A Lark Ascending

I recall reading some of your comments in his New History of Jazz - same interview/s?

That's a pity. Just had a brief comment from Mr. Nessa!

Thought this might be of interest to some - playing now. Available on the BBC iPlayer for 7 days: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00v3zn5 (includes a playlist) Not sure if this can be accessed outside the UK.

I first heard the tune in Richard Thompson multitrack acoustic guitar version on 'Strict Tempo' - a wonderful realisation. Try and hear it! The early 30s RCA was my first Ellington encounter. Only recently heard the Paris Concert version (with the 'Kinda Dukish' prelude). It was played on Jazz REcord Requests in August - had to download that album immediately.

Another big one - another one time signature tune. Ellington-a-thon: 3 1320 Rockin’ In Rhythm Duke - Ellington-Harry Carney-Irving Mills - 1931 Incidentally, feel free to go back to earlier discussed tracks. And tell me if I'm going too fast - am aiming at Wednesday and Saturday or Sunday as new tracks days. ******************* Here are some other people who recorded it (from AMG): Allotria Jazz Band American Jazz Orchestra no cover Wessell Anderson Harry Arnold Ballin' the Jack Chris Barber's Jazz Band Charlie Barnett Biba Band Blue Bird Society Orchestra Blue Wisp Big Band Claude Bolling Ruby Braff - George Barnes Quartet Bunny Briggs Ray Brown Jane Bunnett Harry Carney Sonny Criss DMP Big Band Danish Radio Big Band DePaul University Big Band Dany Doriz Bob Dorough Solomon Douglas Drake University Jazz Ensemble Silvia Droste Les Elgart Faux Frenchmen Bobby Ferrel Clare Fischer Ella Fitzgerald Tommy Flanagan Curtis Fuller Fatty George Gerry Gibbs Sextet Steve Lacy Jay Leonhart Walter Levinsky Terry Lightfoot Martin Litton Rob McConnell & the Boss Brass Marian McPartland Jay McShann The Modern Jazz Quartet Michael Moore Don Neely Buell Neidlinger Oliver Nelson Paolo Nonnis Junko Onishi Togo Orkestern Orlando Jazz Orchestra Paramount Jazz Band of Boston Joe Pass Oscar Peterson Oscar Peterson Quartet Oscar Peterson Trio RIAS Big Band Buddy Rich & His Big Band Rochester Pops Jimmy Rowles Royal Society Jazz Orchestra John Shapley Silver Screen Soundtrack Orchestra Zoot Sims Slow Poke Jimmie Smith Willie "The Lion" Smith William Edmond Spooner Harry Strutters Hot Rhthym Orchestra Maxine Sullivan Swing Street Orchestra Swingville All-Stars Aki Takase Chuck Terry Clark Terry Richard Thompson Time Warp Toph-E & The Pussycats Mel Tormé Some of those might not be the Ellington tune! Toph-E & The Pussycats?

Yes, annoying. Any worse than Symphony Sid or Pee Wee Marquette? This sort of hyperbolic presentation of 'stars' seemed to be pretty standard then; I'm not sure much has changed now in the celebrity world.

All I found was some minor info: the sort of info and response you have added is what this thread is all about. 'Freeze and Melt' - by chance playing some of the RCA big box and a segment on 'A Night at the Cotton Club Pt 2' (Apr 1929) has a vocal section with those words. I assume it's the same song as mentioned by Clunky. Sounds like a standard 'Roaring Twenties' tune to these ears.

Some less obvious ones. Ellington-a-thon: 2 Flippant Flurry - 1946 Billy Strayhorn Band Call - 1954 Ellington It’s Glory - aka M’monia 1931 Ellington Hello, Dolly! - 1964 Jerry Herman December Blue - aka Once In A Blue 1953 Kern, Mercer Dixie - 1933 Jimmy McHugh/Dorothy Fields Far Away Star - ??? [seems to be a Swedish folk song brought to Ellington by Alice Babs, recorded 1973?] Freeze And Melt - 1929 Jimmy McHugh/Dorothy Fields I’ve Got The World On A String - 1933 Harold Arlen/Ted Koehler She’s Gone To Join The Songbirds In Heaven - 1939 Ellington, "Cootie" Williams Dates are first recordings according to website at top of thread. Please feel free to correct....the first site seems unreliable on composer. I've used the attribution on the second. ??? means I can't find a date - but I bet someone here can! Only "It's Glory" sticks in my memory. Will hunt around to see what else I have over the next few days. Really looking forward to exploring these less known pieces.

200 pages in and gripped. Some marvellous examples of the realities of segregation that I'll use in my Civil Rights lessons.

