Duke Ellington Ellington '65 CD

Personnel: Duke Ellington (piano); Duke Ellington; Russell Procope (clarinet, alto saxophone, trombone); Herb Jones, Herbie Jones (trumpet); Lawrence D. Brown, Lawrence Brown (trombone); Major Holley (double bass); Jimmy Hamilton (clarinet, tenor saxophone); Johnny Hodges (alto saxophone); Paul Gonsalves (tenor saxophone); Harry Carney (baritone saxophone); Cootie Williams, Rolf Ericson, Cat Anderson (trumpet); Chuck Connors, Buster Cooper (trombone); Sam Woodyard (drums).
Liner Note Author: Leonard Feather.
Recording information: 04/15/1964-04/27/1964.
Arranger: Billy Strayhorn.
The Duke Ellington orchestra is captured here at its mature best in this mid-1960s collection of artfully rearranged hits of the day. Ellington's arrangements blend populist sensibilities with artistic integrity, energizing standards like "Danke Schoen" and "Hello, Dolly" (which had been a hit for Louis Armstrong in 1964) with fresh musical ideas. A nicely balanced blend of uptempo swing and sophisticated after-hours blues, ELLINGTON '65 demonstrates seasoned players like Russell Procope, Johnny Hodges, and Laurence Brown at the top of their game.
A slightly more commercial effort than many previous Duke Ellington recordings, Ellington '65 is an example of how the change in popular music found jazz musicians attempting crossover material with varying degrees of success. While much of the music here is standard American Popular Song, other tracks such as Bob Dylan's "Blowin' in the Wind" are clearly attempts at reaching a younger record-buying audience. While Ellington '65 isn't a bad recording, it is by no means required listening and will most likely appeal to die-hard Ellington completists. ~ Matt Collar