Ellington-a-thon

[A Lark Ascending]

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!

[alppila]

Great idea: will look on this as an opportunity to breeze through the hours of Ellington I've been amassing for the past couple of years.

[A Lark Ascending]

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.

Edited October 6, 2010 by A Lark Ascending

[jeffcrom]

Well, I'll start with "Far Away Star" - one of Ellington's all-time least essential recordings, I'd say. He didn't write the song or the arrangement, and recorded it only once, late in his life. It was written by Swedish pianist and bandleader Nils Lindberg, with dreadful, melodramatic lyrics by actress Signe Hasso. Lindberg wrote the arrangement.

Alice Babs, the remarkable Swedish singer with whom Ellington recorded a few times, performed at the 1973 Newport Festival, accompanied by Ellington's band. The next day they went into the studio and recorded "Far Away Star," along with three Ellington tunes reworked to feature Babs. I much prefer the Ellington pieces from this session - except for the sound of Harry Carney's baritone sax, nothing about "Far Away Star" sounds like Ellington. The session can be heard on an Alice Babs album called Far Away Star, on the Swedish Bluebell label.

Later: As I was writing this, I see that you found out some of this info yourself.

Edited October 6, 2010 by jeffcrom

[EKE BBB]

"Flippant Furry" is a quite unemotional mini-concerto composed by Billy Strayhorn as a vehicle for the most academic side of Jimmy Hamilton's clarinet.

It was premiered in the 23nov46 Carnegie Hall concert and then abbreviated for the 5dec46 Musicraft recording, which has a completely different intro: while the Carnegie Hall version has 20 bars by Hamilton, followed by passages of 4 & 2 bars by the full orchestra alternating with 2-bar breaks by Oscar Pettiford, the Musicraft version opens with 4 bars by Ellington's piano, 3 by Russell Procope and 1 by the full orchestra. Both versions have three choruses of different length, but the 32-bars coda is structurally identical on both.

(label scan is courtesy of David Palmquist's wonderful website, "The Dooji Collection" - see http://ellingtonweb.ca/Hostedpages/DoojiCollection/DoojiCollection.htm)

The version recorded in the 7jan47 Capitol radio transcription session at the Pathé studios is very similar to the Musicraft but for the intro, which in this case is 26-bars long (20 clarinet, 4 orchestra, 2 bass).

It was recorded just twice more: in the 19apr47 Cornell University concert and in a 1jul47 CBS broadcast from El Patio Ballroom in Lakeside Park (Denver).

Edited October 7, 2010 by EKE BBB

[jeffcrom]

I agree that "Flippant Flurry" is kind of contrived and not totally successful, but it's an interesting attempt. I think of it as one of the several Billy Strayhorn compositions from this period where it sounds like he's trying too hard.

[jeffcrom]

From what I can tell, Ellington only recorded "I've Got the World on a String" once, for British Columbia (the label, not the province) in 1933. It's a good version - Ellington puts his own stamp on the tune. There's a short intro and coda using the "Mood Indigo" instrumentation - clarinet, muted trumpet and trombone. Artie Whetsol (I think) introduces the melody on trumpet before Ivie Anderson takes over with her unique style. Barney Bigard plays an obligato behind the vocal, and there are good solos by Lawrence Brown and Cootie Williams. It's a good example of Ellington personalizing a pop tune.

This recording also reminds me that part of being a great arranger/bandleader is knowing which soloist to point to next. I hear this in Gil Evans all the time. The succession of Lawrence Brown to Cootie Williams perfectly brings the arrangement to a climax, with the coda winding things down quickly.

[EKE BBB]

[quote

name='jeffcrom' date='07 October 2010 - 03:05 AM' timestamp='1286413521' post='1057036']

From what I can tell, Ellington only recorded "I've Got the World on a String" once, for British Columbia (the label, not the province) in 1933.

[Clunky]

I've only got a few of these in my collection

It's Glory aka M'Monia

Two versions exist , June '31 on Victor and the opening number recorded by Jack Towers on the famous Fargo set from November 1940. Only the Victor gives us the full length treatment. An uptempo number , slap bass prominent (Wellman Braud), Hodges solos first followed by Cootie Williams then a lovely spot by Carney. A nice swinging number that in honesty I'd largely ignored until now.

It's a real pity that the tapes missed so much of the Fargo version, we get a little bit of trombone soloing over the band , then what I assume must be Ben Webster sounding pretty boisterous. It remains an up tempo number but sounds like a real flag waver. Interestingly the notes to the Fargo 60th anniversary 2CD set state that the band parts are quite stained and marked possibly from frequent use as a set opener.

[Clunky]

Freeze and Melt - April 1929 ( Fields/McHugh) - (found on The Okeh Ellington 2cd Sony

According to the liner notes Cootie Williams was not long in the band following the departure of Bubber Miley. This is an uptempo number that to my ears doesn't sound too Ellingtonian.

Wellman Braud is heard to advantage then Hodges? , Cootie solos over a rather chugging rhythm section, not sure who's on the bell (Sonny Greer ?) at the end but not an especially distinguished number but it's good enough.

