DUKE ELLINGTON - In Coventry, 1966
Storyville 1018448
Willie “Cat” Anderson, Cootie Williams, Herbie Jones, Mercer Ellington, tpt; Lawrence Brown, Buster Cooper, tb; Chuck Connors, bs-tb; Russell Procope, a-sax/cl; Johnny Hodges, a-sax; Jimmy Hamilton, Paul Gonsalves, t-sax; , Harry Carney, bar-sax/cl/bs-cl; Ellington, pno; John Lamb, bs; Sam Woodyard, dm;
George Webb, Cliff Adams Singers, voc
Recorded live: Coventry, February 21, 1966
Duke Ellington started to present his music in cathedrals in the nineteen sixties. It is easy to see why the cathedral was chosen. Coventry Cathedral has a special place in English history. The original cathedral was very badly damaged in the second world war as was the whole of Coventry. After rebuilding, the cathedral was consecrated on 25 May 1962, and Benjamin Britten's War Requiem, composed for the occasion, was premiered in the new cathedral on 30 May. The ruins of the original cathedral were preserved at the side of the new church. The interior of the new building is dominated by Graham Sutherland’s tapestry ‘Christ in Glory’.
Ellington’s first sacred concert was introduced in Grace Cathedral in San Francisco in1965. The second sacred concert (1968) was played in New York The third was presented in London at Westminster Abbey in 1973 only months before Ellington’s death. Where the Coventry version fits into this scheme is an open question. It has one number that is completely new and was never repeated and other numbers were changed quite markedly.
Ellington said at the time: ‘One may be accustomed to speaking to people. But suddenly to attempt to speak, sing and play directly to God -- that puts one in an entirely new and different position! . . . You can jive with secular music, but you can't jive with the Almighty.’
Undoubtedly, Ellington was sincere in these concerts, and in his religious beliefs. The gap between the sacred and the profane is thin in Ellington’s world. There are pieces played that were not particularly sacred. ‘West Indian Pancake’ at that time was a feature for Paul Gonsalves and he plays it with energy and that unique foggy tone. La Plus Belle Africaine’, played at the end of the concert, is quite simply one of the great compositions of Ellington's later years. It was premiered just three weeks earlier, and it reaches back into African roots and looks forward into a kind of world music. The piece, at one and the same time, is sparse, rich, simple, restrained and yet fierce.
The concert starts with ‘New World A ‘Comin’’ which Ellington composed in the 1940s. It is a meditative piece played just by Ellington. ‘Come Sunday’ is a non-vocal version which features Johnny Hodges and Cootie Williams. Cat Anderson is featured on ‘Light,’ a piece that was also taken from ‘Black Brown and Beige’.
‘Come Easter’ is a slow piece; it was composed for this occasion and never played again. There are short solos by Jimmy Hamilton Harry Carney and Paul Gonsalves. Tell Me It's The Truth’ is largely a feature for the band with solos by Johnny Hodges and Lawrence Brown.
‘In The Beginning God’ is the longest piece in the concert it features the majestic baritone of Harry Carney and the singers.
At this time the Ellington band was particularly strong and the recording shows off the power and subtlety. The magnificent saxophone section is particularly well represented.
Once again Bjarne Busk at Storyville Records has to be thanked for unearthing this unique slice of Ellingtonia.
Reviewed by Jack Kenny
Storyville 1018448
Willie “Cat” Anderson, Cootie Williams, Herbie Jones, Mercer Ellington, tpt; Lawrence Brown, Buster Cooper, tb; Chuck Connors, bs-tb; Russell Procope, a-sax/cl; Johnny Hodges, a-sax; Jimmy Hamilton, Paul Gonsalves, t-sax; , Harry Carney, bar-sax/cl/bs-cl; Ellington, pno; John Lamb, bs; Sam Woodyard, dm;
George Webb, Cliff Adams Singers, voc
Recorded live: Coventry, February 21, 1966
Duke Ellington started to present his music in cathedrals in the nineteen sixties. It is easy to see why the cathedral was chosen. Coventry Cathedral has a special place in English history. The original cathedral was very badly damaged in the second world war as was the whole of Coventry. After rebuilding, the cathedral was consecrated on 25 May 1962, and Benjamin Britten's War Requiem, composed for the occasion, was premiered in the new cathedral on 30 May. The ruins of the original cathedral were preserved at the side of the new church. The interior of the new building is dominated by Graham Sutherland’s tapestry ‘Christ in Glory’.
Ellington’s first sacred concert was introduced in Grace Cathedral in San Francisco in1965. The second sacred concert (1968) was played in New York The third was presented in London at Westminster Abbey in 1973 only months before Ellington’s death. Where the Coventry version fits into this scheme is an open question. It has one number that is completely new and was never repeated and other numbers were changed quite markedly.
Ellington said at the time: ‘One may be accustomed to speaking to people. But suddenly to attempt to speak, sing and play directly to God -- that puts one in an entirely new and different position! . . . You can jive with secular music, but you can't jive with the Almighty.’
Undoubtedly, Ellington was sincere in these concerts, and in his religious beliefs. The gap between the sacred and the profane is thin in Ellington’s world. There are pieces played that were not particularly sacred. ‘West Indian Pancake’ at that time was a feature for Paul Gonsalves and he plays it with energy and that unique foggy tone. La Plus Belle Africaine’, played at the end of the concert, is quite simply one of the great compositions of Ellington's later years. It was premiered just three weeks earlier, and it reaches back into African roots and looks forward into a kind of world music. The piece, at one and the same time, is sparse, rich, simple, restrained and yet fierce.
The concert starts with ‘New World A ‘Comin’’ which Ellington composed in the 1940s. It is a meditative piece played just by Ellington. ‘Come Sunday’ is a non-vocal version which features Johnny Hodges and Cootie Williams. Cat Anderson is featured on ‘Light,’ a piece that was also taken from ‘Black Brown and Beige’.
‘Come Easter’ is a slow piece; it was composed for this occasion and never played again. There are short solos by Jimmy Hamilton Harry Carney and Paul Gonsalves. Tell Me It's The Truth’ is largely a feature for the band with solos by Johnny Hodges and Lawrence Brown.
‘In The Beginning God’ is the longest piece in the concert it features the majestic baritone of Harry Carney and the singers.
At this time the Ellington band was particularly strong and the recording shows off the power and subtlety. The magnificent saxophone section is particularly well represented.
Once again Bjarne Busk at Storyville Records has to be thanked for unearthing this unique slice of Ellingtonia.
Reviewed by Jack Kenny
