Woody Allen's 2011 film, Midnight in Paris was a hit summer film in the U.S. and Paris, and also a theme that resonated during my annual two-month sojourn to the City of Light. At that hour, I was often happily sitting in jazz venues, my spirits lifted both by the music and seeing the clubs filled with listeners of all ages.
Jazz is easy to locate in Paris because music venues are listed by type in the events section of two weekly mini-magazines—Pariscope and L'Official Spectacle—that are issued every Wednesday, and available at newsstand kiosks. Among the many free music publications are LYLO (les yeux/les oreilles—eyes/ears) and Paris Jazz Club, found at venues and FNAC music/book stores, where advance tickets may be purchased (recommended for top-name performers).
The midnight hour in Paris also is when some boeufs begin—jam sessions so-named from the1930s, when jazz musicians met to play at midnight on the rooftop of Le Boeuf restaurant. But other jams start as early as 6 or 8 pm. There are frequent tributes to deceased and living jazz luminaries, including jazz manouche that replicate the gypsy-jazz sound of