1946

by Duke Ellington, Duke Ellington & His Orchestra

Overview

For the casual listener, "best of" collections are a good way to explore Duke Ellington's legacy. But if you're a serious collector or a completist, it's important to be aware of Classics, a French label that put out more than 30 CDs of the Duke's work in the 1990s. Regrettably, Classics generally skipped alternate takes; but even so, it was nice to see a label reissuing Ellington's master takes chronologically. This rewarding CD focuses on Ellington's recordings of 1946, when his orchestra boasted such heavyweights as trumpeter Cat Anderson, alto saxophonist Johnny Hodges, tenor saxman Al Sears, baritone saxman Harry Carney, trombonist Lawrence Brown, and drummer Sonny Greer. It was in 1946 that the Duke recorded his last two sessions for RCA Victor, and this CD spotlights those two sessions before offering two pieces from an October 23 session for Musicraft ("Magenta Haze" and "Diminuendo in Blue") and several V-disc recordings from a November 23 concert at Carnegie Hall in New York, where Ellington's orchestra performed "The Golden Cress" and "Sultry Sunset" as well as the interesting, four-part "Deep South Suite." The suite's fourth part is the well-known "Happy Go Lucky Local," an infectious blues track that became the basis for Jimmy Forrest's 1951 smash "Night Train" (which was speeded up and covered by the Godfather of Soul James Brown in the early 1960s). Most of the material on 1946 is instrumental, although Ellington features singer Marion Cox on pleasing arrangements of "St. Louis Blues" and "Lover Man," and fares equally well with singer Kay Davis on "I Don't Stand a Ghost of a Chance With You." While 1946 falls short of essential, the selections are definitely rewarding and prove that the late 1940s was a creatively successful, if underrated, period for the Duke. ~ Alex Henderson

Product Details

Release Date:	01/12/1999
Label:	Classics
UPC:	3307517101525

Tracks

1. (Back Home Again In) Indiana
2. Blue Is the Night
3. Lover Man
4. Just You, Just Me
5. Beale Street Blues
6. My Honey's Lovin' Arms
7. Memphis Blues
8. I Don't Stand a Ghost of a Chance With You
9. St. Louis Blues
10. Swamp Fire
11. Royal Garden Blues
12. Esquire Swank
13. Midriff
14. Diminuendo in Blue
15. Magenta Haze
16. Golden Cress
17. Sultry Sunset
18. Deep South Suite, Pt. 1: Magnolia's Dripping With Molasses
19. Deep South Suite, Pt. 2: Hearsay or Orson Welles
20. Deep South Suite, Pt. 3: Nobody Was Lookin'
21. Deep South Suite, Pt. 4: Happy Go Lucky Local

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Duke Ellington & His Orchestra   Primary Artist
Duke Ellington   Primary Artist,Piano,Director
Jimmy Hamilton   Sax (Tenor),Clarinet
Kay Davis   Vocals
Ray Nance   Violin,Vocals,Trumpet
Johnny Hodges   Sax (Alto)
Al Sears   Sax (Tenor)
Harold Baker   Trumpet
Lawrence Brown   Clarinet,Trombone
Taft Jordan   Trumpet
Oscar Pettiford   Bass
Harry Carney   Clarinet,Sax (Baritone)
Sonny Greer   Drums
Fred Guy   Guitar
Shelton Hemphill   Trumpet
Claude Jones   Trombone
Russell Procope   Clarinet,Sax (Alto)
Francis Williams   Trumpet
Cat Anderson   Trumpet
Leonard Feather   Speech/Speaker/Speaking Part

Technical Credits

Jesse Greer   Composer
Jimmy Davis   Composer
Billy Strayhorn   Composer
Raymond Klages   Composer
James F. Hanley   Composer
Johnny Hodges   Composer
Herman Ruby   Composer
Clarence Williams   Composer
Lawrence Brown   Composer
Fred Fisher   Composer
Roger "Ram" Ramirez   Composer
Harold Mooney   Composer
Victor Young   Composer
Anatol Schenker   Liner Notes
George Norton   Composer
Spencer Williams   Composer
Ballard MacDonald   Composer
Jimmy Sherman   Composer
Bing Crosby   Composer
Duke Ellington   Composer
W.C. Handy   Composer
Ned Washington   Composer
Joseph Meyer   Composer