DUKE ELLINGTON - An Intimate Piano Session
Storyville 1018445
Duke Ellington piano; Anita Moore vocals; Tony Watkins vocals
Recorded 25 August 1972
Bonus tracks
Duke Ellington piano; Wild Bill Davis organ; Victor Gaskin bass; Rufus Jones drums
Rotterdam 1969
These piano recordings are all from the stockpile that Ellington left behind after his death in 1974. Bjarne Buske at Storyville records seems to supervise the guided release of the material.
Ellington always decried his pianistic ability. In reality, Ellington was a pianist with a very wide range. He could stride and do his own version of ragtime but he could also be very sentimental, pieces like ‘Lotus Blossom’ which he played in memory of Billy Strayhorn are saturated in sentimentality and on the current CD we have two versions.
‘New World A Comin’ is Ellington at his best, an intriguing composition and some muscular piano. ‘A Blue Mural From Two Perspectives’ (Ellington did like to work at titles) has some very complex harmonies and there are two versions. These, however, are the exceptions on the disc. The dominant mood is melancholic and reflective.
The piano playing is to be treasured. The minor problem with the CD is the inclusion of the vocalists. If Ellington had a fault, and he did not have many, it was that he was not noted for his choice of vocalists. Here we have Anita Moore on two tracks and Tony Watkins on three. Tony Watkins’ histrionic delivery is an acquired taste that few managed to buy into. His version of ‘Come Sunday’ is truly awful.
The last four tracks were recorded in Rotterdam in 1969. They were the encore at the end of a concert previously issued by Storyville (Storyville1018440). Ellington leads a quartet with Wild Bill Davis, Victor Gaskin on bass and Rufus Jones on drums. They play the newly composed ‘Black Swan’ followed by ‘The Lake’, a piece from Ellington's ballet suite ‘The River’. ‘Satin Doll’ is a feature for Wild Bill Davis. ‘Just Squeeze Me’ ends the concert and the disc.
The disc adds little to our knowledge of Ellington and it is probably the weakest of the offerings from the Storyville stockpile. Hardly surprising, there has been a steady stream of releases since Ellington’s death. We have to be grateful to Storyville for the piano tracks but the inclusion of Anita Moore and Tony Watkins makes one wonder if, after forty-three years since Ellington’s death, the bottom of the stockpile is being reached.
Reviewed by Jack Kenny
Storyville 1018445
Duke Ellington piano; Anita Moore vocals; Tony Watkins vocals
Recorded 25 August 1972
Bonus tracks
Duke Ellington piano; Wild Bill Davis organ; Victor Gaskin bass; Rufus Jones drums
Rotterdam 1969
These piano recordings are all from the stockpile that Ellington left behind after his death in 1974. Bjarne Buske at Storyville records seems to supervise the guided release of the material.
Ellington always decried his pianistic ability. In reality, Ellington was a pianist with a very wide range. He could stride and do his own version of ragtime but he could also be very sentimental, pieces like ‘Lotus Blossom’ which he played in memory of Billy Strayhorn are saturated in sentimentality and on the current CD we have two versions.
‘New World A Comin’ is Ellington at his best, an intriguing composition and some muscular piano. ‘A Blue Mural From Two Perspectives’ (Ellington did like to work at titles) has some very complex harmonies and there are two versions. These, however, are the exceptions on the disc. The dominant mood is melancholic and reflective.
The piano playing is to be treasured. The minor problem with the CD is the inclusion of the vocalists. If Ellington had a fault, and he did not have many, it was that he was not noted for his choice of vocalists. Here we have Anita Moore on two tracks and Tony Watkins on three. Tony Watkins’ histrionic delivery is an acquired taste that few managed to buy into. His version of ‘Come Sunday’ is truly awful.
The last four tracks were recorded in Rotterdam in 1969. They were the encore at the end of a concert previously issued by Storyville (Storyville1018440). Ellington leads a quartet with Wild Bill Davis, Victor Gaskin on bass and Rufus Jones on drums. They play the newly composed ‘Black Swan’ followed by ‘The Lake’, a piece from Ellington's ballet suite ‘The River’. ‘Satin Doll’ is a feature for Wild Bill Davis. ‘Just Squeeze Me’ ends the concert and the disc.
The disc adds little to our knowledge of Ellington and it is probably the weakest of the offerings from the Storyville stockpile. Hardly surprising, there has been a steady stream of releases since Ellington’s death. We have to be grateful to Storyville for the piano tracks but the inclusion of Anita Moore and Tony Watkins makes one wonder if, after forty-three years since Ellington’s death, the bottom of the stockpile is being reached.
Reviewed by Jack Kenny
