Duke Ellington (Edward Kennedy Ellington, April 29, 1899 - May 24, 1974) w… Read Full Bio ↴Duke Ellington (Edward Kennedy Ellington, April 29, 1899 - May 24, 1974) was an American jazz composer, pianist and bandleader, one of the most influential figures in jazz, if not in all American music.
Duke Ellington composed over 3000 songs, including: "It Don't Mean A Thing If It Ain't Got That Swing", "Sophisticated Lady", "Mood Indigo", “Solitude", "In a Mellotone", and "Satin Doll".
Through the ranks of Duke Ellington & His Orchestra passed some of the biggest names in jazz, including Billy Strayhorn, Johnny Hodges, Cootie Williams, Bubber Miley, Barney Bigard, Ben Webster, Harry Carney, Sonny Greer, Otto Hardwick, Clark Terry, Jimmy Blanton, Ray Nance, Paul Gonsalves, and Wellman Braud. Many musicians stayed with him for decades. And while all of them were remarkable in their own right, and they all would have probably made it into the annals of jazz history no matter who they played for, it was Ellington's genius as a composer, pianist, bandleader, celebrity personality, and, most importantly, arranger, that made them the most incredible orchestral unit in the history of jazz. His ability to write and arrange for personalities, rather than instruments, made every solo and every section of every arrangement breathe with character. A giant on the 20th century American cultural scene, Duke Ellington was widely regarded as a legend during his own lifetime.
Early life
Edward Kennedy Ellington was born on April 29, 1899 to James Edward Ellington and Daisy Kennedy Ellington. They lived with his maternal grandparents at 2129 Ward Place, NW in Washington, D.C., USA.
James Edward Ellington was born in Lincolnton, North Carolina on April 15, 1879 and moved to Washington, D.C. in 1886 with his parents. Daisy Kennedy, was born in Washington, D.C. on January 4, 1879, and was the daughter of a former American slave. J.E. made blueprints for the United States Navy. He also worked as a butler for Dr. Middleton F. Cuthbert, a prominent white physician, and occasionally worked as a White House caterer. Daisy and J.E. were both piano players—she playing parlor songs and he operatic airs.
At the age of seven, Ellington began taking piano lessons from Mrs. Marietta Clinkscales. Daisy surrounded her son with dignified women who reinforced his manners and taught him to live elegantly. From his father, he absorbed self-confidence. Ellington’s childhood friends noticed that "his casual, offhand manner, his easy grace, and his dapper dress gave him the bearing of a young nobleman", and began calling him Duke. Ellington credited his "chum" Edgar McEntree, "a sharp dresser himself," with the nickname. "I think he felt that in order for me to be eligible for his constant companionship, I should have a title. So he called me Duke."
Though Ellington took piano lessons, he was more concerned with baseball. "President Roosevelt (Teddy) would come by on his horse sometimes, and stop and watch us play," he recalled. Ellington went to Armstrong Technical High School in Washington, D.C. He got his first job selling peanuts at Washington Senators’ baseball games where he conquered his stage fright.
In the summer of 1914, while working as a soda jerk at the Poodle Dog Café, he wrote his first composition, "Soda Fountain Rag" (also known as the "Poodle Dog Rag"). Ellington created "Soda Fountain Rag" by ear, because he had not yet learned to read and write music. "I would play the 'Soda Fountain Rag' as a one-step, two-step, waltz, tango, and fox trot," Ellington has recalled. "Listeners never knew it was the same piece. I was established as having my own repertoire." In his autobiography, Music is my Mistress, (1973) Ellington comments he missed more lessons than he attended, feeling at the time that playing the piano was not his talent. Over time, this would change. Ellington started sneaking into Frank Holiday's Poolroom at age fourteen. Hearing the poolroom pianists play ignited Ellington's love for the instrument and he began to take his piano studies seriously.
Ellington began listening to, watching, and imitating ragtime pianists, not only in Washington, D.C., but also in Philadelphia and Atlantic City, where he vacationed with his mother during the summer months.[citation needed] Dunbar High School music teacher Henry Lee Grant gave him private lessons in harmony. With the additional guidance of Washington pianist and band leader Oliver "Doc" Perry, Ellington learned to read sheet music, project a professional style, and improve his technique. Ellington was also inspired by his first encounters with James P. Johnson and Luckey Roberts, early jazz piano giants. Later in New York he took advice from Will Marion Cook, Fats Waller, and Sidney Bechet. Ellington started to play gigs in cafés and clubs in and around Washington, D.C. and began to realize his love for music. His attachment grew to be so strong that he turned down an art scholarship to the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn in 1916. He dropped out of Armstrong Manual Training School, where he was studying commercial art, just three months shy of graduation.
