Ellington Uptown
Ellington Uptown | ||||
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Studio album by Duke Ellington | ||||
Released | March 1953[1] | |||
Recorded | December 7 & 11, 1951, February 29, June 30 & July 1, 1952 Bonus tracks December 24, 1947 | |||
Genre | Jazz | |||
Length | 43:40 | |||
Label | Columbia | |||
Duke Ellington chronology | ||||
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Alternative Cover | ||||
Ellington Uptown (also released as Hi-Fi Ellington Uptown) is an album by American pianist, composer and bandleader Duke Ellington, recorded for the Columbia label in 1951 and 1952.[2] The album was re-released on CD in 2004 with additional tracks recorded in 1947 and originally released as the Liberian Suite EP.
Reception
The AllMusic review by Scott Yanow awarded the album 4½ stars and stated: "Although some historians have characterized the early '50s as Duke Ellington's 'off period' (due to the defection of alto star Johnny Hodges), in reality, his 1951-1952 orchestra could hold its own against his best. This set has many classic moments... One of the great Duke Ellington sets."[3]
Tom Hull, writing in his July 2004 "Jazz Consumer Guide" for The Village Voice, commented briefly on the release: "Hodges-less, coming out of his most pretentious composerly period, scratching and kicking to hang on."[4]
The extended piece "A Tone Parallel to Harlem" (also known as "The Harlem Suite" or just "Harlem") has often been singled out as one of Ellington's great achievements. Ellington biographer John Edward Hasse writes, "This kaleidoscopic, marvelously descriptive tour of Harlem ... passes by folks working and shopping, fighting for equal rights, festively parading, mourning at a church funeral, and includes other honest, affirmative glimpses of everyday life. ... Harlem, with its three well-integrated themes, is regarded by a number of observers (including, reportedly, the composer himself) as Ellington's best extended work, and he chose to perform it fairly frequently at concerts. It has been called 'every bit as much a miniature masterpiece as is Rhapsody in Blue'."[5] Jazz critic and historian Ted Gioia notes that the work is among "Ellington's more visionary projects" and is "a masterpiece by almost any measure."[6]
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [3] |
The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide | [7] |
The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings | [8] |
Track listing
:All compositions by Duke Ellington except as indicated
- "Skin Deep" (Louis Bellson) - 6:49
- "The Mooche" (Ellington, Irving Mills) - 6:36
- "Take the "A" Train" (Billy Strayhorn) - 8:02
- "A Tone Parallel to Harlem (Harlem Suite)" - 13:48 Previously released on Ellington Uptown only
- "Perdido" (Juan Tizol) - 8:25
- "Controversial Suite Part 1: Before My Time" - 6:09 Previously released on Hi-Fi Ellington Uptown only
- "Controversial Suite Part 2: Later" - 4:14 Previously released on Hi-Fi Ellington Uptown only
- "The Liberian Suite: I Like the Sunrise" - 4:28 Bonus track on CD reissue
- "The Liberian Suite: Dance No. 1" - 4:50 Bonus track on CD reissue
- "The Liberian Suite: Dance No. 2" - 3:26 Bonus track on CD reissue
- "The Liberian Suite: Dance No. 3" - 3:45 Bonus track on CD reissue
- "The Liberian Suite: Dance No. 4" - 3:04 Bonus track on CD reissue
- "The Liberian Suite: Dance No. 5" - 5:08 Bonus track on CD reissue
- Recorded in New York on December 24, 1947 (tracks 8-13), December 7, 1951 (track 4), December 11, 1951 (tracks 6 & 7), June 30, 1952 (track 3), July 1, 1952 (tracks 2 & 5) and in Fresno, California on February 29, 1952 (track 1)
Personnel
- Duke Ellington, Billy Strayhorn – piano
- Cat Anderson (tracks 1-5), Shorty Baker, Willie Cook (tracks 1-7), Shelton Hemphill (tracks 8-13), Al Killian (tracks 8-13), Clark Terry (tracks 1-7), Francis Williams (tracks 4 & 6-13) - trumpet
- Ray Nance - trumpet, violin
- Lawrence Brown (tracks 8-13), Quentin Jackson (tracks 1-7), Britt Woodman (tracks 1-7) - trombone
- Tyree Glenn (track 8-13) - trombone, vibraphone
- Claude Jones (tracks 8-13), Juan Tizol (tracks 1-7) - valve trombone
- Jimmy Hamilton - clarinet, tenor saxophone
- Willie Smith (tracks 1, 4, 6 & 7), Johnny Hodges (track 3 & 8-7), Hilton Jefferson (tracks 1-3 & 5) - alto saxophone
- Russell Procope - alto saxophone, clarinet
- Paul Gonsalves (tracks 1-7), Al Sears (tracks 8-13) - tenor saxophone
- Harry Carney - baritone saxophone
- Fred Guy - guitar (tracks 8-13)
- Wendell Marshall (tracks 1-7), Oscar Pettiford, Junior Raglin (tracks 8-13) - bass
- Louis Bellson (tracks 1-7), Sonny Greer (tracks 8-13) - drums
- Betty Roché (track 3), Al Hibbler (track 8) - vocal
References
- ^ Billboard March 21, 1953
- ^ A Duke Ellington Panorama accessed May 24, 2010
- ^ a b Yanow, S. AllMusic Review accessed May 24, 2010
- ^ Hull, Tom (July 1, 2004). "Jazz Consumer Guide (1): All True, More or Less". The Village Voice. Retrieved June 22, 2020 – via tomhull.com.