Remember that Brunswick set being around in the 90s. Annoyingly it's available to download on Amazon in the USA but not over here. Vanished from physical sales apart from some very expensive copies. AMG lists recordings of East St Louis Toodle-oo by the following: Van Alexander Dan Barrett John Barry Black Swan Classic Jazz Band Claude Bolling Solomon Douglas Dutch Swing College Band Evidence Rob Fisher Sonny Greer Dave Grusin Harlem Hot Owls The Hothousehooters Bob Kaper Kustbandet Mills' Ten Black Berries New Black Eagle Jazz Band New York Trumpet Ensemble Greg Osby The Palace Hot Society Orchestra Pasadena Roof Orchestra Joep Peeters Porteña Jazz Band Geoff Power Sun Ra Rampage Swing Orchestra Rhythm & Brass Takeshi Shibuya Kenichi Simazu Southside Aces Steely Dan The Temperance Seven University of Northern Iowa Jazz Band One WDR Big Band The Whoopee Makers Widespread Depression Orchestra Apart from Steely Dan, the only one I have is the Greg Osby. 'St. Louis Shoes' has just hit the deck. A respectful version that smooths it over a bit at the start. Fairly straight up to Osby's solo which is decidedly post-Parker. A very nice written unison passage towards the end between Osby and Paynton that is post-Ornette!

I have their "Open Letter" album--is this the one which is "not quite so engaging"? Afraid so...in my opinion, that is. The tunes are just stronger on the first two. Loose Tubes did not just have great young players, bursting with energy; but some excellent writers. 'Shelley' off the second album by bassist Steve Bery is a glorious piece of writing. I notice it's on the live disc too.

Some of the Brits here saw them - I think sidewinder mentioned Ronnie's and parading in the street. My memory is of a BBC Proms broadcast where they did a great version of Andy Williams' 'Can't Take My Eyes Off You'. Never saw them live though have seen many of them subsequently in many formations. Interviews surrounding this record suggest that no-one really knows where the tapes went for the studio recordings; but some of the musicians are expressing an interest in getting these out there. The first two are brilliant; the last (with Teo Macero producing) not quite so engaging. Hopefully my copy of the live disc is winging this way at the moment.

Gosh! Some amazing responses there. Especially Jeff's - an analysis written in language a lay-person can understand. Will keep this track open until Wednesday and then throw in some obscurities before moving on to "Rockin'" at the weekend.

Didn't realise there were so many. I just played back the RCA Dec 1927 version. Seems to have a rondo like structure (to use a classical term) the opening minor key episode interspersed with major key sections. I especially like Harry Carney's bit!

First heard Ellington version of 'East St. Louis Toodle-oo' on an RCA 3 CD compilation put out by the Sunday Times in the late 70s. But what brought me there was hearing Steely Dan do it on 'Pretzel Logic' a little earlier - wah-wah guitar replacing Bubber Miley! I doubt if I'm the only one of my age range who first heard Ellington there! I believe this was also recorded on other labels beside RCA - Decca (or a company that became or was absorbed by Decca?). Be interested to know if they differ much.

OK - looks like a goer. There is the danger of it getting ungainly but lets try it fiirst and see how things go. We can modify later. So to kick off: Ellington-a-thon: 1 East St. Louis Toodle-oo First recording: 1926 I'll use this format to distinguish the introduction of the tunes from the responses.

I'd like to start an Ellington-a-thon thread. Given this board is full of Ellington enthusiasts - some of very long standing - it seems an ideal place. And I expect we'll all be listening to lots of Ellington with the up-and-coming Mosaic in our minds. What it would involve is me putting up an Ellington track or group of tracks every 3 or 4 days inviting comment: a) On Ellington versions (from the famous to those tucked away on live or private recordings) - anything from erudite analysis to simple personal reaction. b) On interpretations by other musicians. The list I have runs to nearly 2 000! So I'd put the less well known/celebrated up in batches, the really famous tracks on their own. In some respects it might be the less well known that would be most interesting to hear about. I'll be flexible about how frequently to introduce the next batch - if a really good debate is going I'll just delay; if it goes dead, the next batch goes up. Thought of starting with some well known pieces - 'East St. Louis Toodle-oo', 'Rockin' in Rhythm' and 'Take the A-Train' (all signature tunes at some point, I believe). Rather than posting chronologically or alphabetically I'll probably jumble them up to add an element of surprise. Probably keep Suites together, though inevitably some tunes will escape as they have a life on their own. So, is there enough interest to make this viable? [background: Did a Monk-a-thon on another board about 3 years ago and it was a revelation. Apart from sending me to Monk records I did not know it introduced me to some amazing interpretations from other musicians] The poster formerly known as Bev Source of the list: http://www.ellingtonia.com/titles.html Dates from here (first mentioned recording): http://www.depanorama.net/

Jazz records were always much easier to come by on the mainland. I can remember being gobsmacked by the stores in Paris, Brussels and Berlin. To stand much of a chance of getting European/US releases in Britain you had to go to London.

1925-1940 Columbia was on 15 2 LP sets. Not complete but still... When did that come out? I snapped up the RCA black and white twofers in the mid-80s but don't recall ever seeing theose. Perhaps they didn't appear in Britain or had been discontinued by then. Getting imports involved a lot more work in those days.

Looking forward to this. Although the RCA's have been available in various forms in my listening lifetime a comprehensive collection of the Columbia years has been elusive (I believe there was something on LP before I really got interested in the early 80s). I have things scattered over various Classics and ASV discs. Be good to have this - though I suspect that by the time customs have spotted it I'll have paid a fortune!

I have Paypal frustrations - he came here last week and told us we were all too secular. Cheeky bugger! Sorry...couldn't resist.

About 2 years behind the rest of the world but it was worth the wait.

Come on MG. You're British. You're a man. Use this: