"It must schwing!" was the motto of Alfred Lion and Francis Wolff, two German Jewish immigrants who in 1939 set up Blue Note Records, the jazz label that was home to such greats as Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Herbie Hancock, Thelonious Monk, Art Blakey, Dexter Gordon and Sonny Rollins. Blue Note, the most successful movie ever made about jazz, is a testimony to the passion and vision of these two men and certainly swings like the propulsive sounds that made their label so famous.
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| FFreddie HubbardSelf | Self |
| GGil MelléSelf | Self |
 Herbie HancockSelf | Self |
| HHorace SilverSelf | Self |
 Carlos SantanaSelf | Self |
 Johnny GriffinSelf | Self |
 Bertrand TavernierSelf | Self |
 Ron CarterSelf | Self |
| MMaurice CullazSelf | Self |
| RRuth LionSelf - Alfred's wife | Self - Alfred's wife |
| HHans BorgeltSelf - Historian | Self - Historian |
| TTaj MahalSelf | Self |
| JJoe ChambersSelf | Self |
| BBobby HutchersonSelf | Self |
| BBob CranshawSelf | Self |
| JJ.J. JohnsonSelf | Self |
 Brigitte MiraSelf | Self |
| KKonrad KellenSelf - Writer | Self - Writer |
| LLorraine GordonSelf - Lion's First Wife | Self - Lion's First Wife |
| HHerman HaarmannSelf - Historian | Self - Historian |
| BBob BeldenSelf - Producer | Self - Producer |
| TTommy TurrentineSelf | Self |
| WWilliam ClaxtonSelf | Self |