Track Listing

1. Happy Go Lucky
2. Main Stem
3. C Jam Blues
4. Multi Colored Blue
5. Chinoiserie
6. Black & Tan Fantasy
7. Cottontail
8. Mood Indigo
9. Bli-Blip
10. Harlem Air Shaft
11. Portrait Of Louis Armstrong

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #141662 in Music
• Released on: 1999-04-13
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: Live

Amazon.com
Powerfully rendered and enthusiastically received by the crowd at New York's Supper Club, this collection of Duke Ellington favorites is worthwhile for its buoyant spirit and execution. It's a session where, like most of Ellington's, multiple soloists get to sound off in a three-minute span, creating an atmosphere where economy in individual expression is a must. So on "C Jam Blues," long associated with Ellington's favorite alto saxophonist, Johnny Hodges, Wynton Marsalis yields the floor to fellow trumpeter Marcus Printup, who in turn yields to tenor saxophonist Walter Blanding, and so on. Further, the band avoids trying to echo Hodges's alto to make the tune more Ellingtonian. The group is content to shuffle through it in its own manner, sounding frequently more like a bluesy Basie band than an Ellington outfit. No matter, though, since this is ultimately a fun recording, packed with solid band workouts and even handsomely presenting vocalists Milt Grayson on "Multi Colored Blue" and Dianne Reeves on "Bli Blip." But it's not ultimately the swinging tunes, best of which here are "Cottontail" and "Harlem Air Shaft," that make this a genuinely important look at Ellington. It's the band's reflective take on Billy Strayhorn's "Chinoiserie," replete with Blanding's smart solo. Or maybe it is "Cottontail," with Illinois Jacquet's wingspread solo with its mix of gutbucket pocks and slurry wisps. --Andrew Bartlett

Customer Reviews

This is what it is about.....
Wynton Marsalis and his Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra have made a big impact on how younger audiences appreciate the jazz of yesteryear. In particular, Marsalis and his partners have focused their considerable talents on the music of Duke Ellington.

Ellington, whose music is more like a symphony than many "serious" composers can claim, has never had his music appreciated for its real importance. Elllington's works, many serious and others playful, are never without a message. They represent some of the greatest jazz works ever scored and the pinnacle of the big band tradition.

The LCJO tackles a wide variety of Ellington tunes on this disc, focusing on the element of dance in the jazz tradition. The LCJO swings through some of the jumping-est Ellington tunes out there with a polish rarely seen.

Recorded live while dancers danced the night away, there is a tremendous energy that weaves through all the tunes. You can hear the players urging each other on and the shouts of appreciation/acclamation from the dancers. Though there is some sloppiness in a couple ensemble licks, the listener can tell it was more a result of the "let it all hang out" attitude at the gig.

Letting it all hang out comes naturally for the LCJO, comprised of some of the finest jazz players today. Particularly refreshing is the dead on lead trumpet playing of Seneca Black and the down-n-dirty soul of Wycliffe Gordon's trombone.

Check out the hip vocals on "Blip Blip" and imagine what it must've been like to hear the original Ellington band, back when they were the hottest thing going on.

Swing yourself into a good mood
You almost always know you're in trouble when a reviewer says "If you only own one, make this it"--but here goes anyway.

If you only own one swing album, this is the one you want.

Not that I'm an expert, mind you. Not that I have the background to make such an audacious statement. Not even that I've seen Ken Burns' JAZZ all the way through.

But this CD is really, really good. Put it in and you'll be instantly taken away from your troubles. It sinks its grabs you by the funny bone and immediately forces you into I-Don't-Have-A-Stinkin'-Job mode. Seriously. You'll forget EVERYTHING but this music and the way it makes you feel.

Other reviewers have pointed to "Harlem Air Shaft" and "Cottontail" as, if you will, the most academically important tracks for understanding Duke Ellington. But I'm no jazz scholar. For me, the fun of the album is what shines through, and there are no better exemplars of that well-orchestrated whimsy than "Portrait of Louis Armstrong", "Black and Tan Fantasy", "C Jam Blues" and the magnificent "Bli Blip". Once you hear Dianne Reeves sing with the boys, you'll have her stuck in your brain for days.

Trust me, this is one album you NEED to help you get out of the mood to work.

The LCJO performs Ellington better than any jazz band around
I heard the LCJO live on April 16th in Chicago's Symphony Center and they played a show that had Ellington of all era's from "Black and Tan Fantasy" to the later day works from Afro-Basso Suite. This CD captures the live spirit that the Ellington performances were noted for as well as the new invigorating spirit that the LCJO brings to Ellington and Strays music. The LCJO transformed the classical music center in Chicago to the swinging feel of the Blue Note and Mr.Kelley's all rolled into one swinging Symphony Center. Put on the CD pour yourself a cocktail and enjoy the magical Ellington ride via Wynton and the dynamic LCJO.