Fletcher Henderson also recorded it but I don't think I've got it in my collection

[Clunky]

"Flippant Furry" is a quite unemotional mini-concerto composed by Billy Strayhorn as a vehicle for the most academic side of Jimmy Hamilton's clarinet.

It was premiered in the 23nov46 Carnegie Hall concert and then abbreviated for the 5dec46 Musicraft recording, which has a completely different intro: while the Carnegie Hall version has 20 bars by Hamilton, followed by passages of 4 & 2 bars by the full orchestra alternating with 2-bar breaks by Oscar Peterson, the Musicraft version opens with 4 bars by Ellington's piano, 3 by Russell Procope and 1 by the full orchestra. Both versions have three choruses of different length, but the 32-bars coda is structurally identical on both.

The version recorded in the 7jan47 Capitol radio transcription session at the Pathé studios is very similar to the Musicraft but for the intro, which in this case is 26-bars long (20 clarinet, 4 orchestra, 2 bass).

It was recorded just twice more: in the 19apr47 Cornell University concert and in a 1jul47 CBS broadcast from El Patio Ballroom in Lakeside Park (Denver).

Found a version of Flippant Flurry on The Golden Duke Ellington Prestige 24029 ( 2LP set issued 1973), given date is 25/11/46 but location not stated other than NYC, so I assume it's the same performance as the Carnegie one above (23/11/46) although it opens with Duke at the piano followed by Hamilton, so perhaps it's the Musicraft date???

[jeffcrom]

From what I can tell, Ellington only recorded "I've Got the World on a String" once, for British Columbia (the label, not the province) in 1933.

Yes, on 15feb33. Here's the label scan:

http://ellingtonweb.ca/Hostedpages/DoojiCollection/DE3302e-I'veGotTheWorldOnAString-W26505-ddc6_1_sbl.jpg

You can hear it, for example, in this Hep CD: "Ivie and Duke Vol.1 - Raisin' the Rent. Studio Performances 1932/37". Nice vocals by Ivie.

I've got it on an EMI/Swing double CD set: Ridin' in Rhythm, which includes Fletcher Henderson, Coleman Hawkins, and lots of great musicians. It's OOP, but not too hard to find. I almost wrote that this track was my introduction to Ivie Anderson, but I thought, "How could that be? I know I heard her before the CD era." Then I remembered that I once had these tracks on an old Prestige LP.

I've only got a few of these in my collection

It's Glory aka M'Monia

Two versions exist , June '31 on Victor and the opening number recorded by Jack Towers on the famous Fargo set from November 1940. Only the Victor gives us the full length treatment. An uptempo number , slap bass prominent (Wellman Braud), Hodges solos first followed by Cootie Williams then a lovely spot by Carney. A nice swinging number that in honesty I'd largely ignored until now.

It's a real pity that the tapes missed so much of the Fargo version, we get a little bit of trombone soloing over the band , then what I assume must be Ben Webster sounding pretty boisterous. It remains an up tempo number but sounds like a real flag waver. Interestingly the notes to the Fargo 60th anniversary 2CD set state that the band parts are quite stained and marked possibly from frequent use as a set opener.

I absolutely love that incomplete Fargo version of "It's Glory." It's really exciting.

Found a version of Flippant Flurry on The Golden Duke Ellington Prestige 24029 ( 2LP set issued 1973), given date is 25/11/46 but location not stated other than NYC, so I assume it's the same performance as the Carnegie one above (23/11/46) although it opens with Duke at the piano followed by Hamilton, so perhaps it's the Musicraft date???

It's the Musicraft. IIRC, one disc of that Prestige album collected all the Musicraft sides.

Edited October 7, 2010 by jeffcrom

[Swinging Swede]

the Carnegie Hall version has 20 bars by Hamilton, followed by passages of 4 & 2 bars by the full orchestra alternating with 2-bar breaks by Oscar Peterson

Wow!

[EKE BBB]

the Carnegie Hall version has 20 bars by Hamilton, followed by passages of 4 & 2 bars by the full orchestra alternating with 2-bar breaks by Oscar Peterson

Wow!

Pettiford, of course. Corrected on original post!

[A Lark Ascending]

Later: As I was writing this, I see that you found out some of this info yourself.

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.

Edited October 7, 2010 by A Lark Ascending

[papsrus]

"She's Gone" -- Cootie Williams and His Rugcutters. Recorded NYC, Feb. 28, 1939. From Mosaic's "Duke Ellington: The Complete 1936 - 1940 Variety, Vocalion and Okeh Small Group Sessions"

A fairly straightforward, slow-tempo blues with Cootie Williams doing the slightly exaggerated vocals. He takes a little bit of an appropriately understated solo near the end. Then it's done. Nice tune, but not a standout in this collection.

[jeffcrom]

"Freeze and Melt" was not an Ellington composition - it's by the great songwriting team of Dorothy Fields and Jimmy McHugh. It makes sense that Ellington would record this, as well as lots of other Fields and McHugh songs - their first gig together was writing for the Cotton Club shows, for which Ellington's band provided the music. I wouldn't be surprised if "Freeze and Melt" had its origins at the Cotton Club, although I haven't done any research to confirm this. The title and lyrics, along with the frequent stop-time passages, give you an idea of what the dance routine must have like.