- ^ Hasse, John Edward, Beyond Category: The Life and Genius of Duke Ellington, Da Capo Press: New York, 1995, p. 323.
- ^ Gioia, Ted, The History of Jazz, Oxford University Press: New York, 1997, pp. 97 and 194.
- ^ Swenson, J., ed. (1985). The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide. USA: Random House/Rolling Stone. p. 69. ISBN 0-394-72643-X.
- ^ Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (2008). The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings (9th ed.). Penguin. p. 433. ISBN 978-0-141-03401-0.
- v
- t
- e
- Harlem Jazz, 1930
- Ellingtonia, Vol. One
- Ellingtonia, Vol. Two
- Braggin' in Brass: The Immortal 1938 Year
- The Blanton–Webster Band
- Never No Lament: The Blanton-Webster Band
- Smoke Rings
- Liberian Suite
- Great Times!
- Masterpieces by Ellington
- Ellington Uptown
- The Duke Plays Ellington
- Ellington '55
- Dance to the Duke!
- Ellington Showcase
- Historically Speaking
- Duke Ellington Presents...
- The Complete Porgy and Bess
- A Drum Is a Woman
- Studio Sessions, Chicago 1956
- Such Sweet Thunder
- Studio Sessions 1957 & 1962
- Ellington Indigos
- Black, Brown and Beige
- Duke Ellington at the Bal Masque
- The Cosmic Scene
- Happy Reunion
- Jazz Party
- Anatomy of a Murder
- Festival Session
- Blues in Orbit
- The Nutcracker Suite
- Piano in the Background
- Swinging Suites by Edward E. and Edward G.
- Unknown Session
- Piano in the Foreground
- Paris Blues
- Featuring Paul Gonsalves
- Midnight in Paris
- Studio Sessions, New York 1962
- Afro-Bossa
- The Symphonic Ellington
- Duke Ellington's Jazz Violin Session
- Studio Sessions New York 1963
- My People
- Ellington '65
- Duke Ellington Plays Mary Poppins
- Ellington '66
- Concert in the Virgin Islands
- The Popular Duke Ellington
- Far East Suite
- The Jaywalker
- Studio Sessions, 1957, 1965, 1966, 1967, San Francisco, Chicago, New York
- ...And His Mother Called Him Bill
- Second Sacred Concert
- Studio Sessions New York, 1968
- Latin American Suite
- The Pianist
- New Orleans Suite
- Orchestral Works
- The Suites, New York 1968 & 1970
- The Intimacy of the Blues
- The Afro-Eurasian Eclipse
- Studio Sessions New York & Chicago, 1965, 1966 & 1971
- The Intimate Ellington
- The Ellington Suites
- This One's for Blanton!
