Today in Music (1956): Duke Ellington played at the Newport jazz festival

At Newport Duke Ellington

Recorded: July 7, 1956 Charted: June 24, 1957 Peak: 14 US Sales (in millions): -- Genre: jazz

Tracks, Disc 1: Song Title (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to charts. The Star-Spangled Banner Father Norman O’Connor Introduces Duke & the Orchestra/ Duke Introduces Tune & Anderson, Jackson, & Procope Black and Tan Fantasy (5/5/28, 15 US) Duke Introduces Cook & Tune Tea for Two Duke & Band Leave Stage/ Father Norman O’Connor Talks about the Festival Take the ‘A’ Train (7/26/41, 11 US) Duke Announces Strayhorn’s A Train & Nance Duke Introduces Festival Suite, Part 1 & Hamilton Part I – Festival Junction Duke Announces Soloists; Introduces Part II Part II – Blues to Be There Duke Announces Nance & Procope; Introduces Part III Part III – Newport Up Duke Announces Hamilton, Gonsalves, & Terry/ Duke Introduces Carney & Tune Sophisticated Lady (5/27/33, 3 US) Duke Announces Grissom & Tune Day in, Day Out Duke Introduces Tune(s) and Paul Gonsalves Interludes Diminuendo in Blue/ Crescendo in Blue Announcements, Pandemonium Pause Track Tracks, Disc 2: Song Title (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to charts. Duke Introduces Johnny Hodges I Got It Bad and That Ain’t Good (10/11/41, 13 US) Jeep’s Blues Duke Calms Crowd, Introduces Nance & Tune Tulip or Turnip Riot Prevention Skin Deep (3/5/54, 7 UK) Mood Indigo (2/14/31, 3 US) Studio Concert [Excerpts] Father Norman O’Connor Introduces Duke Ellington/ Duke Introduces New Work, Part I, & Hamilton * Part I – Festival Junction * Duke Announces Soloists; Introduces Part II * Part II – Blues to Be There * Duke Announces Nance & Procope; Introduces Part III * Part III – Newport Up * Duke Announces Hamilton, Gonsalves, & Terry/ Pause/ Duke Introduces Johnny Hodges * I Got It Bad and That Ain’t Good * Jeep’s Blues [studio] * Pause Track * * These are the only songs from the original release; see notes. Total Running Time: 2:09:57 The Players: Duke Ellington (piano) Cat Anderson, Willie Cook, Ray Nance, Clark Terry (trumpets) Quentin Jackson, Lawrence Brown, John Sanders, Britt Woodman (trombones) Johnny Hodges, Russell Procope, Paul Gonsalves, Harry Carney (saxophones) Russell Procope, Jimmy Woode (clarinet) Al Lucas (bass) Sam Woodyard (drums) Ray Nance, Jimmy Grissom (vocals)

