History Music / DukeEllington

** After Duke's death, his son Mercer took over the band. They're still touring and playing.

During this period, Duke continued to innovate, albeit within the swing idiom, writing new material and rearranging old material to keep it fresh. He incorporated "world music" influences on albums like ''The Far East Suite'' and ''The Afro-Eurasian Eclipse'', and incorporated church music into his Sacred Concert series. At the encouragement of producer Bob Thiele and various labels, Duke teamed up with other big names in jazz--LouisArmstrong, John Coltrane, Count Basie, Coleman Hawkins, Charles Mingus, and Max Roach--to record albums.

Throughout his career, Duke sought out what he called "individualists"--musicians who weren't just technically proficient with their instrument, but whose playing was one-of-a-kind. (In this regard, he was inspired by the examples of LouisArmstrong and Sidney Bechet--Duke once expressed a desire to have Louis play every instrument for his band, if it were possible.) A few of the individualists who played with Duke were trumpeters James "Bubber" Miley, Cootie Williams, and Ray Nance (who also played violin); trombonists "Tricky Sam" Nanton and Juan Tizol; saxophonists Ben Webster, Johnny Hodges, and Paul Gonsalves; bassist Jimmy Blanton; and vocalist Ivie Anderson. Billy Strayhorn was also particularly noteworthy for his serving as the band's secondary pianist and Ellington's partner in songwriting. Ellington and Strayhorn had a knack for writing or arranging songs tailored specifically for the strengths of the musicians--it was noted that musicians tended to play better under Duke than on their own. Ellington's work schedule was also affected because he was almost continuously touring, giving him little time to finish many of the things he started--so he'd get Strayhorn to finish them instead, which Strayhorn was happy to do. Duke also treated his musicians well. He liked to joke "I've discovered a gimmick--I give them money", but he also acted as their promoter, agent, biggest fan and general father figure, and they, in turn, adored him, for the most part. As a result, the musician turnover rate in his orchestra was remarkably low. Consider Cootie Williams, who made his name with Ellington in the 30s but left in 1940, when the band was at the peak of its powers. Ellington's only comment was, "He'll be back", and 22 years later, Williams did indeed come back, and stayed until after Ellington's death.

Duke and Strayhorn also composed and performed music for theater and film. The most famous of these soundtracks, ''AnatomyOfAMurder'', was notable for being a historic breakthrough--the [[OverlyNarrowSuperlative first African-American compositions used as non-diagetic music in a major Hollywood film]].

* ''Together for the First Time'' and ''The Great Reunion'' (both 1961). Duke's only studio session with LouisArmstrong. Compiled as a single CD ''The Great Summit: The Master Takes'' (2001).

* ''Money Jungle'' (recorded 1962, released 1963). Recorded with CharlesMingus and Max Roach.

* PopStarComposer: Scored ''AnatomyOfAMurder'', [[TheCameo and also appeared as juke joint pianist Pie-Eye.]]

* CoverAlbum: He recorded jazz versions of [[Creator/PyotrIlyichTchaikovsky Tchaikovsky]]'s ''[[Theatre/TheNutcracker Nutcracker Suite]]'' and Edvard Grieg's ''Theatre/PeerGynt'' Suites. (In the CD era, both of these were packaged with Ellington and Strayhorn's own ''Suite Thursday'' for the CD ''Three Suites''.)

* IHaveManyNames: Over the years, Duke's band went by Duke Ellington's Washingtonians, Duke Ellington & His Orchestra, Duke Ellington & His Famous Orchestra, and even one album (''The Cosmic Scene'', 1958) as Duke Ellington's Spacemen. From 1929 to 1931, Duke's contract with the Victor Talking Machine Company forbid him from releasing music on other labels [[ExactWords under his own name]], so he used a bunch of pseudonyms to release music on other labels: The Jungle Band, Mills Ten Blackberries, The Harlem Hot Chocolates, and The Harlem Footwarmers, to name a few.

* TheBandMinusTheFace: Surprisingly, Duke was not initially the leader of the band that he made famous. They were known as the Washingtonians back then, and banjoist Elmer Snowden was the leader. The band sacked Snowden in early 1924 over a financial disagreement, so Duke took his place.

* EpicRocking: Even in the swing era, when the 78 rpm record format put a hard limit on the length of studio recordings, Duke would sometimes record songs that took up both sides of a record--or multiple records. Then the long-playing record was invented, permitting even longer compositions. The result: Duke's very first studio LP (''Masterpieces by Ellington'', 1950), consisting of four songs varying from 8 to 15 minutes long.

* DolledUpInstallment: "Isfahan" from ''The Far East Suite''. All the other ''FES'' compositions were inspired by a visit to the Middle East, but "Isfahan" was reworked from a piece Duke and Strayhorn had already written, called "Elf".

* RenaissanceMan: As Stephen Lasker wrote, "We may be thankful Ellington selected music as a career for he was a man of exceptional talent in fields apart from music..." In another universe, he might have been just as successful as a writer, painter, bridge player, or baseball player.

