Only in Paris by Duncan J.D. Smith

65 5 th Arrondissement have vibrated to the music of American jazz legends such as Sidney Bechet, Count Basie, Lionel Hampton, and Art Blakey. Other jazz stal- warts have included swing drummer Panama Francis and his Savoy Sultans, trombonist Gene “The Mighty Flea” Conners, pianist Wild Bill Davis, and trumpeter Harry “Sweets” Edison. Of course leading French jazz musicians have performed here, too, including Claude Lu- ter, Sacha Distel, and Claude Bolling. The venue appears in Marcel Carné’s film Les Tricheurs (1958), and American blues pianist Mem- phis Slim memorialised it in his composition Stomping at the Caveau de la Huchette . French vibraphonist Dany Doriz currently owns the club, opening his doors each night to both regulars and visitors. He is certainly the man for the job having toured with both Lionel Hampton and Ste- phan Grapelli. The timeless atmosphere recalls the Cotton Club and the Savoy in their glory days: vibrant and urgent but with the intimacy of belonging to something very exclusive. The subterranean jazz experience continues at the Caveau des Oubliettes at 52 Rue Galande (5 th ), where a surprising sight is a guillotine said to have been used onmembers of the so-called Chouannerie, who staged a revolution against the Revolution! Other places of interest nearby: 22, 23, 25, 26, 33 Jazz music has been played at the Caveau de la Huchette since just after the Second World War