Rating: 4.073 out of 5.00 (average of 15 ratings) Quotable: “One of the greatest live jazz festival recordings” – Bruce Eder, All Music Guide Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Album: “Ellington's original…Newport album was his best-selling long-player ever, and re-established him, after a two-year drought in the wake of his unsuccessful stay at Capitol, as a vitally popular jazz artist, perceived as worth courting by the major labels.” AMG “When Duke Ellington took his orchestra to the Newport Jazz Festival in 1956, the band was in need of an uplift, some humongous event that would revitalize its image in the wake of bebop, hard bop, and so many more jazz currents.” AB “Trouble…is that the living document of the Newport show is almost fully manufactured, recorded in a studio with crowd madness dubbed in.” AB “In keeping with Columbia’s standard operating proceedure of the day, a cut-and-paste job made up of studio re-recordings of the festival’s repertory.” AMG “The producers revisited the Newport gig after four decades because they discovered an extant Voice of America tape – the one whose microphone Gonsalves blew his solo into, and the VOA tape catches the whole Newport set in its organic glory.” AB “The result is the first complete consideration of the actual Newport performance, as well as a complete account of the studio-generated portions of the original release.” AMG The latter “aren’t as exciting as the live renditions, but are worth hearing” AB and “make great siblings, illustrative of the live-event charm and the music industry’s dogged labors in reinventing it on record.” AB “The highlight is an extraordinarily vivid account” AMG of the merging of “Diminuendo in Blue with set-closer Crescendo in Blue tacked on the end. Tenor saxophonist Paul Gonsalves got the nod from Ellington to segue from ‘Diminuendo’ to ‘Crescendo,’ and he blew doors. With one rousing 27-chorus solo, Gonsalves blew a fever into the crowd and jump-started Ellingtonia for another generation.” AB “Alternately tender with layers of brushstroke orchestration and blazing with the band’s well-seasoned tightness, this new Newport is one for the generalist and the Ellington completist.” AB “One of the greatest live jazz festival recordings ever has gotten better.” AMG Notes: The original release contained only the songs marked with an asterisk (*). The above track listing reflects the 1999 reissue, Complete At Newport.

Resources and Related Links: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Duke Ellington AB Andrew Bartlett, Amazon.com essential recording AMG All Music Guide review by Bruce Eder WK Wikipedia Last updated 3/14/2024.

Louis Armstrong's The Complete Hot Five and Hot Seven Recordings box set released

The Complete Hot Five and Hot Seven Recordings Louis Armstrong

Recorded: 1926 to 1928 Released: August 22, 2000 Peak: -- US, -- UK, -- CN, -- AU Sales (in millions): -- US, -- UK, -- world (includes US and UK) Genre: jazz

Tracks, Disc 1: 1. Gut Bucket Blues 2. My Heart 3. Yes! I’m in the Barrel 4. Come Back Sweet Papa 5. Georgia Grind 6. Heebie Jeebies 7. Cornet Chop Suey 8. Oriental Strut 9. You’re Next 10. Muskrat Ramble 11. Don’t Forget to Mess Around 12. I’m Gonna Gitcha 13. Droppin’ Shucks 14. Who’s It 15. King of the Zulus 16. Big Fat Ma and Skinny Pa 17. Lonesome Blues 18. Sweet Little Papa 19. Jazz Lips 20. Skid-Dat-De-Dat 21. Big Butter and Egg Man 22. Sunset Café Stomp 23. You Made Me Love You 24. Irish Black Bottom 25. [Pause Track] Tracks, Disc 2: 1. Put ‘Em Down Blues 2. Ory’s Creole Trombone 3. Last Time 4. Struttin’ with Some Barbeque 5. Got No Blues 6. Once in a While 7. I’m Not Rough 8. Hotter Than That 9. Savoy Blues 10. He Likes It Slow 11. Gambler’s Dream 12. Sunshine Baby 13. Adam and Eve Had the Blues 14. Put It Where I Can Get It 15. Washwoman Blues 16. I’ve Stopped My Man 17. Georgia Bo Bo 18. Drop That Sack [Common Take] 19. Drop That Sake [Rare Take] 20. Cornet Chop Suey 21. [Pause Track] Tracks, Disc 3: 1. Willie the Weeper 2. Wild Man Blues 3. Alligator Crawl 4. Potato Head Blues 5. Melancholy 6. Weary Blues 7. Twelfth Street Rag 8. Keyhole Blues 9. S.O.L. Blues 10. Gully Low Blues 11. That’s When I’ll Come Back to You 12. Chicago Breakdown 13. Weary Blues 14. New Orleans Stomp 15. Wild Man Blues 16. Wild Man Blues 17. Melancholy 18. Melancholy 19. You’re a Real Sweetheart 20. Too Busy! 21. Was It a Dream? 22. Last Night I Dreamed You Kissed Me 23. [Pause Track] Tracks, Disc 4: 1. Fireworks 2. Skip the Gutter 3. Monday Date 4. Don’t Jive Me 5. West End Blues 6. Sugar Foot Strut 7. Two Deuces 8. Squeeze Me 9. Knee Drops 10. No, Papa, No 11. Basin Street Blues 12. No One Else But You 13. Beau Koo Jack 14. Save It, Pretty Mama 15. Muggles 16. Hear Me Talkin’ to Ya? 17. St. James Infirmary 18. Tight Like This 19. Weather Bird 20. I Can’t Give You Anything But Love [Common Take] 21. I Can’t Give You Anything But Love [Rare Take] 22. Mahogany Hall Stomp 23. Knockin’ a Jug 24. [Pause Track] The following songs from the box set charted. (Click for codes to singles charts.) Muskrat Ramble (7/17/26, 8 US) Big Butter and Egg Man (4/9/27, 13 US) Keyhole Blues (10/29/27, 16 US) Potato Head Blues (12/10/27, 12 US) Hotter Than That (5/12/28, 10 US) Struttin’ with Some Barbeque (7/14/28, 14 US) West End Blues (9/15/28, 8 US) A Monday Date (12/1/28, 19 US) St. James Infirmary (5/4/29, 15 US) Once in a While (1/8/38, 15 US) Basin Street Blues (10/29/38, 20 US)

