Part 2, 1943 - 1956

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Introduction

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The Duke Ellington Carnegie Hall Concerts, January 1943 (Prestige 2PCD-34004-2), a two-CD set, preserves Duke's premiere performance at America's foremost recital hall. More importantly, it includes the premiere of Black, Brown and Beige, Ellington's longest (nearly 45 minutes) and most ambitious extended work to date. Bound up in this work were Ellington's hopes and aspirations for acceptance as a composer of serious music for the concert stage. He was painfully disappointed by the condescending critical response it received, and soon stopped performing it. Although BB&B would reappear in other, shorter forms in later years, this is the only recording of the complete work, as originally conceived. The sound quality is less than ideal, but it is well worth hearing.

Duke continued his Carnegie Hall concerts on a regular basis, and often used them to introduce new suites -- his longer, more ambitious concert works. Other Carnegie Hall concerts from this era, available on compact disc, include the following:

December, 1944 (Prestige 2PCD-24073-2, two CDs), introducing the Perfume Suite and featuring a much shortened version of Black, Brown and Beige (about 28 minutes).

January, 1946 (Prestige 2PCD-24074-2, two CDs), featuring a minor suite entitled A Tonal Group, and yet another set of excerpts from BB&B.

December, 1947 (Prestige 2PCD-24075-2, two CDs), featuring the Liberian Suite, along with a very pleasing set that includes classics from the early years along with then-current and daring selections, notably The Clothed Woman. The sound is much better than on the 1943 concert recording. The band has clearly declined slightly from the peak years earlier in the decade, but remains a strong presence.

Meanwhile, late in 1944 Ellington had been able to resume recording for commercial release. Until 1946 he continued to record for RCA Victor, and those efforts are represented on a three-CD set, Black, Brown and Beige (Bluebird 6641-2-RB). The set is a mixed bag, including four excerpts from BB&B, totalling 18 minutes, as well as a similar set of selections from the Perfume Suite. Also included are several remakes of early Ellington classics, some in refreshingly different arrangements, and some satisfying new pieces.

Ellington's recorded output for the rest of the decade is poorly represented on CD. The following discs contain some of the material recorded during that time. I have not attempted to verify that they are currently available, but if not, the same tracks may have been reissued in some other package.

Late in 1946, Ellington recorded a number of sides for the Musicraft label. These sessions suffered from poor sound quality, but included some exciting selections, including the two-part Happy-Go-Lucky Local (later popularized without credit to Duke as Night Train). The Musicraft sides have been released on CD in whole or part by several different labels. One such release is Sir Duke (Drive Archive DE2-41019), and another is Duke Ellington Orchestra (LaserLight 15 753).

The Collection: '46-47 Recordings (Hindsight HBCD-501, three CDs) represents another genre of Ellington recording: transcriptions made for broadcast by radio stations rather than for retail sale. This set offers recordings from 1946 and 1947, which are sometimes technically better and more relaxed than recordings of the same material that were intended for release. Some of the same material is also on 22 Original Big Band Recordings (Hindsight HCD-410).

During the LP era, Columbia repackaged a wealth of Ellington recordings from the late 40s, but these seem not to have been officially released on CD. Some of these tracks, including the atonal The Clothed Woman and Lady of the Lavender Mist, occasionally show up on budget, off-label releases, such as The Rare Duke Ellington 1947 - 1957 (Big Band Era 2601822).

In the mid-1990s, Mercer Ellington released a few of Duke's private stash of recordings under the series title of "Unreleased Masters," including some concert dates from this era. The Great Chicago Concerts (MusicMasters Jazz 01612-65110-2, two CDs) presents two concerts from 1946, one of which features the Deep South Suite and guitarist Django Reinhardt sitting in on a few numbers. The Cornell University Concert (MusicMasters Jazz 01612-65114-2) was recorded late in 1948, and features several pieces of extended length, notably The Tattooed Bride. Cornell University: Second Set (MusicMasters Jazz 01612-65162-2) adds some seldom-heard tunes from this era, including Manhattan Murals, Duke's theme and variations on Strayhorn's 'A' Train. Sound quality is generally quite good, although the trumpets are a bit distorted at Cornell.

The Slump (1950 - 1955)

Any musician who enjoys a long career and records for a number of different labels has to deal with the dilemma of recording, over and over, a handful of greatest hits. Duke Ellington was no exception to this rule, but throughout most of his life, he rose to the challenge admirably. As early as 1938, when recording a remake of the early hit, Black and Tan Fantasy, for Brunswick, he had expanded it to fill both sides of a 78 rpm record, adding new sections and solos. During the 1940s, he recorded new versions of several of his older hits for RCA Victor, sometimes recasting them in dramatically different form.

In 1950, Ellington had his first opportunity to exploit the capabilities of the Long Playing record. The result was Masterpieces by Ellington (Columbia COL 469407 2, European), which has never been released on CD in the USA. Of the four extended-length pieces on this recording, three are vastly longer and more complicated arrangements of early hits -- Mood Indigo, Sophisticated Lady, and Solitude -- classics redefined in entirely new terms. A more recent suite, The Tattooed Bride, fills out the album.

