Cotton Club – Victor Yalovets Music

Old Wine and New Bottles (Podcast #19-011)

Ellington never liked to set his compositions in stone. Here’s a few examples of how he would re-visit older works…
Continue reading →

The recordings heard on this podcast episode:

Birmingham Breakdown (CD: “Early Ellington – The Complete Brunswick And Vocalion Recordings Of Duke Ellington, 1926-1931” Decca/MCA Records GRD-3-640)

Recorded 29 November 1926, New York City

Bubber Miley, Louis Metcalf – trumpet; Joe Nanton – trombone; unknown, Edgar Sampson, Otto Hardwicke – reeds; Duke Ellington – piano; Fred Guy – banjo; Mack Shaw – tuba; Sonny Greer -drums.

Birmingham Breakdown (CD: “Cotton Club 1938, Volume 1” Galaxy Music ‎– 3801122)

Recorded 15 May 1938, CBS broadcast, Cotton Club, New York City

Wallace Jones, Cootie Williams, Rex Stewart – trumpet; Lawrence Brown, Joe Nanton, Juan Tizol – trombone; Barney Bigard, Johnny Hodges, Otto Hardwicke, Harry Carney – reeds; Duke Ellington – piano; Fred Guy – guitar; Billy Taylor – bass; Sonny Greer – drums.

Doin’ The Voom Voom (CD: “Early Ellington – The Complete Brunswick And Vocalion Recordings Of Duke Ellington, 1926-1931” Decca/MCA Records GRD-3-640)

Recorded 8 January 1929, New York City

Arthur Whetsel, Bubber Miley, Freddie Jenkins – trumpet; Joe Nanton – trombone; Barney Bigard(cl,ts); Johnny Hodges(cl,ss,as); Harry Carney(cl,as,bar); Duke Ellington – piano; Fred Guy(bj); Wellman Braud – bass; Sonny Greer – drums.

elling_duke_complete1_101b Doin’ The Voom Voom(CD: “The Complete 1932-1940 Brunswick, Columbia and Master Recordings of Duke Ellington and his Famous Orchestra” Mosaic Records #248)

Recorded 6 June 1939, New York City

Rent Party Blues (CD: “Early Ellington – The Complete Brunswick And Vocalion Recordings Of Duke Ellington, 1926-1931” Decca/MCA Records GRD-3-640)

Recorded 1 March 1929, New York City

Arthur Whetsel, Cootie Williams, Freddie Jenkins – trumpet; Joe Nanton – trombone; Barney Bigard, Johnny Hodges, Harry Carney -reeds; Duke Ellington – piano; Fred Guy – banjo; Wellman Braud – bass; Sonny Greer – drums.

small groups Rent Party Blues (CD: ”The Complete 1936-1940 Variety, Vocalion and Okeh Small Group Sessions” Mosaic Records #235)

Recorded 21 March 1939, New York City

Cootie Williams – trumpet; Lawrence Brown – trombone; Johnny Hodges, Otto Hardwicke, Harry Carney – reeds; Duke Ellington – piano; Billy Taylor – bass; Sonny Greer – drums.

early ellington rca Black Beauty (CD: Early Ellington (1927 – 1934), Bluebird 6852-2-RB)

Recorded 26 March 1928, New York City

Arthur Whetsel, Bubber Miley, Louis Metcalf – trumpet; Joe Nanton – trombone; Barney Bigard, Otto Hardwicke, Harry Carney – reeds; Duke Ellington – piano; Fred Guy – banjo; Wellman Braud – bass; Sonny Greer – drums.

bbbcd Black Beauty (CD: “Black, Brown & Beige” Bluebird 6641-2-RB)

Recorded 16 May 1945, New York City

Shelton Hemphill, Rex Stewart, Taft Jordan, Cat Anderson, Ray Nance – trumpet; Lawrence Brown, Joe Nanton, Claude Jones – trombone; Jimmy Hamilton, Otto Hardwicke, Johnny Hodges, Al Sears, Harry Carney – reeds; Duke Ellington – piano; Fred Guy – guitar; Junior Raglin – bass; Sonny Greer – drums.

Black Beauty (CD: “Duke Ellington: The Columbia Years 1927-1962” Columbia 5176872) Recorded 14 July 1960, Los Angeles

Ray Nance – trumpet; Lawrence Brown – trombone; Johnny Hodges – alto sax; Paul Gonsalves – tenor sax; Harry Carney – baritone sax; Duke Ellington – piano; Aaron Bell – bass; Sam Woodyard – drums.

— Our closing music —-

It’s Something You Ought To Know (Paul Gonsalves – “Ellingtonia Moods and Blues,” RCA Victor / RCA63562)

Recorded 29 February 1960, New York City

Paul Gonsalves- tenor sax; Johnny Hodges – alto sax; Ray Nance – cornet; Mitchell “Booty” Wood – trombone; Jimmy Jones – piano; Al Hall – bass; Oliver Jackson – drums.

