This is the second installment of a set of three, documenting a concert Art Blakey did at the Club St Germain in Paris on December 21, 1958. A recording that according to Blakey was never allowed.
Back in 1958 Blakey with his jazz messengers were the hottest jazz you could go to. This was still the time when listening to American jazz was a bit special. Maybe a little bit like listening to Lou Reed in the 60s.
The Club St Germain was located in the basement of a building on a corner in the sixth departement on the rive gauche in the center of the city. It opened in 1948, and was so popular that more than a thousand people were standing outside on the opening night. They could not come in anymore.
It was this popularity that also ended its existence: it was just too popular for its own good. And when drugs Started to be used in the jazz scene, it went out of control. It stopped programming jazz, and is now a disco.