Nuages was first issued under that name in 2002, as a reissue of The Great Artistry of Django Reinhardt, a 1953 10″ record on Norman Granz’s Clef label, plus 4 bonus tracks that had been issued as singles by Decca (also in 1953).

This vinyl issue was produced in 2017 by Jazz Images, presumably a digital-to-vinyl transfer. I know some analogue purists find such reissues distasteful, but I think this recording sounds fantastic. I’d snap up an original 50s pressing too, if I ever find one.

Sessions for the tracks on the Clef release were March 10th and 11th of 1953, with a quartet: Reinhardt joined by Maurice Vander (piano), Pierre Michelot (bass), and Jean-Louis Viale (drums). The bonus tracks were recorded in a session on April 8th, 1953, with a quintet adding Fats Sadi (on vibraphone) and replacing Vander with Martial Solal and Viale with Pierre Lemarchand.

These are some of the last recordings Reinhardt made – he died suddenly in May of 1953.

My copy via Worcester Record Riot (a record fair in Worcester MA).