Throughout his career, Duke sought out what he called "individualists"--musicians who weren't just technically proficient with their instrument, but whose playing was one-of-a-kind. (In this regard, he was inspired by the examples of LouisArmstrong and Sidney Bechet--Duke once expressed a desire to have Louis play every instrument for his band, if it were possible.) A few of the individualists who played with Duke were trumpeters James "Bubber" Miley, Cootie Williams, and Ray Nance (who also played violin); trombonists "Tricky Sam" Nanton and Juan Tizol; saxophonists Ben Webster, Johnny Hodges, and Paul Gonsalves; bassist Jimmy Blanton; and vocalist Ivie Anderson. Billy Strayhorn was also particularly noteworthy for his serving as the band's secondary pianist and Ellington's partner in songwriting. Ellington and Strayhorn had a knack for writing or arranging songs tailored specifically for the strengths of the musicians--it was noted that musicians tended to play better under Duke than on their own. Ellington's work schedule was also affected because he was almost continuously touring, giving him little time to finish many of the things he started--so he'd get Strayhorn to finish them instead, which Strayhorn was happy to do. Duke also treated his musicians well. He liked to joke 'I've discovered a gimmick--I give them money', but he also acted as their promoter, agent, biggest fan and general father figure) and they, in turn, adored him, for the most part. As a result, the musician turnover rate in his orchestra was remarkably low. Consider Cootie Williams, who made his name with Ellington in the 30s but left in 1940, when the band was at the peak of its powers. Ellington's only comment was 'He'll be back', and 22 years later, Williams did indeed come back, and stayed until after Ellington's death.

* IHaveManyNames: Over the years, Duke's band went by Duke Ellington's Washingtonians, Duke Ellington & His Orchestra, Duke Ellington & His Famous Orchestra, and even one album (''The Cosmic Scene'', 1958) as Duke Ellington's Spacemen. From 1929 to 1931, Duke's his contract with the Victor Talking Machine Company forbid him from releasing music on other labels [[ExactWords under his own name]], so he used a bunch of pseudonyms to release music on other labels: The Jungle Band, Mills Ten Blackberries, The Harlem Hot Chocolates, and The Harlem Footwarmers, to name a few.

* EpicRocking: Even in the swing era, when the 78 rpm record format put a hard limit on the length of studio recordings, Duke would sometimes record songs that took up both sides of a record. Then the long-playing record was invented, permitting even longer compositions. The result: Duke's very first studio LP (''Masterpieces by Ellington'', 1950), consisting of four songs varying from 8 to 15 minutes long.

* MagnumOpusDissonance: Duke considered his Sacred Concerts to be the most important thing he ever wrote. Listeners aren't sure.

->''There are two kinds of music. Good music, and the other kind.''

* TheCameo: Scored ''AnatomyOfAMurder'', and also appeared as juke joint pianist Pie-Eye.

->''In actual fact, Duke Ellington was put into the jazz world to separate the men from the boys. His grasp of harmony and instrumental voicing is more advanced than anybody else's in the entire range of jazz, and the reason why so many modern fans are unable to accept him is not that they are too modern for Duke, but that Duke is too modern for them.''
-->-- '''Benny Green''', quoted in the liner notes of ''Duke Ellington & John Coltrane'', 1963

He hailed from a middle-class family in Washington, DC, and learned piano both from lessons and from imitating the ragtime pianists in the community. After attaining modest success in DC as a pianist and jazz band leader, Duke sought the big time by taking his band to New York City, the center of the music world and the most glamorous scene of TheRoaringTwenties. He first played in the Kentucky Club, then the Cotton Club, honing his songwriting chops and gathering more musicians around him until he was no longer leading a band but an orchestra. During the [[TheThirties 1930s]] and [[TheForties 1940s]], as BigBand swing grew in popularity throughout the US and the world, Duke's jazz orchestra became renowned as one of the best.

In the late 1940s and [[TheFifties 1950s]], big bands and swing precipitously fell out of popularity[[hottip:*:basically, the serious jazz fans and up-and-coming jazz musicians abandoned it for bebop, while the dancers and teens abandoned it for rock-n-roll or for crooners like FrankSinatra]]. Duke's orchestra was one of the few that managed to stay afloat--and even so, the band mainly survived off the royalties from their prior compositions.

Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (1899-1974) was a jazz pianist and band leader, one of the big names in the history of the genre, and one of the USA's greatest popular composers.

Throughout his career, Duke sought out what he called "individualists"--musicians who weren't just technically proficient with their instrument, but whose playing was one-of-a-kind. (In this regard, he was inspired by the examples of LouisArmstrong and Sidney Bechet--Duke once expressed a desire to have Louis play every instrument for his band, if it were possible.) A few of the individualists who played with Duke were trumpeters James "Bubber" Miley, Cootie Williams, and Ray Nance (who also played violin); trombonists "Tricky Sam" Nanton and Juan Tizol; saxophonists Ben Webster, Johnny Hodges, and Paul Gonsalves; bassist Jimmy Blanton; and vocalist Ivie Anderson. Billy Strayhorn was also particularly noteworthy for his serving as the band's secondary pianist and Ellington's partner in songwriting. Ellington and Strayhorn had a knack for writing or arranging songs tailored specifically for the strengths of the musicians--it was noted that musicians tended to play better under Duke than on their own. Ellington's work schedule was also affected because he was almost continuously touring, giving him little time to finish many of the things he started--so he'd get Strayhorn to finish them instead, which Strayhorn was happy to do. Duke also treated his musicians well (he joked 'I've discovered a gimmick--I give them money' but he also acted as their promoter, agent, biggest fan and general father figure) and they, in turn, adored him, for the most part. As a result, the musician turnover rate in his orchestra was remarkably low. Consider Cootie Williams, who made his name with Ellington in the 30s but left in 1940, when the band was at the peak of its powers. Ellington's only comment was 'He'll be back', and 22 years later, Williams did indeed come back, and stayed until after Ellington's death.