Portrait of Bubber Miley (Podcast #19-008)

“Bubber Miley was from the body and soul of Soulville. He was raised on soul and saturated and marinated in soul. Every note he played was soul filled with the pulse of compulsion….. Bubber was born in South Carolina, but … Continue reading →

“Bubber Miley was from the body and soul of Soulville. He was raised on soul and saturated and marinated in soul. Every note he played was soul filled with the pulse of compulsion…..

Bubber was born in South Carolina, but his family moved to New York when he was quite young, and he was raised there. His growl solos with the plunger mute were another of our early sound identities, and between 1925 and 1929 he laid the foundation of a tradition that has been maintained ever since by men like Cootie Williams and Ray Nance.” –

– Duke Ellington, Music Is My Mistress

The recordings heard on this podcast episode:

Early Ellington (1927 – 1934), Bluebird 6852-2-RB

Black and Tan Fantasy, recorded 6 October 1927, Camden, New Jersey

Bubber Miley, Louis Metcalf – trumpet; Joe Nanton – trombone; unknown, Edgar Sampson, Otto Hardwicke – reeds; Duke Ellington – piano; Fred Guy – banjo; Mack Shaw – tuba.

East St. Louis Toodle-oo, recorded 3 December 1927, New York City

Bubber Miley, Louis Metcalf – trumpet; Joe Nanton – trombone; Rudy Jackson, Otto Hardwicke, Harry Carney – reeds; Duke Ellington – piano; Fred Guy – banjo; Wellman Braud – bass; Sonny Greer – drums.

Doin’ the Voom Voom and Flaming Youth, recorded 16 January 1929, New York City

Arthur Whetsel, Bubber Miley, Freddie Jenkins – trumpet; Joe Nanton – trombone; Barney Bigard, Johnny Hodges, Harry Carney – reeds; Duke Ellington – piano; Fred Guy – banjo; Wellman Braud – bass; Sonny Greer – drums.

early ellington

Early Ellington – The Complete Brunswick And Vocalion Recordings Of Duke Ellington, 1926-1931, Decca/MCA Records GRD-3-640 (3 CD set)

The Mooche, recorded 17 October 1928, New York City

Arthur Whetsel, Bubber Miley, unknown – trumpet; Joe Nanton – trombone; Barney Bigard, Johnny Hodges, Harry Carney – reeds; Duke Ellington – piano; Fred Guy – banjo; Wellman Braud – bass; Sonny Greer – drums.

Okeh Ellington

The Okeh Ellington, Columbia C2K 46177 (2 CD set)

Take it Easy, recorded 19 January 1928, New York City

Bubber Miley, Louis Metcalf – trumpet; Joe Nanton – trombone; Barney Bigard, Otto Hardwicke, Harry Carney – reeds; Duke Ellington – piano; Fred Guy – banjo; Wellman Braud – bass; Sonny Greer – drums.

The Mooche, recorded 1 October 1928, New York City

Arthur Whetsel, Bubber Miley – trumpet; Joe Nanton – trombone; Barney Bigard, Johnny Hodges, Harry Carney – reeds; Duke Ellington – piano; Lonnie Johnson – guitar; Fred Guy – banjo; Wellman Braud – bass; Sonny Greer – drums; Baby Cox – vocal.

bix beiderbeck

The Bix Beiderbecke Story, Proper Records P1362 (4 CD set)

Louisiana, recorded 23 April 1928, New York City

Paul Whiteman and his Orchestra: Henry Busse, Charles Margulis, Eddie Prinder – trumpet; Bix Beiderbecke – cornet; Boyce Cullen, Wilbur Hall, Bill Rank, Jack Fulton – trombone; Irving Friedman, Chet Hazlett, Rube Crozier, Frank Trumbauer, Red Mayer, Charles Strickfaden – reeds; Kurt Dierterle, Mischa Russell, Matty Malneck, Mario Perry, John Bowman, Charles Gaylord – violin; Roy Bargy, Lennie Hayton – piano; Mike Pingitore – banjo; Min Leibrook – tuba; Mike Trafficante – bass; Hal McDonald – drums; Bing Crosby, Jack Fulton, Austin Young, Charles Gaylord – vocal.

Rockin’ Chair, recorded 21 May 1930, New York City

Bix Beiderbecke – cornet; James “Bubber” Miley – trumpet; Tommy Dorsey – trombone; Arnold Brilhart, Benny Goodman, Bud Freeman – reeds; Joe Venuti – violin; Hoagy Carmichael – piano, vocal; .Eddie Lang – guitar; Harry Goodman – bass; Gene Krupa – drums; Irving Brodsky – vocal.

