DUKE ELLINGTON & HIS ORCHESTRA - The Treasury Shows Vol 19
Storyville 903 0019
Collective Personnel: Ray Nance, Shelton Hemphill, Taft Jordan, Francis Williams, Cat Anderson, Reunald Jones: trumpets; Joe Nanton, Lawrence Brown, Claude Jones, Wilbur De Paris, Bernard Archer: trombones; Jimmy Hamilton, Johnny Hodges, Russell Procope, Al Sears, Harry Carney, Nat Jones, Elbert “Skippy” Williams: reeds; Duke Ellington, Billy Strayhorn: piano; Fred Guy: guitar; Oscar Pettiford, Junior Raglin: bass; Sonny Greer: drums; Kay Davis, Al Hibbler: vocals.
So, what are Treasury Shows? They are public service broadcasts. In April 1945, to assist the sale of war bonds, the US Treasury Department asked Duke Ellington to do a series of 55 min broadcasts. Being completely patriotic, he complied. This volume contains material from Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire, May 4, 1946, plus bonus tracks from The Hurricane Club in New York, September 3, 1943 two radio programs from Radio City in New York, May 18 and May 25, 1946. The last tracks are again from The Hurricane Club but from September 1, 1943.
The advantage of the Treasury broadcasts is that they are in very good sound and they feature the greatest orchestra of the nineteen forties. Ellington, in addition to being a great composer, was astute about maintaining his orchestra. There were no subsidies then or ever. Ellington kept his musicians working so that he could hear his compositions as soon as he had written them. The band was like a repertory company; Ellington encouraged individual voices. In the trumpets Harold Baker sounded nothing like Ray Nance and neither sounded like Taft Jordan. When they played as a section their blend gave the music a unique sound.
These series of recordings show a working band over a period of time playing a varied repertoire. Ellington knew that playing art music would not pay the bills so here there are popular numbers, staples from the 1930s and features for his great soloists.
The two CDs are an opportunity to muse on the question: how on earth did Ellington keep all these virtuosi together with the clashing temperaments and egos?
Tricky Sam Nanton (great name) was still with the band, he died in 1946. His trombone style, he was an artist with mutes, set the pattern for players in the future such as Tyree Glenn, Booty Wood and Quentin Jackson. Tricky’s solo on ‘Fancy Dan’ is expressive, concise and unique as is his take on ‘Three Cent Stomp’.
Ellington considered that the bass was very important. Junior Raglin and Oscar Pettiford are the players that are heard here. They are not as lithe as Jimmy Blanton but they underpin the orchestra well.
Johnny Hodges is present on all the tracks. His fleet, pithy alto can be heard on ‘C Jam Blues’ and ‘Hop, Skip and Jump’. Ellington himself is featured on a concert arrangement of ‘Frankie and Johnny’. Joe Nanton and Ray Nance are also featured.
What comes across consistently is the vitality of the whole band, the harmony and sound of saxophone section somehow blending all those disparate tones together.
If you do not know Ellington this is probably not the best place to start. If you do, then there is much here to intrigue and delight as a great band is caught on a couple of nights doing what they did every night.
The sound throughout is clear and detailed. There are weak tracks on the CDs and some of the vocals, Ellington vocalists were rarely worth hearing, are dire. All the rest of the material is played with verve and features some of the best of both Ellington and Strayhorn.
Reviewed by Jack Kenny
Storyville 903 0019
Collective Personnel: Ray Nance, Shelton Hemphill, Taft Jordan, Francis Williams, Cat Anderson, Reunald Jones: trumpets; Joe Nanton, Lawrence Brown, Claude Jones, Wilbur De Paris, Bernard Archer: trombones; Jimmy Hamilton, Johnny Hodges, Russell Procope, Al Sears, Harry Carney, Nat Jones, Elbert “Skippy” Williams: reeds; Duke Ellington, Billy Strayhorn: piano; Fred Guy: guitar; Oscar Pettiford, Junior Raglin: bass; Sonny Greer: drums; Kay Davis, Al Hibbler: vocals.
So, what are Treasury Shows? They are public service broadcasts. In April 1945, to assist the sale of war bonds, the US Treasury Department asked Duke Ellington to do a series of 55 min broadcasts. Being completely patriotic, he complied. This volume contains material from Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire, May 4, 1946, plus bonus tracks from The Hurricane Club in New York, September 3, 1943 two radio programs from Radio City in New York, May 18 and May 25, 1946. The last tracks are again from The Hurricane Club but from September 1, 1943.
The advantage of the Treasury broadcasts is that they are in very good sound and they feature the greatest orchestra of the nineteen forties. Ellington, in addition to being a great composer, was astute about maintaining his orchestra. There were no subsidies then or ever. Ellington kept his musicians working so that he could hear his compositions as soon as he had written them. The band was like a repertory company; Ellington encouraged individual voices. In the trumpets Harold Baker sounded nothing like Ray Nance and neither sounded like Taft Jordan. When they played as a section their blend gave the music a unique sound.
These series of recordings show a working band over a period of time playing a varied repertoire. Ellington knew that playing art music would not pay the bills so here there are popular numbers, staples from the 1930s and features for his great soloists.
The two CDs are an opportunity to muse on the question: how on earth did Ellington keep all these virtuosi together with the clashing temperaments and egos?
Tricky Sam Nanton (great name) was still with the band, he died in 1946. His trombone style, he was an artist with mutes, set the pattern for players in the future such as Tyree Glenn, Booty Wood and Quentin Jackson. Tricky’s solo on ‘Fancy Dan’ is expressive, concise and unique as is his take on ‘Three Cent Stomp’.
Ellington considered that the bass was very important. Junior Raglin and Oscar Pettiford are the players that are heard here. They are not as lithe as Jimmy Blanton but they underpin the orchestra well.
Johnny Hodges is present on all the tracks. His fleet, pithy alto can be heard on ‘C Jam Blues’ and ‘Hop, Skip and Jump’. Ellington himself is featured on a concert arrangement of ‘Frankie and Johnny’. Joe Nanton and Ray Nance are also featured.
What comes across consistently is the vitality of the whole band, the harmony and sound of saxophone section somehow blending all those disparate tones together.
If you do not know Ellington this is probably not the best place to start. If you do, then there is much here to intrigue and delight as a great band is caught on a couple of nights doing what they did every night.
The sound throughout is clear and detailed. There are weak tracks on the CDs and some of the vocals, Ellington vocalists were rarely worth hearing, are dire. All the rest of the material is played with verve and features some of the best of both Ellington and Strayhorn.
Reviewed by Jack Kenny
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