Swing 39 is an instrumental piece written by Django Reinhardt and Stéphane Grappelli, with no lyrics. It was recorded in Paris on 21 March 1939 by the Quintette du Hot Club de France, with Reinhardt on guitar and Grappelli on violin. The recording was issued on 78 rpm discs on the Swing and Brunswick labels, and the first release was a single coupled with 'Jeepers Creepers'. The piece is partly inspired by their earlier 'Minor Swing' (1937) and by the French zazou scene of the war years.
Light, rhythmic and joyful, it is a gypsy jazz or swing-manouche piece. Reinhardt recorded many variants, including 'Swing 41', 'Swing 42', 'Swing 48' and 'Nuages' (1940), partly as a jibe at the Gestapo during the Occupation. The tune is in G. It is listed as a jazz standard, and later versions include recordings by Bobby Hackett, Charlie Byrd, Nigel Kennedy, Joscho Stephan and Jacob Fischer.