— Our closing music —-

It’s Something You Ought To Know (Paul Gonsalves – “Ellingtonia Moods and Blues,” RCA Victor / RCA63562)

Recorded 29 February 1960, New York City

Paul Gonsalves- tenor sax; Johnny Hodges – alto sax; Ray Nance – cornet; Mitchell “Booty” Wood – trombone; Jimmy Jones – piano; Al Hall – bass; Oliver Jackson – drums.

Portrait of Fred Guy (Podcast #19-007)

Fred Guy played banjo and guitar in the Ellington Orchestra from 1925 to 1949. Continue reading →

“Freddy Guy was born in Georgia, but he had been in New York most of his life when he joined us in 1925, and he knew Harlem backwards and forwards. He was rather a serious type of fellow, and was always giving us advice, but his guitar was a metronome and the beat was always where it was supposed to be. He was a good man at managing finances, too. Herman Stark, the manager of the Cotton Club, used to say to me, “You are going to be a very famous star, but Freddy Guy is going to wind up with the money.””

-Duke Ellington, Music Is My Mistress

guy and duke

Fred Guy and Duke Ellington, 1925

Fred Guy, 1946

Fred Guy's Autograph.jpg

Fred Guy’s Autograph (from eBay)

Fred Guy played and endorsed Levin, a Swedish guitar brand

fred guy newspaper clipping

The Atlanta Constitution, Thursday, 25 November 1971

The recordings heard on this podcast episode:

Rainy Nights (CD: 1924-1926: Birth of a Band, Vol. 1 EPM #HS151042)

Recorded November, 1924 New York City

Bubber Miley – trumpets; Charlie Irvis – trombone; Otto Hardwicke – alto sax; Duke Ellington – piano; Fred Guy – banjo; Sonny Greer – drums.

41HG64z6N4L._SX450_

Echoes of the Jungle (CD: Highlights from the Duke Ellington Centennial Edition (1927-1973) RCA Victor 09026636722)

Recorded 16 June 1931, Camden, New Jersey

Arthur Whetsel, Cootie Williams, Freddie Jenkins – trumpet; Joe Nanton, Juan Tizol – trombone; Barney Bigard, Johnny Hodges, Harry Carney – reeds; Duke Ellington – piano; Fred Guy – banjo; Wellman Braud – bass; Sonny Greer – drums.

elling_duke_complete1_101b

The Sergeant Was Shy (CD: “The Complete 1932-1940 Brunswick, Columbia and Master Recordings of Duke Ellington and his Famous Orchestra” Mosaic Records #248)

Recorded 28 August 1939, Boston

stereo reflections

Warm Valley (CD: “Duke Ellington: Stereo Reflections In Ellington” Natasha Imports ‎– NI-4016)

Recorded 31 July 1940, Detroit

Wallace Jones, Cootie Williams, Rex Stewart – trumpet; Lawrence Brown, Joe Nanton, Juan Tizol – trombone; Barney Bigard, Ben Webster, Johnny Hodges, Otto Hardwicke, Harry Carney – reeds; Duke Ellington – piano; Fred Guy – guitar; Billy Taylor – bass; Sonny Greer – drums.

bbbcd

Caravan (CD: “Black, Brown & Beige” Bluebird 6641-2-RB)

Recorded 11 May 1945, New York City

Shelton Hemphill, Taft Jordan, Cat Anderson, Ray Nance, Rex Stewart – trumpet; Lawrence Brown, Joe Nanton, Claude Jones – trombone; Jimmy Hamilton, Otto Hardwicke, Johnny Hodges, Al Sears, Harry Carney – reeds; Duke Ellington – piano; Fred Guy – guitar; Junior Raglin – bass; Sonny Greer – drums.

— Our closing music —-

It’s Something You Ought To Know (Paul Gonsalves – “Ellingtonia Moods and Blues,” RCA Victor / RCA63562)

Recorded 29 February 1960, New York City

Paul Gonsalves- tenor sax; Johnny Hodges – alto sax; Ray Nance – cornet; Mitchell “Booty” Wood – trombone; Jimmy Jones – piano; Al Hall – bass; Oliver Jackson – drums.

Harlem (Podcast #17-005)

Duke Ellington lived in Harlem and celebrated the city and the people in song. Continue reading →

1932 map of harlem nightclubs

“Harlem is a place, a place in New York City, bordered on the south by Central Park and on the north by 145th Street, the Harlem and East River on the east, and the Hudson River on the west……

We would like now to take you on a tour of this place called Harlem. It has always had more churches than cabarets. It is Sunday morning. We are strolling from 110th Street up Seventh Avenue, heading north through the Spanish and West Indian neighborhood toward the 125th Street business area. Everybody is nicely dressed, and on their way to or from church. Everybody is in a friendly mood. Greetings are polite and pleasant, and on the opposite side of the street, standing under a street lamp, is a real hip chick. She, too, is in a friendly mood. You may hear a parade go by, or a funeral, or you may recognize the passage of those who are making our Civil Rights demands. (Hereabouts, in our performance, Cootie Williams pronounces the word on his trumpet – Harlem!)”

