Search - Duke Ellington :: Golden Greats

Duke On Disky

Tom Without Pity | A Major Midwestern Metropolis | 02/21/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is a review for the three CD set of Duke Ellington recordings on the Disky Comunications label which is based in the Netherlands. Unfortunately this set does not contain liner notes, recording dates or personel information so I am going by ear in this review.



All together these three CDs contain sixty six vintage recordings of Duke Ellington and his Orchestra, from The Jungle Band days up until a mid forties recording of "Brown Betty," recorded in Carnegie Hall.



I believe that all of these 66 numbers were recorded for Victor Records,

the first batch from the late 1920s until the early 1930s and the rest were

disked from 1939 until the mid-'40s I believe.



There are many of Duke's masterworks included such as "East St. Louis Toodle-oo"

and "Black and Tan Fantasy" from among the early works right up to 'Take the "A" Train," "Caravan" and the incomparable "Koko" among many others.



This set plays and sounds all right to my ears and considering the super

low price is quite a bargain. This is a collection of big band masterpieces

by one of America's greatest composers whose music, in my opinion, is really beyond category. A tremendous bargain."