Recorded mostly in 1952, Ellington Uptown (Columbia CK 40836) was a more successful follow-up to Masterpieces. The premise is similar: extended versions of Take the "A" Train, The Mooche, and Perdido, combined with a more recent suite. Two different versions of the LP offered different suites, but both are included on the CD: the wonderful A Tone Parallel to Harlem (also known as The Harlem Suite or just Harlem) and The Controversial Suite, an ironic parody of the then-current jazz scene. A Japanese release, Hi-Fi Ellington Uptown (Sony SRCS 7057) has the same track selection, but preserves the title, cover art, and sequence of the original LP release.

By the time these tracks were recorded, Ellington's organization had suffered a crippling series of defections, which seems to have left Duke at loose ends through the first half of the fifties. Of the band that played in Fargo in 1940 (see above), only Harry Carney, Ray Nance and the recently-returned Juan Tizol remained. Even so, the band sounds very tight and enthusiasm is apparent. Uptown also offers a hint of the Ellington resurgence to come, in the form of Skin Deep, a new piece featuring lengthy drum solos by Louis Bellson, which would become a favorite demonstration track for early hi-fi bugs. Uptown is a must-have CD, as Masterpieces will be, if it is ever reissued.

Concert recordings from these years, such as Happy Birthday Duke! April 29th Birthday Sessions (LaserLight 15 965, 5 CDs, also available individually as 15 783 through 15 787) from 1953 and 1954, show that the band remained a commanding and vital presence during this low period. But Ellington himself seems to have suffered some loss of enthusiasm or confidence. He composed less, and stayed away from the longer suites that had been been his major interest. During this time, he explored a much-neglected aspect of his musicianship: his ability as a pianist.

In 1950, Ellington had recorded an album of duo-piano sides with Billy Strayhorn, available on Great Times (Riverside OJCCD-108-2). These tracks remain interesting, mainly for the glimpse they offer of these two compatible minds working together.

Recorded in 1953, Piano Reflections (Capitol Jazz CDP 7 92863 2) presents Duke in a piano trio setting, exploring new pieces and some old favorites. By turns mellow, playful and inventive, it makes a good case for considering Ellington a major jazz pianist who usually had more important things to do. It's easy to wonder if Duke ever considered giving up the band and going it alone, as on this album. The evidence here suggests he had much to offer as a solo act.

Aside from this first solo piano album, Ellington passed the early 1950s at Capitol Records, in a frustrating and (except for Satin Doll) unsuccessful quest for hit records. A selection of recordings from that time, Jazz Masters 1953-1955 (EMI Jazz CDMFP 6298, European) shows some robust reinterpretations of Ellington standards, mingling with some unhappy choices in non-original material.

Early in 1956, Ellington recorded two albums for the Bethlehem label. Both Historically Speaking and Duke Ellington Presents may now available on CD. I have heard a selection from the two, released as Ellington '56 (Affinity Charly 20), and these recordings show the band in good form, skillfully executing some infrequently-revived Ellington classics from the past. Overall, the orchestra's sound is much the same as on recordings from the preceding lean years, but with the crucial addition of Johnny Hodges, the star alto saxophonist who had rejoined the band late in 1955, after an absence of four years.

Just five months after the Bethlehem sessions, the Duke Ellington Orchestra that played the 1956 Newport Jazz Festival was a very different band, even though no personnel changes had taken place. On this occasion, the band greeted its audience with raw energy and blistering swing. Ellington's appearance at Newport caused a sensation and played a major part in restoring him to national and international prominence. It also produced his best-selling album, Ellington at Newport (Columbia CK 40587). Ironically, this is in many ways his least characteristic work. The elements of Ellingtonia are all there -- a new suite composed for the occasion and extended versions of two moderately obscure classics from the thirties -- but Paul Gonsalves's unrelenting tenor solo linking Diminuendo and Crescendo in Blue, which captured the public's imagination, is unlike anything else in Duke's work. The rhythm is more propulsive than usual, sounding in many respects more like Count Basie than Duke. (Duke and others attributed the night's success to the offstage timekeeping of veteran Basie drummer Jo Jones.)

All misgivings aside, Ellington at Newport remains a satisfying performance, and despite all its unusual qualities, the sound remains unmistakably Ellington. Perhaps most importantly, the band plays with an exuberance that had been missing in recent years, but which would remain a part of the Ellington sound for years to come. Unfortunately, the CD release exactly duplicates the track selection of the LP. Another LP side and at least one additional track from Duke's 1956 Newport performances were released during the LP era; they easily could have been included on this CD.

A companion LP has been reissued on CD in Europe. Duke Ellington and the Buck Clayton All-Stars at Newport (Columbia COL 477320 2, Europe) adds four more selections from the 1956 performances: three standards, stunningly executed, and a revival of Skin Deep, with Sam Woodyard gamely recreating Louis Bellson's star turn.