From 1917 through 1919, Ellington launched his musical career, painting commercial signs by day and playing piano by night. Duke's entrepreneurial side came out when if a customer would ask him to make a sign for a dance or party, he would ask them if they had musical entertainment, if not Ellington would ask if he could play for them. He also had a messenger job with the U.S. Navy and State Departments. Ellington moved out of his parents' home and into one which he bought for himself as he became a successful ragtime, jazz, and society pianist. At first, he played in other ensembles, and in late 1917 formed his first group, "The Duke’s Serenaders" ("Colored Syncopators", his telephone directory advertising proclaimed)[citation needed]. He was not only a member, but also the booking agent. His first play date was at the True Reformer's Hall where he took home 75 cents.
Ellington played throughout the Washington, D.C. area and into Virginia for private society balls and embassy parties. The band included Otto Hardwick, who switched from bass to saxophone; Arthur Whetsol on trumpet; Elmer Snowden on banjo; and Sonny Greer on drums. The band thrived, performing for both African-American and white audiences, a rarity during the racially divided times.[citation needed]
Marriage and family
With his career taking off, Ellington felt secure enough to marry his high school sweetheart, Edna Thompson, on July 2, 1918 when he was 19. Shortly after their marriage, on March 11, 1919 Edna gave birth to their only son, Mercer Kennedy Ellington, who went on to play trumpet, lead his own band and work as the road manager of his father's band, eventually taking it over after Duke's death. He was an important archivist of his father's musical life. Ellington's sister, Ruth, later ran Tempo Music, Ellington's music publishing company.
Ellington's granddaughter Mercedes is a dancer who has performed in network television productions. Grandson Paul Ellington is a pianist and composer who now leads the Duke Ellington Orchestra.
Early career
When his drummer Sonny Greer was invited to join the Wilber Sweatman Orchestra in New York City, Ellington made the fateful decision to leave behind his successful career in Washington, D.C. and aspire to the challenge of Harlem. The 'Harlem Renaissance' was in progress. New dance crazes, like the Charleston, were bred there as well as African-American musical theater, including Eubie Blake's Shuffle Along. After the young musicians left the Sweatman Orchestra to strike out on their own, they found an emerging jazz scene that was highly competitive and hard to crack. They hustled pool by day and played whatever gig they could find. The young band met Willie "The Lion" Smith who showed them the scene and even gave them spare cash. They played at rent-house parties to get by. After a few months, the young musicians returned to Washington, D.C. feeling discouraged.
But in June 1923, a gig in Atlantic City, New Jersey led to a play date at the prestigious Exclusive Club in Harlem, followed in September 1923 by a move to the Hollywood Club, 49th and Broadway, and a four-year engagement which gave Ellington a solid artistic base. The group was called Elmer Snowden and his Black Sox Orchestra and had seven members, including James "Bubber" Miley, a trumpeter whose growling style changed the "sweet" dance band sound of the group to one that was edgier and hotter. They renamed themselves "The Washingtonians". When Snowden left the group in early 1924, Ellington took over as bandleader. After a fire, the club was re-opened as the Club Kentucky (often referred to as the "Kentucky Club"), an engagement which set the stage for the biggest opportunities in Ellington's life.
Ellington made eight records in 1924, receiving composing credit on three including Choo Choo. In 1925, Ellington contributed four songs to Chocolate Kiddies, an all-African-American revue which introduced European audiences to African-American styles and performers. "Duke Ellington and his Kentucky Club Orchestra" grew to a ten-piece organization, developing their distinct sound, displaying the non-traditional expression of Ellington’s arrangements, the street rhythms of Harlem, and the exotic-sounding trombone growls and wah-wahs, high-squealing trumpets, and sultry saxophone blues licks of the band members. For a short time, the great soprano saxophonist Sidney Bechet played with the group, imparting his propulsive swing and superior musicianship on the young band members. This helped attract the attention of some of the biggest names of jazz, including Paul Whiteman.
In 1927, King Oliver turned down a regular booking for his group as the house band at Harlem's Cotton Club; the offer passed to Ellington. With a weekly radio broadcast and famous clientèle nightly pouring in to see them, Ellington and his band thrived in the period from 1932 to 1942, a "golden age" for the poor boys from Washington D.C.
