We Love Late Ellington Suites Madly.
In Stanford this past summer one of their friendly drivers had Duke Ellington’s Latin American Suite in his disc player. I started to really look forward to those rides…
Photo: Roberto Polillo
The late sixties/early seventies suites like The Queen’s Suite, the UWIS Suite, The Goutelas Suite were always among my favorites. I covered from the UWIS Suite on my first recording, Parallel Worlds. They’re very different than the 20′s, 30′s, 40′ or 50′s Ellington. Billy Strayhorn must also get a nod for the richness and complexity, as well as the down to earth quality of the band’s playing.
After my summer driving experience I pulled out some of the other late suites and they have just been flooring me (again). New Orleans Suite, Suite Thursday, Latin American Suite — there’s some crazy stuff in there. The length and breadth of Ellington’s career is just astounding.
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Pingback by Tweets that mention We Love Late Ellington Suites Madly. -- Topsy.com — October 18, 2010 @ 8:56 am
I almost forgot the Far East Suite ! OMG.
Comment by Dave — October 18, 2010 @ 2:01 pm
That’s my jamz. Probably my favorite large ensemble album. Gotta thank Donny for turning me onto that one with his Isfahan arrangement on Recommended Tools.
Comment by Jim Tuerk — October 19, 2010 @ 7:51 am