 'n' Boogie"
# "The Champ"
# "Ow!"
*''The Double Six of Paris Sing Ray Charles'', Philips, 1964
# "
One Mint Julep
"One Mint Julep" is a R&B song, written and composed by Rudy Toombs, that became a 1952 hit for the Clovers.
History
"One Mint Julep" was recorded on the Atlantic Records label in New York City on December 19, 1951, and released in March 1952. ...
"
# "
Yes, Indeed"
# "
Georgia on My Mind
"Georgia on My Mind" is a 1930 song written by Hoagy Carmichael and Stuart Gorrell and first recorded that same year by Hoagy Carmichael. However, the song has been most often associated with soul singer Ray Charles, who was a native of the U ...
"
# "
Lonely Avenue
"Lonely Avenue" is a popular song written by Doc Pomus that was a No. 6 rhythm and blues hit for Ray Charles in 1956.
Background
The song drew the attention of the music business to Doc Pomus, who had previously had little success as a songwrit ...
"
# "Sherri"
# "Let the Good Times Roll By"
# "Halleluja, I Love Her So"
# "
Hit the Road, Jack
Hit means to strike someone or something.
Hit or HIT may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities
* Hit, a fictional character from ''Dragon Ball Super''
* Homicide International Trust, or HIT, a fictional organization i ...
"
# "Ruby"
# "From the Heart"
# "Stompin' Room Only"
;With
Cal Tjader
Callen Radcliffe Tjader Jr. ( ; July 16, 1925 – May 5, 1982) was an American Latin Jazz musician, known as the most successful non-Latino Latin musician. He explored other jazz idioms, even as he continued to perform music of Afro-Jazz, ...
*''
Warm Wave'' (Verve, 1964)
References
External links
*
:''This article is based on a translation of the corresponding article on the
French Wikipedia
The French Wikipedia (french: Wikipédia en français) is the French-language edition of Wikipedia, the free online encyclopedia. This edition was started on 23 March 2001, two months after the official creation of Wikipedia. It has articl ...
.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Double Six, Les
French jazz ensembles
Professional a cappella groups
Musical groups established in 1959
Musical groups disestablished in 1966
Vocalese singers
1959 establishments in France
Vocal jazz ensembles