Search - Earl Hines :: Plays Duke Ellington 2

I can hear the lead sheets rustling...

jive rhapsodist | NYC, NY United States | 12/31/2005

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Well, look...Hines is incredible, but if he's gonna play like this, I'd rather hear him play "I've Got the World on a String". The only thing very Ellingtonian about this CD is the fact that Hines belongs more-or-less to the same generation as Duke. He treats every composition as a simple "head"; he doesn't find any orchestrational specificity in any of the pieces - they all are treated basically the same. There are many Hines CD's with more to offer than this one. In fact, I consider this one of the most overrated discs of all time. I feel like critics have rated it based on the idea. I can't believe they really listened to it. Why isn't Quintessential on Ciaroscuro reissued? That's a masterpiece."