In addition to "Freeze and Melt," Ellington also recorded these Fields/McHugh songs in the 1920s:

Harlem River Quiver

I Can't Give You Anything But Love

Bandana Babies

Diga Diga Doo

I Must Have That Man

Japanese Dream

Harlemania

Hot Feet

Arabian Lover

Blue Again (1930, actually)

Doin' the New Lowdown

Red Hot Band

Doin' The Frog

Some of these have become standards, of course, while others are forgotten except for Ellington's recordings. Again, I haven't actually counted, but I suspect that Fields and McHugh must be the most-represented composers in Ellington's 1920s output except for Ellington and his band members themselves.

'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.

Yes, it was included on "A Night at the Cotton Club." Does anyone else want to just slap Irving Mills for his hokey, patronizing narration on this record?

Edited October 7, 2010 by jeffcrom

[A Lark Ascending]

Yes, it was included on "A Night at the Cotton Club." Does anyone else want to just slap Irving Mills for his hokey, patronizing narration on this record?

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.

[cih]

Freeze and Melt - April 1929 ( Fields/McHugh) - (found on The Okeh Ellington 2cd Sony

According to the liner notes Cootie Williams was not long in the band following the departure of Bubber Miley. This is an uptempo number that to my ears doesn't sound too Ellingtonian.

Wellman Braud is heard to advantage then Hodges? , Cootie solos over a rather chugging rhythm section, not sure who's on the bell (Sonny Greer ?) at the end but not an especially distinguished number but it's good enough.

Fletcher Henderson also recorded it but I don't think I've got it in my collection

It appears on the Dust To Digital box set - 'How Low Can You Go? - Anthology of the String Bass'

Recorded pseudonymously as by 'Joe Turner And His Memphis Men' (contractual shenanigans)

"WC Handy's blues immortalized the semi-mythic Joe Turner, who reputedly transported convicts to the Nashville penitentiary in the 1890s. Here his ghost returns to conduct the Ellington orchestra" (notes to the box set)

Allen Lowe's set (vol 2) has an Eddie Lang version from 1929 which I like, sort of a raggedy rhythm - finger-snappin' good!

Edited October 7, 2010 by cih

[jeffcrom]

Before Bev moves on to the next "major" piece for discussion, I'll touch on "Hello Dolly." This was in the book for two periods - Ellington recorded it for the Ellington '65 album, which I've always avoided (possibly to my detriment), and played it at concerts and dances for about a year afterwards. From what I've read, it was a full-fledged big band arrangement of the tune. Maybe somebody with that album (or the Ellington Reprise Mosaic set) can give us a report on how it sounds.

Ellington brought back "Hello Dolly" in 1971 as a feature for trumpeter Money Johnson's Satchmo imitation. There's no arrangement to speak of, just a copy of Louis Armstrong's All Stars, with Russell Procope's clarinet prominent. I've got it on an LP of a Polish concert in '71. It was recorded in the studio the next year; that version was eventually issued on a Laserlight CD; I have that version as well. Like I say, I can't speak about the Ellington '65 version, but the Money Johnson feature is pretty forgettable.

Edited October 9, 2010 by jeffcrom

[A Lark Ascending]

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?

Edited October 9, 2010 by A Lark Ascending

[JSngry]

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.

I'll take that Paris version on Atlantic. Not too much anywhere swings harder than that.

[lipi]

1320 Rockin’ In Rhythm Duke - Ellington-Harry Carney-Irving Mills - 1931

The canonical one, in my opinion, is the March 12, 1931 Brunswick recording. I love Cootie Williams' plain statement of the melody, I like Ellington's menacing pounding, Bigard's runs, Ellington's break, the ending to the break (I always thought that was a baritone sax, but liner notes to "Early Ellington" suggest Carney was playing alto on this track--so is it brass?), the little trumpet "ta-da-da-taas"...well, the whole thing.

My next favourite is the November 8, 1930 OKeh. Those exhaling sounds! Great.

The 1931 RCA takes sound a little rushed to me--perhaps because I'm so used to the OKeh and Brunswick, both of which are a little slower. I'm also not sold on the "wa-wa" bits (0:40-0:55 or so on both takes) in the RCA.

There's a very tight sounding recording from 1938 that I have on a CD entitled "Cotton Club Nights". Horrible recording, but man does the band sound tight and swingin'.

I enjoy the later ones (with increasingly wild endings!) from Newport and the Cote d'Azur concerts, too, but not as much as the early ones.

Incidentally, there's a cute false start on the World Broadcasting Series, Vol. 1: 1943 disc. (And three full takes, too.) It's nice to hear such an amazing band screw up.

[A Lark Ascending]

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.

[carnivore]

Before I'd ever heard any of the Ellington recordings I was enthralled by the 1947 New York Town Hall performance by the Charlie Barnet band. Solos by Claude Williamson, Jimmy Nottingham and the leader, and a very effective Billy May arrangement.

Most of the early Duke recordings afford us an opportunity to hear Harry Carney soloing on clarinet.