Ellington in the LP era

"If there were nothing on this album but “Mood Indigo,” it would still deserve a special spot in the annals of 20th-century music."

absolutely otm

hm, now I need to hear Jazz Party too

Masterpieces is great -- though yeah, I could do without the (limited) vocal sections. Ellington had kinda weird taste in vocalists, didn't he?

thats a polite way of putting it I suppose

I dunno, I thought Ray Nance was great, though I guess he wasn't there for his vocals, necessarily. Always loved Ivie Anderson and Kay Davis. And while I can't say I loved Herb Jeffries, "Flamingo" just sounds wrong without his vocal. And "I Like The Sunrise," with Al Hibbler, is one of my favorite Ellington pieces...which is to say, one of my favorite pieces.

yeah i like Nance and both Anderson and Davis have their moments -- I think it's more just Ellington's (and Strayhorn's) preference for a kinda stilted "theatrical" delivery that hasn't aged quite as well.

what do you guys think of the Ellington/Clooney album?

i haven't heard it! I probably should check it out, I like rosemary clooney.

Apart from the Ella Fitzgerald live album and Mahalia Jackson on Come Sunday, I've personally not enjoyed any of Ellington's vocalists. But saying that there must be loads I've not heard, including the Clooney album.

I like Al Hibbler a lot. I'm just a stodgy dude, I guess.

The Clooney album is available through this cheapo box:

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/71igilB36KL._SX355_.jpg

Listening to Masterpieces for the first time, thanks to this thread. Great record, didn't even mind the vocal sections, but yeah I'm kinda stodgy too.

I like Yvonne/Eva on Masterpieces, but she's no Baby Cox

thought this was cool -- ellington doing mingus' "The Clown"
http://www.bigozine2.com/TRKSB/CMrarities/CMrarities208.mp3

^ yeah, that's really great. In the Mingus doc, Triumph of the Underdog, Sue Mingus talks about that being what got Charles back into making music.

nice. does seem like duke genuinely had an affinity for mingus' music.

Various versions of how Mingus got fired from Ellington's band.

Mingus' account is my favorite (though maybe the least trustworthy?)

That article omits a good line from Mingus' account: "I'm afraid, Charles -- I've never fired anybody -- you'll have to quit my band."

haha, yeah, that is so good

Totally off topic here, but at the mo I'm totally in love with his late period hard swinging duo Album with Ray Brown.

Have to rep for "The Queen's Suite" here, the other two suites on that cd aren't worldbeaters but the Queen's... well, rules!

― a date with density (Jon Lewis), Wednesday, March 11, 2015 7:05 PM (one year ago)

yeah damn queen's suite is great