Trumpeter Bubber Miley was a member of the orchestra for only a short period but had a major influence on Ellington's sound.[citation needed] An early experimenter in jazz trumpet growling, Miley is credited with morphing the band's style from rigid dance instrumentation to a growling 'jungle' style. He also composed most of "Black and Tan Fantasy" and "Creole Love Call". An alcoholic, Miley had to leave the band before they gained wider fame. He died in 1932 at the age of twenty-nine. He was an important influence on Cootie Williams, who replaced him.
In 1927 Ellington made a career-advancing agreement with agent-publisher Irving Mills giving Mills a 45% interest in Ellington's future. The brash, shrewd Mills had an eye for new talent and early on published compositions by Hoagy Carmichael, Dorothy Fields, and Harold Arlen. During the 1930s, Ellington's popularity continued to increase, largely as a result of the promotional skills of Mills, who got more than his fair share of co-composer credits. Mills arranged recording sessions on the Brunswick, Victor, and Columbia labels which gave Ellington popular recognition. Mills took the management burden off of Ellington's shoulders, allowing him to focus on his band's sound and his compositions.[citation needed] Ellington ended his association with Mills in 1937, although he continued to record under Mills' banner through 1940.
At the Cotton Club, Ellington's group performed all the music for the revues, which mixed comedy, dance numbers, vaudeville, burlesque, hot music, and illegal alcohol. The musical numbers were composed by Jimmy McHugh and the lyrics by Dorothy Fields (later Harold Arlen and Ted Koehler), with some Ellington originals mixed in. Weekly radio broadcasts from the club gave Ellington national exposure. In 1929, Ellington appeared in his first movie, a nineteen-minute all-African-American RKO short, Black and Tan, in which he played the hero "Duke". In the same year, The Cotton Club Orchestra appeared on stage for several months in Florenz Ziegfeld's Show Girl, along with vaudeville stars Jimmy Durante, Eddie Foy, Jr., Al Jolson, Ruby Keeler, and with music and lyrics by George Gershwin and Gus Kahn. That feverish period also included numerous recordings, under the pseudonyms "Whoopee Makers", "The Jungle Band", "Harlem Footwarmers", and the "Ten Black Berries". In 1930, Ellington and his Orchestra connected with a whole different audience in a concert with Maurice Chevalier and they also performed at the Roseland Ballroom, "America's foremost ballroom". Noted composer Percy Grainger was also an early admirer and supporter.
In 1929, when Ellington conducted the orchestra for Show Girl, he met Will Vodery, Ziegfeld’s musical supervisor. In his 1946 biography, Duke Ellington, Barry Ulanov wrote: “From Vodery, as he (Ellington) says himself, he drew his chromatic convictions, his uses of the tones ordinarily extraneous to the diatonic scale, with the consequent alteration of the harmonic character of his music, its broadening, The deepening of his resources. It has become customary to ascribe the classical influences upon Duke - Delius and Debussy and Ravel - to direct contact with their music. Actually his serious appreciation of those and other modern composers, came after his meeting with Vodery.” Ulanov, Barry. Duke Ellington, Creative Age Press, 1946.
As the Depression deepened, the recording industry took a dive, dropping over 90% by 1933. Ellington and his orchestra survived the hard times by taking to the road in a series of tours. Radio exposure also helped maintain his popularity. Ivie Anderson was hired as their vocalist (Sonny Greer had been providing occasional vocals). Normally, Ellington led the orchestra by conducting from the keyboard using piano cues and visual gestures; very rarely did he conduct using a baton. As a bandleader, Ellington was not a strict disciplinarian but he maintained control of his orchestra for decades to come with a crafty combination of charm, humor, flattery, and astute psychology. A complex, private person, he revealed his feelings to only his closest intimates and effectively used his public persona to deflect attention away from himself.
While their United States audience remained mainly African-American in this period, the Cotton Club had a near exclusive white clientèle and the band had a huge following overseas, demonstrated both in a trip to England in 1933 and a 1934 visit to the European mainland. The English visit saw Ellington win praise from members of the "serious" music community, including composer Constant Lambert, which gave a boost to his aspirations to compose longer "serious" pieces. And for agent Mills, it was a publicity triumph, as Ellington was now "internationally famous". On their tour through the segregated South in 1934, they avoided some of the traveling difficulties of African-American musicians by touring in private railcars, which provided easy accommodations, dining, and storage for equipment, while avoiding the indignities of segregated facilities.
