Duke Ellington

<BODY bgcolor="#333333" TEXT="#000000" LINK="#666666" VLINK="#000000" ALINK="#FFFFFF">   <p> ELLINGTONIA FOREVER 30th ANNIVERSARY OF DUKE ELLINGTON’S PASSING IN 1974 COMMEMORATED ON THREE EXPANDED EDITIONS More than a half-century after the original Columbia long playing 33 1/3 rpm 10-inch LP format finally enabled Duke Ellington to record and release uninterrupted versions of his full length concert works for the first time, the digital era pays homage to those landmark sessions of 1950-52 with brilliant new CD configurations, then moves ahead nearly a decade for an expanded edition of a 1959 classic. Recorded just after Labor Day 1959, following a highly successful run on the U.S. summer jazz festival circuit, Festival Session is one of the Duke Ellington Orchestra's most consistently invigorating albums. Ellington (1899-1974) mixes old and new, with the orchestra in peak form, whether the material is tried-and-true (e.g. "Perdido" and "Things Ain't What They Used," the former co-written by the Maestro's longtime star valve trombone soloist Juan Tizol, the latter composed entirely his Duke's son, Mercer) or of then-recent vintage Ellingtonia. "Copout," is a workout for Paul Gonsalves' booting tenor saxophone;" Duael," a collegial stereophonic battle between drummers Sam Woodyard and Jimmy Johnson;" "Idiom '59," a three-part suite spotlighting Russell Procope's and Jimmy Hamilton's clarinets and Clark Terry's flugelhorn; and "Launching Pad," which, like earlier "train tunes," evinces Ellington's interest in a form of travel -- in this case, outer space. The newly remastered set is completed by a pair of previously unreleased tracks, making this an additionally exciting Festival Session. FESTIVAL SESSION CK 87044 J A Z Z M A S T E R P I E C E Duke's recorded tour of the summer jazz festivals Includes 2 Previously Unissued Bonus Tracks New liner notes by Duke's longtime publicist, Patricia Willard A brilliant , ebullient album! 24 BIT DIGITALLY REMASTERED ___________________________________________________________________________ Masterpieces by Ellington is among the most significant recordings in the vast discography of Duke Ellington (1899-1974). The four selections comprising the original album, recorded in December 1950, catapulted the Maestro into the LP era; the still-new 33-1/3 rpm format allowed this great composer/arranger/pianist and his matchless orchestra to take full advantage for the first time of the possibilities extended, high-fidelity performances. Ellington did not merely revisit three of his signature songs ("Mood Indigo" and "Sophisticated Lady," with evocative vocals by Yvonne Lanauze, as well as "Solitude"), he modernized their arrangements in a concert vein. "Masterpieces" was also notable for the debut of the full-bodied, surprise-laden "The Tattooed Bride," and for the swansongs of three Ellingtonian giants of longstanding: drummer Sonny Greer, trombonist Lawrence Brown, and alto saxist Johnny Hodges. (The latter two would eventually return to the fold.) Newly remastered, and containing three bonus tracks from 1950-51, Masterpieces is a revelation. MASTERPIECES BY ELLINGTON CK 87043 J A Z Z M A S T E R P I E C E One of Duke's absolute gems! Includes 3 Bonus Tracks New liner notes by Duke's longtime publicist, Patricia Willard The composer at his peak 24 BIT DIGITALLY REMASTERED ________________________________________________________________________ Recorded in December 1951 and 1952, Ellington Uptown joins stunning, extended works of recent vintage ("A Tone Parallel to Harlem", "The Liberian Suite," "The Controversial Suite") with fresh looks at such bona fide classics by Ellington and alter ego Billy Strayhorn ("The Mooche," "Take the 'A' Train)," as well as "Perdido," co-written by longtime star valve trombone soloist Juan Tizol. Ellington (1899-1974) was justly acclaimed for his portraits of various principal players; "Harlem" is a portrait-in-sound of daily life in the world's most famous African-American community. Vocalists also take star turns herein, with Betty Roche's jauntily bopping rendition of "'A' Train," and Al Hibbler's moving "I Like The Sunrise," the first movement of "The Liberian Suite." And there's Louie Bellson establishing himself as the dean of double bass drums on his "Skin Deep." Now expanded by six bonus cuts, and remastered to enhance the album's already spectacular sound, Uptown is a high water mark in the annals of Elingtonia. ELLINGTON UPTOWN CK 87066 J A Z Z M A S T E R P I E C E Duke presents extended renditions of his classics Includes 6 Bonus Tracks New liner notes by Duke's longtime publicist, Patricia Willard Contains 2 stunning suites by Duke 24 BIT DIGITALLY REMASTERED   <font face="arial,helvetica" size="2"> <B>Your browser does not support frames!</B><BR><BR> Some of the features on this site require a frames-capable browser. For best results, we recommend that you download the latest version of <A href="http://home.netscape.com/download/sd_cc32d474en.html" target="_blank">Netscape Navigator</A> or <A href="http://www.microsoft.com/windows/ie/default.htm" target="_blank">Internet Explorer</a><P> <B>AOL Users:</B> You must be running AOL 2.5 or later for Windows to use Netscape (Keyword: UPGRADE). You will also need to download and install WINSOCK.DLL (Keyword: WINSOCK). Macintosh users should contact AOL directly for help.<BR><BR> Go to <a href="http://www.legacyrecordings.com/">Legacy Recordings</a> for more information on Duke Ellington.</font> </BODY>