– Duke Ellington, Music Is My Mistress

“Civil Rights demands” and activism landed Duke Ellington in the cross hairs of J. Edgar Hoover’s FBI. Click here to view his FBI file.

Video – Cab Calloway remembers the music clubs of Harlem

The Harlem Renaissance

harlem air shaft score

Journal of Jazz Studies article on Harlem Air Shaft by Dr. Edward Green

Duke Ellington performing A Tone Parallel to Harlem in London, 1964:

Harlem as performed by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra:

The recordings heard on this podcast episode:

uptown

Take the “A” Train (CD: “Ellington Uptown” Columbia Legacy 87066)

Recorded 30 June 1952, New York City

Willie Cook, Cat Anderson, Clark Terry, Ray Nance – trumpet; Britt Woodman, Quentin Jackson, Juan Tizol – trombone; Russell Procope, Hilton Jefferson, Jimmy Hamilton, Paul Gonsalves, Harry Carney – reeds; Duke Ellington – piano; Wendell Marshall – bass; Louie Bellson – drums; Betty Roche – vocal.

armstrong ellington

Drop Me Off in Harlem (CD: “The Complete Louis Armstrong & Duke Ellington Sessions” Roulette Records / Blue Note 5245462)

Recorded 3 April 1961, New York City

Louis Armstrong – trumpet, vocal; Trummy Young – trombone; Barney Bigard – clarinet; Duke Ellington – piano; Mort Herbert – bass; Danny Barcelona – drums.

Highlights

Harlem Air Shaft (CD: “Highlights of the Great 1940-1942 Band” Avid AMSC1143)

Recorded 22 July 1940, New York City

Wallace Jones, Cootie Williams, Rex Stewart – trumpet; Lawrence Brown, Joe Nanton, Juan Tizol – trombone; Barney Bigard, Johnny Hodges, Otto Hardwicke, Ben Webster, Harry Carney – reeds; Duke Ellington – piano; Fred Guy – guitar; Jimmie Blanton – bass; Sonny Greer – drums.

treasury show vol 4

Sugar Hill Penthouse (CD: “The Treasury Shows, Volume 4” Storyville Records 903 9004)

Recorded 10 October, 1945, Live at The New Zanibar, New York City

Rex Stewart, Taft Jordan, Ray Nance, Shelton Hemphill, Cat Anderson – trumpet; Joseph “Tricky Sam” Nanton, Lawrence Brown, Claude Jones – trombone; Johnny Hodges, Otto Hardwicke, Al Sears, Jimmy Hamilton, Harry Carney – reeds; Duke Ellington – piano; Fred Guy – guitar; Junior Raglin – bass; Sonny Greer – drums.

elling_duke_complete1_101b

Harlem Speaks (CD: “The Complete 1932-1940 Brunswick, Columbia and Master Recordings of Duke Ellington and his Famous Orchestra” Mosaic Records #248)

Recorded 15 August 1933, New York City

Arthur Whetsel, Cootie Williams, Freddie Jenkins – trumpet; Lawrence Brown, Joe Nanton, Juan Tizol – trombone; Barney Bigard, Johnny Hodges, Otto Hardwicke, Harry Carney – reeds; Duke Ellington – piano; Fred Guy – guitar; Wellman Braud – bass; Sonny Greer – drums.

Great Paris Concert

Echoes of Harlem (CD: “The Great Paris Concert” Collectables 7818)

Recorded 23 February 1963, Paris

Cootie Williams, Cat Anderson, Ray Nance, Roy Burrowes – trumpet; Lawrence Brown, Buster Cooper, Chuck Connors – trombone; Johnny Hodges, Russell Procope, Jimmy Hamilton, Harry Carney – reeds; Duke Ellington – piano; Ernie Shepard – bass; Sam Woodyard – drums.

Reprise

Harlem [aka A Tone Parallel to Harlem] (CD: “The Reprise Studio Recordings” Mosaic Records #193)

Recorded 31 January 1963, Paris

Cootie Williams, Roy Burrowes, Cat Anderson, Ray Nance – trumpet; Lawrence Brown, Buster Cooper, Chuck Connors – trombone; Russell Procope, Johnny Hodges, Jimmy Hamilton, Paul Gonsalves, Harry Carney – reeds; Duke Ellington – piano; Ernie Shepard – bass; Sam Woodyard – drums; Paris Symphony Orchestra.