Search - Duke Ellington :: Duke Ellington - Greatest Hits [RCA]

Some good Duke, curious packaging.

Samuel Chell | Kenosha,, WI United States | 01/30/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"These familiar Ellington pop tunes from the RCA vaults are, with two exceptions, examples of the Ellington sound as recorded in the early to mid-40's. The tempos are slow to moderate, the sound of the rhythm section is subdued, and the marvelous, inimitable instrumental textures of Duke's band are on full display. The inclusion of a 1967 recording of Strayhorn's "Lotus Blossum" is a nice bonus, but the inclusion of a 1928 version of "I Can't Give You Anything But Love" (!?) is inexplicable and regrettable. The erratic credits fail to identify the vocalist on this latter number and provide extremely limited information about the soloists on most of the other tracks as well. The liner notes are general biographical information about Duke's career and make no reference to the specific recordings on the album. In short, people with limited Ellington collections could do much better than this poorly disguised attempt by RCA to capitalize on its holdings. On the other hand, the Ellington fan who knows the background of the recordings may find this a "convenient" collection of some vintage recordings from the vast Ellington musical universe."

The Duke Opened My Eyes

Anne Gibson | Canberra, Australia | 04/01/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I bought this cd 2nd hand,last year, age 17 not knowing what i was buying. I needed to study a jazz musician and i chose the Duke. This cd totally opened my eyes to a whole new world of music... and i'm addicted. The selection of songs on this cd is great, mainly a standards, but great recordings and arrangements of em...all played by the Duke and his Orchestra. Highly reccomended! email me at: angie@lightningpl.net.au if you're interested in contacting a Duke fan with a truckload of knowledge and enthusiasm!"

Great Duke 'Starter' Disc

Sound Cleanser | United States | 02/24/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"A great disc of some of Duke Ellington's better known music on the RCA label. Duke recorded for many different labels during his long career, so a 'Greatest Hits' is actually a difficult task. Of the 15 tracks, 9 were recorded between 1944 and 1946, 1 from 1967, 1 from 1928, and 4 from 1941 to 1942. The sound quality is mostly very consistent."