The death of Ellington's mother in 1935 led to a temporary slump in his career. Competition was also intensifying[citation needed], as African-American and white "Swing Bands" began to rocket to popular attention, including those of Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey, Jimmy Dorsey, Jimmie Lunceford, Benny Carter, Earl Hines, Chick Webb, and Count Basie. Swing dancing became a youth phenomenon, particularly with white college audiences, and "danceability" drove record sales and bookings. Jukeboxes proliferated nationwide spreading the gospel of "swing". Ellington band could certainly "swing" with the best of them, but Ellington's strength was mood and nuance, and richness of composition, hence his statement "jazz is music; swing is business". The challenge for Ellington at that time was to create a workable balance between his ceaseless artistic exploration and the popular requirements of that era.[citation needed] Ellington countered with two innovations. He made recordings for smaller groups (sextets, octets, and nonets) drawn from his then 15-man orchestra and he composed pieces that were concerto-like and focused on a specific instrumentalist, as with Jeep's Blues for Johnny Hodges and Yearning for Love with Lawrence Brown.
In 1937, Ellington returned to the Cotton Club which had relocated to the mid-town theater district. In the summer of that year, his father died, and due to many expenses Ellington's financial condition was tight. Things improved in 1938 and he met and moved in with Cotton Club employee Beatrice "Evie" Ellis. After splitting with agent Irving Mills, he signed on with William Morris. The 1930s ended with a very successful European tour just as World War II loomed.
Ellington delivered some huge hits during the 1930s, which greatly helped to build his overall reputation "Mood Indigo" in 1930, "It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)" in 1932, "Sophisticated Lady" in 1933, "In a Sentimental Mood" in 1935, "Caravan" in 1937, "I Let A Song Go Out Of My Heart" in 1938. Following shortly were "Do Nothing Till You Hear from Me" in 1940 and "Take the "A" Train" (written by Billy Strayhorn) in 1941.
The most important event of Ellington’s “golden age” was the arrival of Billy Strayhorn.[citation needed] Hired as a lyricist, Strayhorn , nicknamed "Swee' Pea" for his mild manner, eventually became a vital member of the Ellington Organization and as Ellington described him, "my right arm, my left arm, all the eyes in the back of my head, my brain waves in his head, and his in mine". Strayhorn, with his Classical music training, applied that knowledge to arrange and polish future Ellington works. Ellington came to rely on Strayhorn's harmonic judgment, discipline, and taste.
Duke in the 1940s
The band reached a creative peak in the early 1940s[citation needed], when Ellington wrote for an orchestra of distinctive voices and displayed tremendous creativity. In November 1943 Ellington debuted Black, Brown and Beige in Carnegie Hall which told the struggle of African-Americans, and began a series of concerts ideally suited to displaying Ellington's longer works. While some jazz musicians had played at Carnegie Hall before, few had performed anything as elaborate as Ellington’s work. Some of the musicians created a sensation in their own right. The short-lived Jimmy Blanton transformed the use of double bass in jazz, allowing it to function as a solo rather than a rhythm instrument alone. Ben Webster too, the Orchestra's first regular tenor saxophonist, started a rivalry with Johnny Hodges as the Orchestra's foremost voice in the sax section. Ray Nance joined, replacing Cootie Williams who had "defected", contemporary wags claimed, to Benny Goodman. Nance, however, added violin to the instrumental colors Ellington had at his disposal. A privately made recording of Nance's first concert date, at Fargo, North Dakota, in November 1940, is probably the most effective display of the band at the peak of its powers during this period. This recording is one of the first of innumerable live performances which survive, made by enthusiasts or broadcasters, significantly expanding the Ducal discography as a result.
Three-minute masterpieces flowed from the minds of Ellington, Billy Strayhorn (from 1939), Ellington's son Mercer Ellington, and members of the Orchestra. "Cotton Tail", "Mainstem", "Harlem Airshaft", "Streets of New York" and dozens of others date from this period.
Ellington's long-term aim became to extend the jazz form from the three-minute limit of the 78 rpm record side, of which he was an acknowledged master.[citation needed] He had composed and recorded Creole Rhapsody as early as 1931, and his tribute to his mother, "Reminiscing in Tempo," had filled four 10" record sides in 1935; however, it was not until the 1940s that this became a regular feature of Ellington's work. In this, he was helped by Strayhorn, who had enjoyed a more thorough training in the forms associated with classical music than Ellington. The first of these, "Black, Brown, and Beige" (1943), was dedicated to telling the story of African-Americans, the place of slavery, and the church in their history. Unfortunately, starting a regular pattern, Ellington's longer works were generally not well-received; Jump for Joy, an earlier musical, closed after only six performances in 1941.
