Les Double Six (also known as the Double Six of Paris) was a French

vocal jazz Vocal jazz or jazz singing is a genre within jazz music where the voice is used as an instrument. Vocal jazz began in the early twentieth century. Jazz music has its roots in blues and ragtime and can also traced back to the Dixieland jazz, New Or ...

group established in 1959 by

Mimi Perrin Jeannine "Mimi" Perrin (2 February 1926 – 16 November 2010) was a French jazz pianist, singer, and translator. Music career Perrin received private musical instruction, including piano as a child and pursued English studies at Sorbonne. In ...

. 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 Brian Douglas Wilson (June 20, 1942 – June 11, 2025) was an American musician, songwriter, singer and record producer who co-founded the Beach Boys. Often Brian Wilson is a genius, called a genius for his novel approaches to pop compositio ...

of the

Beach Boys The Beach Boys are an American rock band formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and their friend Al Jardine. Distinguished by thei ...

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. (March 14, 1933 – November 3, 2024) was an American record producer, composer, arranger, conductor, trumpeter, and bandleader. Over the course of his seven-decade career, he received List of awards and nominations re ...

and

Dizzy Gillespie John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie ( ; October 21, 1917 – January 6, 1993) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, composer, educator and singer. He was a trumpet virtuoso and improvisation, improviser, building on the virtuosic style of Roy El ...

, 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), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...

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 The Swingles are an a cappella vocal group. The Swingle Singers were originally formed in 1962 in Paris under the leadership of Ward Swingle. In 1973, Swingle disbanded the French group, and formed an English group known initially as Swingle I ...

, which notably reproduced the works of

Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (German: �joːhan zeˈbasti̯an baχ ( – 28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his prolific output across a variety of instruments and forms, including the or ...

in the jazz vocal style. The Double Six were nominated for Best Vocal Group Performance at the 1965

Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious a ...

for their LP ''The Double Six of Paris Sing Ray Charles'', but were beaten by

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

' " A Hard Day's Night".

Members

''(changing according to session, but generally in sextets)'' *

(founder) * Monique Guérin * Louis Aldebert *

Ward Swingle Ward Lamar Swingle (September 21, 1927 – January 19, 2015) was an American vocalist and jazz musician who founded The Swingle Singers in France in 1962. Life and career Born in Mobile, Alabama, Swingle studied music, particularly jazz, from a ...

(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 singer. 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 moth ...

* Claude Germain * Jacques Denjean * Jean-Claude Briodin * Eddy Louiss * Claudine Barge * Robert Smart *

Bernard Lubat Bernard Lubat (born July 12, 1945, Uzeste) is a French jazz drummer, pianist, singer, percussionist, vibraphone, vibraphonist, and accordionist. Early life and career Lubat grew up in a musical family (his father played trumpet) and he receive ...

* 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 Columbia Records is an American reco ...

, 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

, 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 sch ...

. The US-release on

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007), and simply known as Capitol, is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-base ...

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 Netherlands, Dutch electronics company Philips and in 1999 was absorbed into Netherlands, Dutch-United States, American music corporation Universal Music Group. It was founded as Philips Phonograph ...

, 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' ''Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers'', also called ''Moanin, is a studio album by Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers recorded on October 30, 1958, and released on Blue Note Records, Blue Note later that year. Background This was Blakey's firs ...

" # "

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 record ...

" ''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, society, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including archaic humans. Social anthropology studies patterns of behav ...

" # "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 "Blue 'n' Boogie" is a 1944 jazz standard. It was written by Dizzy Gillespie and Frank Paparelli. It can be found on Gillespie's 1955 compilation album ''Groovin' High'', and was notably performed by trumpeter Miles Davis on ''Miles Davis All-Star ...

" # "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. The song has received over 100 cover versions, both with lyrics and as an instrumental. History "One Mint Julep" was recorded on the ...

" # " 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 Carmichael at the RCA Studios New York#24th St, RCA Victor Studios at 155 East 24th Street in New York City. The song has ...

" # " Lonely Avenue" # "Sherri" # "Let the Good Times Roll By" # "Halleluja, I Love Her So" # "

Hit the Road, Jack "Hit the Road Jack" is a song written by the rhythm and blues singer Percy Mayfield and recorded by Ray Charles. The song was a US number 1 hit in 1961, and won a Grammy Award for Best Rhythm and Blues Recording, becoming one of Charles' signa ...

" # "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, often described as the most successful non-Latino Latin music (genre), Latin musician. He explored other jazz idioms, especially small group mod ...

*''

Warm Wave ''Warm Wave'' is an album by Latin jazz vibraphonist Cal Tjader fronting an orchestra arranged and conducted by Claus Ogerman recorded in 1964 and released on the Verve label.

'' (Verve, 1964)

References

External links

* {{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 1966 disestablishments in France Vocal jazz ensembles