Track Listing

1. Take the "A" Train - Duke Ellington's Famous Orchestra
2. Warm Valley - Duke Ellington's Famous Orchestra
3. Cotton Tail - Duke Ellington's Famous Orchestra
4. Jack the Bear - Duke Ellington's Famous Orchestra
5. Concerto for Cootie - Duke Ellington's Famous Orchestra
6. Black and Tan Fantasy - Duke Ellington & His Orchestra
7. East St. Louis Toodle-Oo - Duke Ellington & His Orchestra
8. Mooche - Duke Ellington & His Cotton Club Orchestra
9. Mood Indigo - Duke Ellington & His Cotton Club Orchestra
10. Rockin' In Rhythm - Duke Ellington & His Cotton Club Orchestra
11. Creole Rhapsody, Pt. 1 - Duke Ellington & His Orchestra
12. I Got It Bad (And That Ain't Good) - Duke Ellington's Famous Orchestra
13. Don't You Know I Care (Or Don't You Care to Know) [Take 2] - Duke Ellington's Famous Orchestra
14. Chelsea Bridge - Duke Ellington's Famous Orchestra
15. Work Song [Take 2] - Duke Ellington's Famous Orchestra
16. Caravan - Duke Ellington's Famous Orchestra
17. Perdido - Duke Ellington & His Orchestra
18. Isfahan - Duke Ellington & His Orchestra
19. Blood Count - Duke Ellington & His Orchestra
20. Come Sunday [Vocal Version] - Duke Ellington & His Orchestra

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #7884 in Music
• Brand: RCA
• Released on: 2000-11-07
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .22 pounds

Customer Reviews

excellent sampler
It is of course impossible to produce a one CD "best of" Duke Ellington without a certain degree of arbitrariness and inevitable key omissions, but leaving that aside, this is a delightful compilation, one of the best one CD compilations available. One has to make some allowances too for the age of the recordings (for some reason old Ellington recordings never sound quite as clean as Armstrong recordings from the same time period), but RCA has done a very good job with the remastering and the CD by and large sounds better than, for example, the Ken Burns compilation.

The Great Duke Ellington!
Once again, I am back with a Duke review. And I say, "SUPERB!" My favorite is, "Take the A train" among others. The level of the bass on this song must have been heart pounding when heard live, judging from this CD; I'd say it was very noticeable. There was a hint of old recording crackling in the background when heard through earphones, but the recordings really were very clear. I could listen to this CD all day long. Another great CD I recommend.

Crackle for ambience, Ellington forever
There's some slight crackling on this disc, but it's not bad at all, just enough to add some extra ambience to all those freezing winter evenings spent at home on your couch under the toasty glow of Duke Ellington and His Famous Orchestra. The recordings on this compilation date from between 1928 and 1966, so the sound quality varies, but it's never annoying. As for the Duke's music, if you ever get tired of "Take The 'A' Train", "Cotton Tail", or "Isfahan", you're nuts.