The Duke Plays Ellington

For those who appreciate Duke and his genius, the only notes necessary for this package are a few lines indicating that these are selections composed by Ellington himself down through the years. Wendell Marshall, on bass, and Butch Ballard at the drums accompany Duke's solo pianistics unobtrusively. The results are pleasantly out of the ordinary, for those who have followed his career are aware that Duke has always shunned piano solos. These were recorded long after midnight at Capitol's Melrose Avenue .Studios in Hollywood without any sort of rehearsal or plan. They just happened. 

"Reflections in D", "Who Knows?", "B. Sharp Blues" and "Janet" are spontaneous, ad libbed compositions by Ellington, created in the privacy of the dimly lighted studio at the time this album was recorded, and a spin of the turntable reveals what a truly remarkable series of improvisations they are. All Ellington followers know the others; they rank among Duke's best efforts as a composer and it is significant that the Duke himself selected them from a repertoire of more than five hundred of his own works. *from The Duke Plays Ellington (liner notes)*

Only a few albums focused on Duke Ellington's abilities as a pianist. This is one of the best.

A veritable giant in the history of jazz and the early years of popular music, Duke Ellington is rightly revered for his abilities as a composer and bandleader, but the fact that he was also a dexterous and talented pianist with a unique style is often overlooked. Among the myriad albums released under his name during his long career, only a handful focused on his abilities as a pianist. One of the best was The Duke Plays Ellington (later renamed Piano Reflections).

The album was recorded on Monday, April 13, 1953, when the Washington, DC-born jazz aristocrat, then a few weeks shy of his 54th birthday, went into Hollywood's Capitol studios with just a bassist (Wendell Marshall) and a drummer (Butch Ballard) to lay down eight tracks.

It was an intimate, low-key session that began with one of Ellington's signature tunes, "In A Sentimental Mood", which began life as a big-band instrumental in 1935 before becoming a vocal track after acquiring lyrics written by Manny Kurtz. Here, Ellington's elegant, crystalline piano floats above a gently swinging backbeat propelled by Butch Ballard's softly swirling brushes. Another Ellington classic to receive a minimalist piano trio makeover back in April 1953 was the urbane "Prelude To A Kiss", a graceful piece first written in 1938 that was influenced by classical music.

Also familiar to Ellington fans was "Things Ain’t What They Used To Be" —revived as a midtempo blues on The Duke Plays Ellington— which was written by the pianist's son, Mercer, in 1942. Elsewhere on the album, though, Ellington served up brand new material specially conceived for the album.

The influence of the blues on Ellington's music is in evidence on the playful "B Sharp Blues", where the pianist/composer uses dissonance to add a piquant quality to the melody. In acute contrast, the lovely "Reflections In D" is a floating ballad where dense patterns of lush chords create a dreamy soundscape. A more exotic mood is conjured by "Passion Flower", a song that Ellington composed with one of his key collaborators, Billy Strayhorn.

As well as being able to create evocative tone poems, Ellington knew how to swing, as the propulsive "Who Knows?" ably demonstrates with its bright, percussive piano lines. The closing song on the original album, "Janet", also hurtles along at a rapid pace, though quickly changes gear and morphs into a meditative ballad with a gentle rhythmic undertow supplied by soft, pulsing brushes, before resuming the skittish character of its original tempo.

The Duke Plays Ellington was first released as a 10" LP on Capitol Records in 1954, but later, in 1958, when the more popular 12" vinyl had become the norm in the music industry, the album was expanded to accommodate four additional tracks which had been recorded on April 14, 1953. They were two haunting ballads, "Melancholia" and "Retrospection" —the latter was more ornate and dramatic in terms of its piano content— plus "All Too Soon", a revamp of a 40s Ellington tune, and the jaunty "Dancers In Love", defined by a descending chromatic line underpinned by a sprightly, stride piano rhythm.

In 1989, 15 years after Ellington's death, The Duke Plays Ellington was finally reissued on CD for the first time, though it was renamed Piano Reflections. It was also bolstered with three previously unissued cuts ("Kinda Dukish", "Montevideo", and "December Blue"), all taken from a December 1953 session at Capitol studios.

More than half a decade on, The Duke Plays Ellington remains a go-to album if you want to hear Ellington's considerable piano skills in full effect. It offers compelling evidence that the man born Edward Kennedy Ellington, in 1899, could have been successful as a jobbing pianist if his career as a bandleader and composer hadn’t taken off so spectacularly. *Charles Waring*

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Duke Ellington

Piano Reflections

These 1953 recordings brought Duke the pianist into clear focus, proving him to be a clever, quirky, thoughtful, and bold improviser — often simultaneously. Ellington wrote 8 of these 15 cuts specifically for this record, while offering new interpretations of classics such as "Prelude to a Kiss", "In a Sentimental Mood", and "All Too Soon" plus Billy Strayhorn's delicate "Passion Flower" and son Mercer's "Things Ain't What They Used to Be". As strong as those readings are, the highlights here are the new pieces. "Reflections in D", "Retrospection", and "Melancholia" are spooky-but-serene tone poems; "Montevideo" and "Kinda Dukish" (actually the introduction to "Rockin' in Rhythm") are jagged and urgent; and "Janet", a two-minute suite in three parts, combines both moods. The lesser-known "Dancers in Love" (from The Perfume Suite) receives a delightful treatment that shows just how much can be said with one title and two minutes. *Marc Greilsamer*

At the time of its release this was a true rarity, a full album of Duke Ellington featured with a trio sans his orchestra. Although his talents at the piano sometimes have been overshadowed by his many accomplishments as a composer, arranger, and bandleader, Ellington was actually one of the very few stride pianists (along with Mary Lou Williams) to effectively make the transition into more modern styles of jazz without losing his own musical personality; in fact Duke was an early influence on both Thelonious Monk and Cecil Taylor. Throughout this CD (which contains one previously unissued track), Ellington sounds modern (especially rhythmically and in his chord voicings) and shows that he could have made a viable career out of just being a pianist. *Scott Yanow*

1 - Who Knows?

(Duke Ellington)

2 - Retrospection

(Duke Ellington)

3 - B. Sharp Blues

(Duke Ellington)

4 - Passion Flower

(Billy Strayhorn)

5 - Dancers In Love

(Duke Ellington)

6 - Reflections In D

(Duke Ellington)

7 - Melancholia

(Duke Ellington)

8 - Prelude To A Kiss

(Duke Ellington)

9 - In A Sentimental Mood

(Duke Ellington)

10 - Things Ain't What They Used To Be

(Mercer Ellington, Ted Persons)

11 - All Too Soon

(Duke Ellington, Carl Sigman)

12 - Janet

(Duke Ellington)

13 - Kinda Dukish

(Duke Ellington)

14 - Montevideo (a.k.a. Night Time)

(Duke Ellington)

15 - December Blue

(Duke Ellington)

#1 to #12: 

Duke Ellington (piano), Wendell Marshall (bass), Butch Ballard (drums).

Recorded in Los Angeles, California, April 13 (#1 to #5) and April 14 (#6 to #12), 1953.

#13 to #15:

Duke Ellington (piano), Wendell Marshall (bass), Dave Black (drums), Ralph Colier (conga [#14])

Recorded in New York City, December 3, 1953.