Mainly jazz
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New Morning jazz club

Le Baiser Salé 58 rue des Lombards, 1^er tel 01.42.33.37.71. A bar downstairs and a small, crowded upstairs room with live music every night from 10pm – usually jazz, rhythm & blues, Latino-rock, reggae or Brazilian. Admission 8–15. M° Châtelet. Mon–Sat 8pm–5am.

Le Bilboquet 13 rue St-Benoît, 6^e tel 01.45.48.81.84. A smart, comfortable bar/restaurant with live jazz every night, featuring local and international stars. The music starts at 10.45pm and food is served until 1am. No admission fee, but pricey drinks (18.50). M° St-Germain. Mon–Sat 9pm–dawn.

Caveau de la Huchette 5 rue de la Huchette, 5^e tel 01.43.26.65.05. A wonderful slice of old Parisian life in an otherwise touristy area. Both Sidney Bechet and Lionel Hampton played here. Live jazz, usually trad and big band, to dance to on a floor surrounded by tiers of benches, and a bar decorated with caricatures of the barman drawn on any material to hand. M° St-Michel. Daily 9.30pm–2am or later. Sun–Thurs 9; Fri & Sat 13; drinks from 4. Fri–Sun 5–9pm, happy hour with swing, free entrance.

Au Duc des Lombards 42 rue des Lombards, 1^er tel 01.42.33.22.88, www.jazzvalley.com/duc. Small, unpretentious bar with performances every night from 9pm. This is the place to hear gypsy jazz, as well as jazz piano, blues, ballads and fusion. Sometimes has big names. Admission 16–19; drinks from 4.50. M° Châtelet/Les-Halles. Daily until 3am.

L'Eustache 37 rue Berger, 1^er tel 01.40.26.23.20. Young and friendly Les Halles café, the cheapest place to hear good jazz in the capital. Live jazz 9.30pm–2am on Thurs. M° Châtelet/Les-Halles. Daily 11am–4am.

Instants Chavirés 7 rue Richard-Lenoir, Montreuil tel 01.42.87.25.91, www.instantschavires.fr.st. Avant-garde jazz joint – no comforts – on the eastern edge of the city, close to the Porte de Montreuil. A place where musicians go to hear each other play; its reputation has attracted subsidies from both state and local authorities. Admission 11. M° Robespierre. Tues–Sat 8pm–1am; concerts at 9pm.

Lionel Hampton Bar Hôtel Méridien, 81 bd Gouvion-St-Cyr, 17^e tel 01.40.68.30.42.

First-rate jazz venue with big-name musicians. Inaugurated by Himself, but otherwise the great man is only an irregular visitor. Admission 23–25. M° Porte-Maillot. Mon–Sat 10pm–2am.

Quai du Blues 17 bd Vital-Bouhot, Île de la Jatte, Neuilly tel 01.46.24.22.00, www.quaidublues.com. Not the most central of places to get to, but worth the hike if you're a blues fan. Mainly blues, R&B, gospel by American musicians. There's also a restaurant (set menu from 24). Admission 15. M° Pont-de-Levallois, then down the steps from the bridge. Thurs–Sat, 8.30pm onwards.

New Morning 7–9 rue des Petites-Écuries, 10^e tel 01.45.23.51.41, www.newmorning.com. The decor's somewhat spartan, resembling an underground garage, but this is the place to catch the big international names in jazz. Get here early or it's likely to be standing room only. Admission around 19. M° Château-d'Eau. Usually Mon–Sat 9pm–1.30am (concerts start around 9.30pm).

Le Petit Journal 71 bd St-Michel, 5^e tel 01.43.26.28.59. Small, smoky bar, long frequented by Left-Bank student-types, though these days it's rather middle-aged and touristy. Plays good, mainly French, traditional and mainstream sounds. Admission 15; 31–40 including meal. RER Luxembourg. Mon–Sat 9pm–2am; closed Aug.

Le Petit Journal Montparnasse 13 rue du Commandant-Mouchotte, 14^e tel 01.43.21.56.70. Under the Hôtel Montparnasse, and sister establishment to the above, with bigger visiting names, both French and international. Admission free; first drink 16.77. M° Montparnasse-Bienvenüe. Mon–Sat 9pm–2am.

Le Petit Opportun 15 rue des Lavandières-Ste-Opportune, 1^er tel 01.42.36.01.36. It's worth arriving early to get a seat for the live music in the dungeon-like cellar, where the acoustics play strange tricks and you can't always see the musicians. Fairly eclectic policy and a crowd of genuine connoisseurs. The first set starts at 10.30pm. Admission 13–16. M° Châtelet-Les Halles. Tues–Sat 9pm–dawn; closed Aug.

Les 7 Lézards 10 rue des Rosiers, 4^e tel 01.48.87.08.97, www.7lezards.com. A recently established jazz club, with a cosy, intimate atmosphere, that has already made a name for itself, attracting local and international acts alike. There's also a restaurant. Admission 10–16. M° St-Paul. Wed–Sat 7.15pm–2am.

Slow Club 130 rue de Rivoli, 1^er tel 01.42.33.84.30. Jazz club where you can bop the night away to the sounds of Claude Luther's quintet and visiting New Orleans musicians. Admission 9–13 (students 9). M° Châtelet/Pont-Neuf. Tues & Thurs–Sat 9.30pm–4am.

Le Sunset/Le Sunside 60 rue des Lombards, 1^er tel 01.40.26.46.20. Two clubs in one: Le Sunside on the ground floor features mostly traditional jazz, whereas the downstairs Sunset is a venue for electric and fusion jazz. The Sunside concert usually starts at 9pm, the Sunset at 10pm, so you can sample a bit of both. Attracts some of the best musicians – the likes of pianist Alain JeanMarie and Turk Mauro. Admission 12–20. M° Châtelet/Les-Halles. Mon–Sat 9.30pm–2.30am.

Utopia 1 rue de l'Ouest, 14^e tel 01.43.22.79.66. No genius here, but good atmosphere and good French blues singers interspersed with jazz and blues tapes, and a mostly young and studenty crowd. Admission free. M° Pernety. Mon–Sat 10pm–dawn; closed Aug.