Rating: 4.800 out of 5.00 (average of 5 ratings) Quotable: “Jazz starts here.” – Blender Magazine Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Album: “Jazz starts here.” BL “This 4-CD set represents the ‘Rosetta Stone of Jazz,’ the ultimate Louis Armstrong collection.” JM “Louis Armstrong’s Hot Five and Hot Seven recordings are jazz’s Holy Grail, a venerable guide for anyone with the desire to explore the roots of this now century old art.” MC Armstrong “was not the first great player in jazz, but he was the first to elevate the soloist’s art to a position of primacy.” KM “A typical band embellished a song, but Armstrong took long solos, causing near riots of excitement.” MC “Between 1925 and 1929, Armstrong invented scat singing, defined swing and introduced the jazz solo. He laid the foundations for America’s first indigenous art form – and had a ball doing it. No wonder he was our first global pop star.” BL “Music could never be the same again.” KM “He did so through the medium of the 78 rpm sides he cut for Okeh with his Hot Five and Hot Seven units. This was a genuine case of records creating history.” KM These recordings “ushered out the era of acoustic recording where the soloist played into a huge cone and ushered in the electric method utilizing microphones.” MC “This four-CD set brings together all the recordings made during the period of the Hot Five and Hot Sevens along with all the attendant recordings that Armstrong was involved in during this breakthrough period.” CK “Armstrong continually cuts through with a crystalline brilliance he was never to recapture.” KM “When he opens West End Blues with a trumpet solo followed by the klop-klop of cymbals and his ‘waa-waa-waa’ scat in response to Johnny Dodds’ clarinet one can imagine listeners falling-out with excitement.” MC “If the tragic grandeur of his playing on ‘West End Blues’ is the pinnacle, it is all but matched on a dozen others.” KM “There are plenty trumpet licks rendered to keep scholars and students busy for years.” MC “Although this material has been around the block several times before – and continues to be available in packages greatly varying in transfer quality – this is truly the way to go, and certainly the most deluxe packaging this material has ever received with the greatest sound retrieval yet employed.” CK “Sonically, graphically, and in terms of comprehensiveness, this is truly the definitive study of Louis Armstrong’s Hot Five and Hot Seven recordings.” JM “Armstrong collectors will find everything from Armstrong’s Okeh record dates here, re-mastered, finally correctly according to many Armstrong scholars. Digitally re-mastered and pitch altered to the sound of Armstrong’s day. The music sound has significantly improved over previous Columbia/Legacy reissues.” MC “In addition to sounding better than the competition, it also sensibly lays out all the recordings Satchmo made during this period, grouping all the original Hot Five recordings from 1925 to 1927 (and all attendant material) together on the first two discs, all of the Hot Sevens on disc three, with the final disc devoted to the second coming of the Hot Five in 1928 along with the attendant material from the following year.” CK “Armstrong’s Hot Fives band comprised of his wife Lil’ Hardin Armstrong (piano/vocals), Kid Ory (trombone), Johnny Dodds (clarinet), and Johnny St. Cyr (banjo), were supplemented by tuba and drums to make the Hot Sevens. The last disc of the set features Armstrong and pianist Earl Hines, plus several big band recordings marketed under the popular Fives name.” MC “There are also several categories of ‘bonus tracks’ aboard this deluxe set, including the ‘Lil’s Hot Shots’ 1926 Hot Five Vocalion recordings, a 1927 Johnny Dodds session that became the prototype for the Hot Seven recordings that soon followed, and the only known alternate take of I Can’t Give You Anything but Love. You can’t have a Louis Armstrong collection without this historic set. Come to think of it, you can’t have any kind of respectable jazz collection without it, either.” CK Notes: Comes with an “extensive book with critical essays, photo galleries, full discographical info, includes Johnny Dodds’ & Lil Hardin’s rare sessions for the Vocalion and Brunswick labels, …main essay by grammy-nominated scholar Robert G. O'Meally, a personal reflection by producer George Avakian, and a collection of unrivaled historical value.” JM

