Guitarist Marcel Bianchi (1911–1997), born in Marseille but raised in Corsica, where as a child he first learned the mandolin. Like Django Reinhardt, he quickly mastered the supple coup de plume wrist motion that would later give his guitar playing both precision and fire. After returning to Marseille in the early thirties, he made his professional debut, and by nineteen—moved by the first recordings of the Quintette du Hot Club de France—he set off for Paris. Spotted by Alix Combelle, he soon found himself playing alongside Philippe Brun and Stéphane Grappelli, earning acclaim as a soloist.

After wartime years in Switzerland, where he built a reputation and recorded extensively, Bianchi returned to France and in 1944 became one of the first Europeans to adopt the electric guitar. Leading his own orchestra, he balanced popular dance music with genuine jazz, improvising in a style inspired by Django, Les Paul, and Charlie Christian. A prolific recording artist, he was admired for his technical brilliance, clarity, and catchy, unpretentious swing.

In 1954, accompanied by his orchestra, he recorded for Vogue the piece 'À la Mulligan,' a West Coast–styled arrangement with Bianchi as lead soloist—a fitting close to this collection [...]

From 1952 on, he was the partner of Denise Varene, whom he married in 1957. Recording career ended in 1978, but he still was active around Juan-les-Pins until 1993.

—Jordi Pujol (Taken from the inside liner-notes of the compilation FSRCD 1166)