- What's on ABC Jazz radio now?
- Hide what's on
- Listen live
ABC Jazz Home > Just Played > Duke Ellington
Duke Ellington
Artist Note
Duke Ellington's Wikipedia Entry
Biography
Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American composer, pianist, and big-band leader. Ellington wrote over 1,000 compositions. In the opinion of Bob Blumenthal of The Boston Globe, "[i i]n the century since his birth, there has been no greater composer, American or otherwise, than Edward Kennedy Ellington. " A major figure in the history of jazz, Ellington's music stretched into various other genres, including blues, gospel, film scores, popular, and classical. His career spanned more than 50 years and included leading his orchestra, composing an inexhaustible songbook, scoring for movies, composing stage musicals, and world tours. Several of his instrumental works were adapted into songs that became standards. Due to his inventive use of the orchestra, or big band, and thanks to his eloquence and extraordinary charisma, he is generally considered to have elevated the perception of jazz to an art form on a par with other traditional genres of music. His reputation increased after his death and the Pulitzer Prize Board bestowed on him a special posthumous honor in 1999. Ellington called his music "American Music" rather than jazz, and liked to describe those who impressed him as "beyond category". These included many of the musicians who were members of his orchestra, some of whom are considered among the best in jazz in their own right, but it was Ellington who melded them into one of the best-known jazz orchestral units in the history of jazz. He often composed specifically for the style and skills of these individuals, such as "Jeep's Blues" for Johnny Hodges, "Concerto for Cootie" for Cootie Williams, which later became "Do Nothing Till You Hear from Me" with Bob Russell's lyrics, and "The Mooche" for Tricky Sam Nanton and Bubber Miley. He also recorded songs written by his bandsmen, such as Juan Tizol's "Caravan" and "Perdido" which brought the "Spanish Tinge" to big-band jazz. Several members of the orchestra remained there for several decades. After 1941, he frequently collaborated with composer-arranger-pianist Billy Strayhorn, whom he called his "writing and arranging companion". Ellington recorded for many American record companies, and appeared in several films. Ellington led his band from 1923 until his death in 1974. His son Mercer Ellington, who had already been handling all administrative aspects of his father's business for several decades, led the band until his own death in 1996. At that point, the original band dissolved. Paul Ellington, Mercer's youngest son and executor of the Duke Ellington estate, kept the Duke Ellington Orchestra going from Mercer's death onwards.
More about Duke Ellington at Wikipedia
This entry is automatically sourced from Wikipedia 
, the user-contributed encyclopedia.
It may not have been reviewed by professional editors and is
licensed under CC-BY-SA . Visit
Duke Ellington on Wikipedia to correct or update this entry.
Any changes made to the Wikipedia article will not be
immediately available here. The ABC is not responsible for the
content of external sites.
Discography
- Money Jungle, 1987
- Retrospection, 2009
- Duke Ellington Meets Coleman Hawkins
- The Best Of Louis Armstrong, 2002
- Ellington: Suite from "The River" / Harlem / Solitude / Dawson: Negro Folk Symphony, 2001
- The Complete Sessions, 1999
- Louis Armstrong meets Duke Ellington, 1996
- The Private Collection, Vol. 1: Studio Sessions: Chicago 1956, 1988
- The Far East Suite
- An Historic Recording Event
- The Great Summit: The Master Takes, 2001
- Priceless Jazz, 1998
- Piano in the Foreground, 2012
- Millenium Collection (disc 1)
- Au Temps Du Cotton Club, 1966
- This One's for Blanton!, 2006
- Still: Symphony no. 2 "Song of a New Race" / Dawson: Negro Folk Symphony / Ellington: Harlem, 1993
- The Millenium Anthology (disc 3)
- Duke Ellington & John Coltrane, 1988
- Ella & Duke at the Côte d'Azur, 1997
- First Time! The Count Meets the Duke, 2010
- Duke's Big 4, 1974
- The Great Summit: The Complete Sessions (disc 1: The Master Takes), 1990
- I Got It Bad, 1996
- One O'Clock Jump
- New York Concert, 1995
- The Best of Duke Ellington 1932-1939, 2008
- The Stockholm Concert 1966, 1984
- The Great Reunion
- 70th Birthday Concert (disc 1)
- Complete edition, Volume 3: 1927-1928, 1992
- Back Room Romp, 1988
- Kings of Swing: The Millennium Anthology, 1994
- Still: Symphony no. 1 "Afro-American" / Ellington: Suite from "The River", 1993
- Black, Brown, and Beige, 2013
- The Esssential Duke Ellington, 2005
- All That Jazz
- Duke Ellington: The Complete 1936–1940 Variety, Vocalion and Okeh Small Group Sessions, 2006
- Cornell University Concert, 1995
- Ella at Duke's Place, 1996
- Piano Duets: Great Times!, 1991
- The Mexican Concert, 1994
- Music by Ellington & Bartók, 1986
- Love Songs, 2001
- From the Blue Note: Chicago 1952, 1995
- Duke Ellington's Greatest Hits, 1989
- Four Symphonic Works by Duke Ellingtion
- Paris Blues (feat. Louis Armstrong), 1998
- Braggin' in Brass: The Immortal 1938 Year, 1991
- Compact Jazz
- Greatest Hits, 1989
- Recording Together for the First Time, 1961
- First Class Jazz 16, 2006
- Midnite Jazz & Blues: Tea for Two, 2000
- Anniversary, 1999
- Mood Indigo
- Coleção Folha clássicos do jazz, Volume 13, 2007
- Gold, 1994
- Duke Ellington: Solos, Duets, and Trios, 1991
- Duke Ellington's Sophisticated Ladies (Original Broadway Cast), 1989
- BBC Music, Volume 18, Number 7: American Classics: Bernstein, Gershwin, Grofé & Ellington, 2010
- Reflections on Duke, 1999
- Stereo Reflections in Ellington
- Jazz Profile
- American Freedom, 1961
- 100 Anniversaire, 1999
- Duke Ellington 40 best original hits, 2003
- Live At The Greek Theatre, 1994
- The Best of Louis Amstrong (disc 1)
- Ivie & Duke: All God's Chillun, 2001
- All-Time Greats, 2000
- Mitos do jazz, Volume 8: Duke Ellington, 2012
- Feeling of Jazz, 2001
- Sophisticated Lady (Duke's Greatest Hits), 1992
- The Great Summit: The Complete Sessions, 2000
- Live at Carnegie Hall Dec. 11, 1943, 2002
- Raisin' The Rent, 2000
- Côte d'Azur Concerts on Verve, 1998
This entry is automatically sourced from Musicbrainz , the public domain music
database. Visit the
Duke Ellington page on Musicbrainz to correct or update this entry.