Resources and Related Links: BL Blender Magazine’s 100 Greatest American Albums (10/08) MC Mark Corrota, AllAboutJazz.com (9/1/00) JM JazzByMail.com CK Cub Koda, All Music Guide KM Kenny Mathieson, The Wire. The Most Important Records Ever Made. (June 1992, issue 100). Other Related DMDB Pages: First posted 8/4/2011; last updated 1/29/2022.

Duke Ellington Blanton-Webster Band box set released

The Blanton-Webster Band Duke Ellington

Released: October 25, 1990 Recorded: 1939-1942 Peak: -- US, -- UK, -- CN, -- AU Sales (in millions): -- US, -- UK, -- world (includes US and UK) Genre: jazz

Tracks: Song Title (Writers) [time] (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to singles charts. Disc 1: You, You Darlin’ (5/11/40, 28 US Jack the Bear Ko-Ko (6/1/40, 25 US Morning Glory So Far, So Good Congo Brava Concerto for Cootie (aka “Do Nothin’ Till You Hear from Me”) (1/8/44, 10 US, #1 RB) Me and You Cottontail Never No Lament (aka “Don’t Get Around Much Anymore”) * (5/1/43, 8 US, #1 RB) Dusk Bojangles (A Portrait of Bill Robinson) (8/14/43, 19 US) A Portrait of Bert Williams Blue Goose Harlem Air Shaft At a Dixie Roadside Diner (9/21/40, 27 US) All Too Soon Rumpus in Richmond My Greatest Mistake Sepia Panorama (11/2/40, 24 US) There Shall Be No Night In a Mellotone Disc 2: Five O’Clock Whistle Warm Valley The Flaming Sword Across the Track Blues Chloe (Song of the Swamp) I Never Felt This Way Before The Sidewalks of New York Flamingo (6/14/41, 11 US) The Girl in My Dreams Tries to Look Like You Take the ‘A’ Train (7/26/41, 11 US) Jumpin’ Punkins John Hardy’s Wife Blue Serge After All Bakiff Are You Sticking? Just A-Settin’ and A-Rockin’ The Giddybug Gallop Chocolate Shake I Got It Band and That Ain’t Good (10/11/41, 13 US) Clementine The Brown-Skin Gal in the Calico Gown Disc 3: Jump for Joy Moon Over Cuba Five O’Clock Drag Rocks in My Bed Bli-Blip Chelsea Bridge Raincheck What Good Would It Do? I Don’t Know What Kind of Blues I Got Perdido (5/22/43, 21 US) The ‘C’ Jam Blues Moon Mist What Am I Here For? I Don’t Mind (12/23/44, 9 RB) Someone (6/10/44, 7 RB) My Little Brown Book (6/3/44, 4 RB) Main Stem (3/4/44, 23 US, #1 RB) Johnny Come Lately Hayfoot, Strawfoot (11/21/42, 10 RB) Sentimental Lady (9/4/43, 19 US, #1 RB) A Slip of the Lip Can Sink a Ship (8/28/43, 19 US, #1 RB) Sherman Shuffle Total Running Time: 204:07

