Brooks Kerr (1951–2018)
Brooks Kerr, pianist and Duke Ellington scholar, has died at the age of sixty-six.
On Duke Ellington’s birthday, a random possible discovery
It may be coincidence, but a phrase that Bubber Miley plays and repeats in a 1927 recording sure sounds like the germ of Johnny Hodges’s “Good Queen Bess.”
On Duke Ellington’s birthday
“I am a musician who is a member of the American Federation of Labor, and who hopes one day to amount to something artistically.”
Maurice Peress (1930–2017)
A conductor known especially for his work with Leonard Bernstein and Duke Ellington.
“In a Sentimental Mood,” two takes
Ethan Iverson writes about Duke Ellington, Bill Evans, “In a Sentimental Mood,” and “scalar thought.”
On Duke Ellington’s birthday
Ellington and Strayhorn, on a train, composing.
Review: Duke Ellington, An Intimate Piano Session
These sixteen recordings, all made on August 25, 1972, are a considerable addition to the body of Ellington’s work as solo pianist and accompanist.
“E” is for Ellington
Up to “E” in my dad’s CDs. With “Melancholia” and “Reflections in D.”
Review: The Duke Box 2
I’m always in the mood for more Ellington.
Slavic Soul Party! Plays Duke Ellington’s “Far East Suite”
It is impossible to sit still when this record is on.
Duke Ellington and Paul Gonsalves, “Happy Reunion”
A 1972 performance with a backstory.
The oldest Ellingtonian?
Eve Duke, aka Eve Smith, aka Yvonne Lanauze, is still making music at the age of ninety-one.
Buster Cooper (1929–2016)
Trombonist, Ellingtonian.
On Duke Ellington’s birthday
A 1930 photograph and “Old Man Blues.”
Duke Ellington, Rotterdam 1969
It’s clear that this band has come to play.
“Lush Life” plus
Duke Ellington and the radio personality William B. Williams talk. Billy Strayhorn sings and plays.
Billy Strayhorn centenary
William Thomas Strayhorn was born on November 29, 1915.
Duke Ellington, The Conny Plank Session
The Conny Plank Session is the only Ellington release I know of to be named for a recording engineer.
On Duke Ellington’s birthday
“Duke” is not the only nickname I’ve had or enjoyed.”
Ellington sings!
“Moon Maiden” is to my knowledge the only singing Ellington ever did on record.
Herb Jeffries (1913–2014)
He was, I believe, the last link to the 1940s Ellington band.
On Duke Ellington’s birthday
LPs. LPs.
Alice Babs (1924–2014)
Alice Babs was a child star, a musician of extraordinary range, and perhaps the unlikeliest Ellingtonian.
Adam Gopnik on Duke Ellington
“Gopnik’s understanding of his subjects — Ellington and jazz — is limited. That’s a polite way of saying that he doesn’t know what he’s writing about.”
Word of the day: chinoiserie
A word that always makes me think of Duke Ellington.
Duke Ellington in Afghanistan
The Ellington band visited Afghanistan in 1963 while on tour for the United States State Department.
On Duke Ellington’s birthday
From a 1944 New Yorker profile: Ellington on food.
Maria Cole (1922–2012)
In the 1940s, as Marie Ellington, she sang with the Duke Ellington Orchestra.
Ellington and an iPhone app
“What is that music?” I asked myself.
On Duke Ellington’s birthday
“The popularity of it doesn’t matter, doesn’t mean anything, because when you get into popularity, then you’re talking about money and not music.”