Any changes made to the article will not be immediately
available here. The ABC is not responsible for the content of
external sites.
Recently Played on ABC Jazz.
| Song | After All |
| Artist | Duke Ellington |
| Album | ...And His Mother Called Him Bill |
| Label | Bluebird |
| Year | 1967 |
| Song | Its Mad, Mad, Mad |
| Artist | Duke Ellington |
| Album | The Unforgetable Vol. 2 |
| Label | Pickwick/Sony |
| Year | 1947 |
| Song | Concerto For Cootie |
| Artist | Duke Ellington |
| Album | The Great Paris Concert |
| Label | Atlantic Jazz |
| Year | 1963 |
| Song | Acht O'Clock Rock |
| Artist | Duke Ellington |
| Album | ...And His Mother Called Him Bill |
| Label | Bluebird |
| Year | 1967 |
| Song | Maybe I Should Change My Ways |
| Artist | Duke Ellington |
| Album | The Unforgetable Vol. 2 |
| Label | Pickwick/Sony |
| Year | 1949 |
Media
Our default Flash video is not available on your device. Please use the link(s) 
below to open the video in your own player.
- YouTube Duke Ellington It dont mean a thing 1943 2:44
- YouTube Duke Ellington Take The A Train 6:08
- YouTube Duke Ellington The Great Paris Concert 66:08
- YouTube Duke Ellington Live In 1958 81:02
- YouTube Duke Ellington C Jam Blues 1942 3:04
More Duke Ellington on YouTube
Non-ABC videos are automatically sourced from YouTube , the user-contributed video sharing site. The ABC is not responsible for the content of external sites.
Non-ABC images are automatically sourced from Discogs , a community-built database of music information. The ABC is not responsible for the content of external sites.
Links
Artist Website
On the ABC
- ABC Classic FM Music Details: Saturday 2 July 2011
- Duke Ellington and His Orchestra: Carnegie Hall December 11th ...
- Perspectives 09/04/2005: Street Stories
- Radio National - Nocturne 31/10/2004
- Nigel Kennedy - The Music Show - 20 February 2010
- The Planet - 24 October 2005 - Ramón Valle
- Sunday Afternoon Program Guide - Previous Programs
- Music-St. Louis Blues - Counterpoint - 10 November 2008
- Re-release of Johnny Hodges vintage saxophone - The Music ...
- The Planet - 12 April 2002 - Kim Scanlon
Elsewhere on the Web
- The Official Website of Jazz Legend Duke Ellington
- Satin Doll | Duke Ellington Song - Yahoo! Music
- Sony Music: Duke Ellington
Links suggested here are generated automatically. The ABC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Page created on Jun 25, 2009. 3:44pm and updated on Apr 27, 2013. 4:24pm.
Recommendations
User login
Related Stories
Duke Ellington's 1972 performance at NY's Whitney Museum of American Art.
Comments
What would be be without the Duke? He was and always will be Jazz.
recommend this
Duke to me, is "The Emperor" in terms of jazz royalty. If I were to pick the greatest live jazz concert I ever attended, it would be Duke's live performance at Melbourne's Festival Hall many decades ago when I was a wide-eyed young jazz lover. To say that astonishing band was star-studded, would be a gross understatement! - Cat Anderson, Cootie Williams, Rufus 'Speedy'Jones, Johnny Hodges, Harry Carney, Lawrence Brown and more, all right there in front of me in their smart band uniforms. Even the way the guys loosely wandered on stage one at a time had style! That band was as hot as the night on which it took place, but how blessed I was to be there. I wonder if any other readers remember that thrilling night? (I recall being driven there with some other passionate jazz lovers whose names I fully recall, in a wonderful old Morris Oxford, if my memory is correct.) The band played all those superb old tunes - we sang along with "I'm Beginning To See The Light" - along with excerpts from the then new "Far East Suite." The highlight that night musically for me was "Harlem", from "Black, Brown & Beige".
Great music, and I love it, but it wasn't really jazz, you know. One or two players got the odd 8 bars of glorious freedom to improvise, but in general all the parts were written and not very much at all was improvised on the spot. But it's still great music. I'd call it swing, rather than jazz. As a player myself, the "player conditions" I really envy is, Duke wrote these parts especially for the players he had, to highlight their individual best characteristics. How good would that be? I'd think I had died and gone to heaven.
Post new comment