Rating: 4.761 out of 5.00 (average of 8 ratings) Quotable: “Perhaps…the greatest creative period by any single artist in jazz history.” – Marc Greilsamer, Amazon.com Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Album: All Music Guide calls Duke Ellington “the most important composer in the history of jazz.” WR Joel Whitburn goes even farther, saying Ellington is “perhaps the single most important creative talent in American popular music history.” JW He scored 70 hits, including three #1 songs, on the pop charts from 1927 to 1953. Ellington also racked up a dozen top 10 R&B hits in the 1940s, including five consective #1 songs, all of which are featured here (Never No Lament, A Slip of the Lip (Can Sink a Ship), Sentimental Lady, Concerto for Cootie, and Main Stem). Also included is the Grammy Hall of Fame song Take the ‘A’ Train, which became Ellington’s theme song. “This music is essential for all jazz collections.” SY “This attractive three-CD set” SY “not only represent[s] Ellington’s artistic apex, but perhaps reflect the greatest creative period by any single artist in jazz history.” MG “Several factors combine make these recordings great, not least the 78rpm format which restricted playing time to around three minutes. A lot happens in a very short time span. Often there are several themes in one arrangement and remarkably, in view of the limited time, there are transitional and developmental passages as well.” SN This collection “contains the master takes of all 66 selections recorded by Duke Ellington’s Orchestra during what many historians consider its peak period. Left out are the many alternate takes, last released by European labels, and the Duke Ellington-Jimmy Blanton duets, which are available on a different CD.” SY “Ellington had already made a lasting impression on jazz by 1940, but adding writer/arranger Billy Strayhorn, young bassist Jimmy Blanton, and tenor great Ben Webster brought the band to extraordinary new heights.” MG “The arrangements and originals of Ellington and Billy Strayhorn are full of surprises, and even the lesser-known pieces are generally gems.” SY Meanwhile, Blanton, who died of tuberculosis at age 23, changed the role of the double bass in jazz by moving it from the background to the forefront of the rhythm section. “Then there’s the unique tonal quality of Ellington’s orchestra, setting it apart from any ensemble in jazz.” SN Rounding out the band are Johnny Hodges (alto), Cootie Williams and Wallace Jones (trumpets), Rex Stewart and Ray Nance (cornets), Juan Tizol (valve trombone), Barney Bigard (clarinet), Tricky Sam Nanton and Lawrence Brown (trombones), Harry Carney (baritone/alto sax), Otto Hardwick (alto sax), Fred Guy (guitar), Sonny Greer (drums), and Ivie Anderson and Herb Jeffries (vocals). “The set list reveals masterpiece after masterpiece.” MG “These recordings are neither landmarks of jazz improvisation or the Big Band dance music popular at the time they were recorded. Simply because neither categories seem adequate to embrace one of the finest bodies of music created this century.” SN

Resources and Related Links: MG Marc Greilsamer, Amazon.com essential recording SN Stuart Nicholson, The Wire. The Most Important Records Ever Made. (June 1992, issue 100). WR William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide bio. JW Whitburn, Joel. (1986). Pop Memories 1890-1954. (page 147). Menomonee Falls, WI; Record Research, Inc. SY Scott Yanow, All Music Guide Other Related DMDB Pages: Last updated 1/29/2022.