- Up in Duke's Workshop
- Duke's Big 4
- Mood Ellington
- Duke Ellington at Fargo, 1940 Live
- Black, Brown, and Beige
- The Carnegie Hall Concerts: January 1943
- The Carnegie Hall Concerts: December 1944
- The Carnegie Hall Concerts: January 1946
- The Carnegie Hall Concerts: December 1947
- Ellington at Newport
- Dance Concerts, California 1958
- Dance Dates, California 1958
- Newport 1958
- Jazz at the Plaza Vol. II
- Duke Ellington at the Alhambra
- Live at the Blue Note
- Hot Summer Dance
- The Great Paris Concert
- A Concert of Sacred Music
- In the Uncommon Market
- Soul Call
- Yale Concert
- 70th Birthday Concert
- Togo Brava Suite
- Live at the Whitney
- Third Sacred Concert
- Eastbourne Performance
- Blue Rose
- Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Duke Ellington Song Book
- Side by Side
- Back to Back
- The Great Summit
- First Time! The Count Meets the Duke
- Duke Ellington Meets Coleman Hawkins
- Money Jungle
- Duke Ellington & John Coltrane
- Serenade to Sweden
- Ella at Duke's Place
- The Stockholm Concert, 1966
- Ella and Duke at the Cote D'Azur
- Francis A. & Edward K.
- It Don't Mean a Thing If It Ain't Got That Swing
- "African Flower"
- "All Too Soon"
- "Azure"
- "Black and Tan Fantasy"
- "Black, Brown and Beige"
- "C Jam Blues"
- "Come Sunday"
- "Cotton Tail"
- "Creole Love Call"
- "Day Dream"
- "Diminuendo and Crescendo in Blue"
- "Do Nothing Till You Hear from Me"
- "Don't Get Around Much Anymore"
- "Drop Me Off in Harlem"
- "East St. Louis Toodle-Oo"
- "Echoes of Harlem"
- "Everything but You"
- "I Ain't Got Nothin' but the Blues"
- "I Didn't Know About You"
- "I Got It Bad (and That Ain't Good)"
- "I Let a Song Go Out of My Heart"
- "I'm Beginning to See the Light"
- "I'm Just a Lucky So-and-So"
- "In a Mellow Tone"
- "In a Sentimental Mood"
- "It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)"
- "Just A-Sittin' and A-Rockin'"
- "Just Squeeze Me (But Please Don't Tease Me)"
- "The Mooche"
- "Mood Indigo"
- " Prelude to a Kiss"
- "Rocks in My Bed"
- "(In My) Solitude"
- "Sophisticated Lady"
- Queenie Pie (unfinished opera)
by Billy Strayhorn |
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by Juan Tizol |
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members
- Hayes Alvis
- Cat Anderson
- Ivie Anderson
- Harold Ashby
- Alice Babs
- Shorty Baker
- Butch Ballard
- Art Baron
- Aaron Bell
- Louie Bellson
- Joe Benjamin
- Barney Bigard
- Lou Blackburn
- Jimmy Blanton
- Wellman Braud
- Lawrence Brown
- Harry Carney
- Johnny Coles
- Willie Cook
- Buster Cooper
- Kay Davis
- Wild Bill Davis
- Wilbur de Paris
- Bobby Durham
- Mercer Ellington
- Rolf Ericson
- Jimmy Forrest
- Victor Gaskin
- Peter Giger
- Tyree Glenn
- Paul Gonsalves
- Sonny Greer
- Fred Guy
- Jimmy Hamilton
- Otto Hardwick
- Shelton Hemphill
- Rick Henderson
- Al Hibbler
- Johnny Hodges
- Major Holley
- Charlie Irvis
- Quentin Jackson
- Hilton Jefferson
- Herb Jeffries
- Freddie Jenkins
- Money Johnson
- Herbie Jones
- Wallace Jones
- Taft Jordan
- Al Killian
- Queen Esther Marrow
- Wendell Marshall
- Murray McEachern
- Louis Metcalf
- James "Bubber" Miley
- Harold "Geezil" Minerve
- Ray Nance
- Tricky Sam Nanton
- Oscar Pettiford
- Eddie Preston
- Russell Procope
- Junior Raglin
- Betty Roché
- Ernie Royal
- Al Sears
- Joya Sherrill
- Willie Smith
- Elmer Snowden
- Rex Stewart
- Billy Strayhorn
- Billy Taylor
- Clark Terry
- Juan Tizol
- Norris Turney
- Ben Webster
- Arthur Whetsel
- Cootie Williams
- Nelson Williams
- Skippy Williams
- Booty Wood
- Jimmy Woode
- Britt Woodman
- Sam Woodyard