Throughout his career, Duke sought out what he called "individualists"--musicians who weren't just technically proficient with their instrument, but whose playing was one-of-a-kind. (In this regard, he was inspired by the examples of LouisArmstrong and Sidney Bechet--Duke once expressed a desire to have Louis play every instrument for his band, if it were possible.) A few of the individualists who played with Duke were trumpeters James "Bubber" Miley, Cootie Williams, and Ray Nance (who also played violin); trombonists "Tricky Sam" Nanton and Juan Tizol; saxophonists Ben Webster, Johnny Hodges, and Paul Gonsalves; bassist Jimmy Blanton; and vocalist Ivie Anderson. Billy Strayhorn was also particularly noteworthy for his serving as the band's secondary pianist and Ellington's partner in songwriting. Ellington and Strayhorn had a knack for writing or arranging songs tailored specifically for the strengths of the musicians--it was noted that musicians tended to play better under Duke than on their own. Duke also treated his musicians well, and as a result, the musician turnover rate in his orchestra was remarkably low.

* SignatureSong: Initially "Sepia Panorama." Shortly afterwards, it (and every other ASCAP-licensed song) was banned from radio play, so "Take the 'A' Train" was written to become the Ellington band's new theme.
* TrainSong: "Take the 'A' Train."

He hailed from a middle-class family in Washington, DC, and learned piano both from lessons and from imitating the ragtime pianists in the community. After attaining modest success in DC as a pianist and jazz band leader, Duke sought the big time by taking his band to New York City, the center of the music world and the most glamorous scene of TheRoaringTwenties. He first played in the Kentucky Club, then the Cotton Club, honing his songwriting chops and gathering more musicians around him until he was no longer leading a band but an orchestra. During the [[TheThirties 1930s]] and [[TheForties 1940s]], as big-band swing grew in popularity throughout the US and the world, Duke's jazz orchestra became renowned as one of the best.

* TrainSong: "Take the 'A' Train."

* SignatureSong: Initially "Sepia Panorama". Shortly afterwards, it (and every other ASCAP-licensed song) was banned from radio play, so "Take the 'A' Train" was written to become the Ellington band's new theme.
* TrainSong: "Take the 'A' Train".

----

During this period, Duke continued to innovate, albeit within the swing idiom, writing new material and rearranging old material to keep it fresh. He incorporated "world music" influences on albums like ''The Far East Suite'' and ''The Afro-Eurasian Eclipse'', and incorporated church music into his Sacred Concert series. At the encouragement of producer Bob Thiele, Duke teamed up with other big names in jazz--LouisArmstrong, Coleman Hawkins, Charles Mingus, Max Roach, and John Coltrane--to record albums.

He hailed from a middle-class family in Washington, DC, and learned piano both from lessons and from imitating the ragtime pianists in the community. After attaining modest success in DC as a pianist and jazz band leader, Duke sought the big time by taking his band to New York City, the center of the music world and the most glamorous scene of TheRoaringTwenties. He first played in the Kentucky Club, then the Cotton Club, honing his songwriting chops and gathering more musicians around him until he was no longer leading a band but an orchestra. During the '30s and '40s, as big-band swing grew in popularity throughout the US and the world, Duke's jazz orchestra became renowned as one of the best.

In the late '40s and '50s, big bands and swing precipitously fell out of popularity[[hottip:*:basically, the serious jazz fans and up-and-coming jazz musicians abandoned it for bebop, while the dancers and teens abandoned it for rock-n-roll or for crooners like FrankSinatra]]. Duke's orchestra was one of the few that managed to stay afloat--and even so, the band mainly survived off the royalties from their prior compositions.

->''In actual fact, Duke Ellington (1899-1974) was put into the jazz world to separate the men from the boys. His grasp of harmony and instrumental voicing is more advanced than anybody else's in the entire range of jazz, and the reason why so many modern fans are unable to accept him is not that they are too modern for Duke, but that Duke is too modern for them.''

Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington was a jazz pianist and band leader, one of the big names in the history of the genre, and one of the USA's greatest popular composers.

->''In actual fact, Duke Ellington was put into the jazz world to separate the men from the boys. His grasp of harmony and instrumental voicing is more advanced than anybody else's in the entire range of jazz, and the reason why so many modern fans are unable to accept him is not that they are too modern for Duke, but that Duke is too modern for them.''