Jazz Icons: Duke Ellington Live in '58 (2007)

Jazz Icons: Duke Ellington features the earliest-known filmed full-length concert by one of the 20th Century's greatest songwriters and bandleaders. Filmed at Amsterdam's famed Concertgebouw, this 80-minute concert features the 16-piece Duke Ellington Orchestra two years after their stunning performance at the 1956 Newport Jazz Festival,which Duke considered his second birth. This epic performance includes legendary players Clark Terry, Johnny Hodges, Harry Carney, Paul Gonsalves, Quentin Jackson and Ray Nance performing some of the most beloved American music ever written.

The great Amsterdam concert

This DVD is almost too amazing to be able to speak about coherently. This is the great Ellington band that is not given nearly enough credit for being, at least potentially, the equal of the 1940 - 43 band. And to SEE it in all of its roaring and purring glory is almost too emotionally draining an experience. Where to begin? This was the last time that all 4 sections of the band were equally great, but you've really got to take your mind off the soloists for a minute and pay attention to that incredible trombone section - the second and last time that Duke had one of this caliber. And Jimmy Woode on bass is a really unsung hero - he has the best hookup that any Ellington bassist had with drummer Sam Woodyard. Of course the reed section is more than legendary. The trumpets are perfect, but they don't have any particular standout moments as a section here - although each of them plays magnificently in their solo spots (Baker in Mr. Gentle, Anderson in Dim. and Cresc., Terry - wonderful! - in Harlem Air Shaft. And Nance all over the place). I'm not a real fan of the medley of hits, but even it is full of high points. Best things? Harlem Airshaft, the opening '20's medley, Rockin' In Rhythm,Dim. and Cresc. (although it's played a little too fast), the Hodges features. Most unsung great playing? Trombonist Quentin Jackson, every time he's heard. Low points? None, really. The drum feature (Hi Fi Fo Fum) is just what it is; I tuned out a bit, but Ellington concerts were pretty democratic - something for everyone. If I would be SUPER hyper-critical, I might say that some of the more "concert - y" moments - odd rubatos and ritards - are not my favorite developments in the Ellington musical language. But this was a thing of the time, connected to the band's playing more and more concert halls and fewer and fewer dances. One thing: I can't believe that the audience stayed so polite at the end. I was on my feet giving the standing ovation I guess they were just a little too Dutch to give! September 26, 2008

oh wow, quadrupled

I am about to buy this from Amazon, so this review is based on a Netflix rental. I have been renting jazz DVDs from Netflix for a good while now, and a lot are spotty, either visually or regarding sound. This one to me is a distillation of all that was excellent about Ellington. I'm buying it for many reasons: first, Johnny Hodges. How often do you get to see him play two entire pieces, beautifully and regally, rather than two breaks? Second, previously unknown to me, Ozzie Bailey. His "In My Solitude" is now my favorite vocal rendition of any song by anybody. Third, Paul Gonsalves. I've seen partial footage of his 27-chorus "Diminuendo and Crescendo in Blue" (or vice-versa, forgot) on Ken Burns' Jazz series, and this is just like it, truly makes you want to dance. Even his bandmates couldn't keep still. Fourth, Ray Nance singing and moving to "It Don't Mean a Thing..." I usually don't get excited about jazz vocals, but these guys are the exception. Fifth, Sam Woodyard's very creative drum solo, punctuated by great band work. Sixth, Ellington himself, with wonderful piano solos and comping and unmatched stage presence. And seventh, Jimmy Hamilton playing my favorite instrument the clarinet on "My Funny Valentine." He was way beyond good. And finally, on the visual side, was there ever anybody more handsome in jazz than Johnny Hodges and Jimmy Hamilton when this was filmed? Important in jazz? No, but icing on the cake! I watched this rental twice and realized I had to have it in my permanent collection. September 21, 2008

A nearly complete concert by an all-star band

The Jazz Icons series released 16 videos through 2007, each featuring a different jazz artist. This is the fifth one that I've acquired, and so far they've all been great. Somebody should give these people an award for their efforts to preserve American culture by searching international video archives.
Video quality is unavoidably limited by what's found in those archives, in this case a November 1958 concert in Amsterdam that was recorded for TV broadcast. The black & white video is very grainy and lacks adequate contrast in some scenes. The audio is mono, but the sound quality excellent - clear and well balanced.
The show starts out slow and mellow, but the energy level picks up when they get to "Rockin' in Rhythm." The program includes several well-known Ellington standards, such as "Black and Tan Fantasy," "Creole Love Call," "Sophisticated Lady" (featuring, of course, the baritone sax of Harry Carney), "Things Ain't What They Used To Be" (as a vehicle for alto sax star Johnny Hodges), "Diminuendo in Blue and Crescendo in Blue" (with tenor man Paul Gonsalves recreating the excitement of the classic Newport 1956 recording), and a 10-song Ellington medley. Noticeably absent is "Take the A Train."
A couple of my favorite moments: a young but already accomplished Clark Terry featured on trumpet in "Harlem Air Shaft" and a stoic but musically expressive Johnny Hodges working his magic on "All of Me." Also enjoyable are the finishing touches that Cat Anderson adds to some of the arrangements as he ventures into a frequency range that the trumpet was never intended to reach.
The package includes an informative 24-page booklet offering a detailed history of this concert tour and other interesting anecdotes about Ellington and his sidemen. One of the things we learn from these notes is that the concert video was done near the end of a grueling several weeks for the band, doing shows in different cities almost every night. That explains why many in the band look tired in this performance. But remarkably, they don't sound tired, and that's what is important.
Fans of Ellington, and classic big bands in general, should pick this up without hesitation, despite the inescapable limitations of half-century old video. February 23, 2008

Not 5 Stars only because of picture quality

As one of my friends says; "I love Ellington more than life itself". I never got to see the Ellington Orchestra in person so it's mighty thrilling to watch this. My only complaint is that the technological limits of the time meant that black folk's images didn't translate well to video. The members of the band with the darkest skin look like black blobs without facial expressions some of the time. Even so, I highly recommend this disc. Just to see Duke leading his men and exclaiming "Johnny Hodges!" in his inimitable way...spine tingling. February 4, 2008

jazz icons duke ellington live in 58

Duke Ellington: piano, Jimmy Woode: bass, Sam Woodyard: drums
Johnny Hodges: alto sax
Russell Procope: alto sax, clarinet
Paul Gonsalves: tenor sax
Jimmy Hamilton: tenor sax, clarinet
Harry Carney: baritone sax, bass clarinet
Clark Terry, Shorty Baker, and Cat Anderson: trumpet
Ray Nance: trumpet, violin
Quentin Jackson and Britt Woodman: trombone
John Sanders: valve trombone
Ozzie Bailey: vocal.
With good sound, good black and white images, and expert camera work this DVD re creates the experience of being at the concert even down to ligering at the end to watch the musicians pack up and leave.
The entire concert isn't there but there's plenty that is and, as you'd expect, it's great stuff. January 14, 2008

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