Track Listings (20) - Disc #1| All Artists: Duke Ellington Title: Centennial Collection (Bonus Dvd) Members Wishing: 0 Total Copies: 0 Label: RCA Release Date: 8/24/2004 Album Type: Original recording remastered Genres: Jazz, Pop Style: Swing Jazz Number of Discs: 2 SwapaCD Credits: 2 UPC: 828766009026 |
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Search - Duke Ellington :: Centennial Collection (Bonus Dvd)
 | Duke Ellington Centennial Collection (Bonus Dvd) Genres: Jazz, Pop
Since Duke Ellington's 1999 centennial actually occurred five years before this release, you would think the well of his unreleased recordings would be dry. But for this package, part of the Centennial Collections series t... more » |
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Amazon.com Since Duke Ellington's 1999 centennial actually occurred five years before this release, you would think the well of his unreleased recordings would be dry. But for this package, part of the Centennial Collections series that combines a CD with a DVD of historical material, Bluebird has unearthed seven previously unheard performances from a pair of 1941 radio broadcasts. While there's nothing earthshaking here, anything that further documents the legendary and short-lived Blanton/Webster band, featuring bassist Jimmy Blanton and tenor saxophonist Ben Webster, is worth having. The rest of the CD is mostly '30s and '40s classics available on any number of compilations, but the DVD is chock full of collectible goodies including the impressionistic short film Symphony in Black (1934), which briefly features a young Billie Holiday; a 1937 short, Record Making with Duke Ellington and his Orchestra; five "soundies" from 1941; a "Jamboree" short of four pieces; and a 1941 audio interview in which Duke cheerfully tolerates a clueless questioner. --Lloyd Sachs Similar CDs
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CD ReviewsYet another anthology? Look closely at this one, though... J. Lund | SoCal, USA | 03/13/2005 (5 out of 5 stars) "On the surface, CENTENNIAL looks like yet another repackaging of familiar material: the umpteenth "greatest hits" package. However, dig a little deeper and this CD/DVD combo serves not only as a decent introduction to Duke, but doubles as an arguably essential purchase for Ellington and jazz collectors. The first 13 cuts on the CD offer a brief anthology of Duke's RCA recordings from 1927-1942. Oddly, "Take The `A' Train" is not included (even though he recorded it for RCA), so we're really talking here about a tip-of-the-iceberg sampling of Duke's classic recordings. Of course, the tracks that are present represent some of Ellington's greatest music, from "East St. Louis Toodle-O" (later remade by Steely Dan) to "Perdido." The remaining 7 tracks are a find for collectors: a previously-unreleased 1941 aircheck by the so-called "Blanton-Webster" band -- "so-called" because bassist Jimmy Blanton had recently left the band -- with unusually good sound quality for the most part. Several tracks have the vocalist Ivie Anderson fronting the band, but most of the music is instrumental (a definite plus because Duke's bandmen include a number of jazz's all-time great musicians). The real selling point of this set is the DVD. The footage starts out with the famous 1934 short film "Symphony In Black," which features a young Billie Holiday in addition to Duke and his orchestra. A 1937 Paramount short follows with rare footage of Duke and his band in the studio. Five 1941 music videoclips (aka soundies) follow, and the DVD ends with four 1943 selections and an audio-only 1941 interview. Although CD sets that try to have it both ways -- attracting newcomers and fans alike -- usually satisfy neither, CENTENNIAL can safely be recommended across-the-board." Remote Radio Broadcasts...and a DVD to Boot J. Bandur | Lynnwood, WA USA | 11/29/2004 (5 out of 5 stars) "Just listening to the 7 previously unreleased remote radio broadcasts makes this a recommended listening. Very nice. And there's even a DVD video disc included that contains Symphony in Black (with a young Billie Holiday), Record Making with Duke Ellington (a 1937 studio rehearsal), five 1941 "soundies" shorts made for use in coin-operated video jukeboxes, short entitled Duke Ellington and His Orchestra (4 songs), and an 11-minute audio interview with The Duke himself."
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