The first recording ban of 1942-3 had a serious effect on all the big bands because of the resulting increase in royalty payments to musicians. The financial viability of Ellington's Orchestra came under threat, though Ellington's income as a songwriter ultimately subsidized it. Ellington always spent lavishly and although he drew a respectable income from the Orchestra's operations, the band's income often just covered expenses.
Meanwhile, the development of modern jazz, or bebop, the music industry's shift to solo vocalists such as the young Frank Sinatra as the Big Band age died out, and the diminishing popularity of ballroom and nightclub entertainment in the early television era all undermined Ellington's popularity and status as a trendsetter.[citation needed] Bebop rebelled against commercial jazz, dance jazz, and strict forms to become the music of jazz aficionados. Furthermore, by 1950 the emerging African-American popular music style known as Rhythm and Blues drew away the young African-American audience and soon Rock & Roll followed. In the face of these major social shifts, Ellington continued on his own course, but major defections soon affected his Orchestra and he started to retire earlier works composed for now departed members. For a time though Ellington continued to turn out major works, such as the Kay Davis vocal feature Transblucency and major extended compositions such as Harlem (1950), whose score he presented to music-loving President Harry Truman.
In 1951, Ellington suffered a major loss of personnel, with Sonny Greer, Lawrence Brown, and most significantly, Johnny Hodges leaving to pursue other ventures. Lacking overseas opportunities and motion picture appearances, Ellington Orchestra survived on "one-nighters" and whatever else came their way. Even though he made many television appearances, Ellington's hope that television would provide a significant new venue for his type of jazz did not pan out. The introduction of the 33 1/3 rpm LP record and hi-fi phonograph did give new life to older compositions. However by 1955, after ten years of recording for Capitol, Ellington no longer had a regular recording affiliation.
Ellington's appearance at the Newport Jazz Festival on July 7, 1956 returned him to wider prominence and exposed him to new audiences. The feature "Diminuendo and Crescendo in Blue", with saxophonist Paul Gonsalves's six-minute saxophone solo, had been in the band's book since 1937, but on this occasion it nearly created a riot. The revived attention should not have surprised anyone — Hodges had returned to the fold the previous year, and Ellington's collaboration with Strayhorn had been renewed around the same time, under terms amenable to the younger man. Such Sweet Thunder (1957), based on Shakespeare's plays and characters, and The Queen's Suite the following year (dedicated to Queen Elizabeth II), were products of the renewed impetus which the Newport appearance had helped to create.
A new record contract with Columbia produced Ellington's best-selling LP Ellington at Newport and yielded six years of recording stability under producer Irving Townsend, who coaxed both commercial and artistic productions from Ellington.[citation needed] In 1957, CBS (Columbia's parent corporation) aired a live television production of A Drum Is a Woman, an allegorical suite which received mixed reviews. Other festivals at Monterey and elsewhere provided new venues for live exposure, and a European tour in 1958 was wildly received. After a 25-year gap, Ellington and Strayhorn again wrote film scores, this time for Anatomy of a Murder and Paris Blues. Despite some personnel turnover, in 1960 Ellington still possessed a seasoned corps with Carney, Hodges, Williams, Brown, Nance, Hamilton, Procope, Anderson, and Gonsalves. Ellington and Strayhorn, always looking for new musical territory, produced adaptations of John Steinbeck's novel Sweet Thursday, Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite and Edvard Grieg's Peer Gynt. The late 1950s also saw Ella Fitzgerald record her Duke Ellington Songbook with Ellington and his orchestra—a recognition that Ellington's songs had now become part of the cultural canon known as the "Great American Songbook".
Detroit Free Press music critic Mark Stryker concludes that the work of Billy Strayhorn and Ellington in Anatomy of a Murder is "indispensible, although too sketchy to rank in the top echelon among Ellington-Strayhorn masterpiece suites like Such Sweet Thunder and The Far East Suite, but its most inspired moments are their equal." Film historians have recognized the soundtrack "as a landmark — the first significant Hollywood film music by African Americans comprising non-diegetic music, that is, music whose source is not visible or implied by action in the film, like an on-screen band." The score avoided the cultural stereotypes which previously characterized jazz scores and rejected a strict adherence to visuals in ways that presaged the New Wave cinema of the ’60s."
In the early 1960s, Ellington was between recording contracts, which allowed him to record with a variety of artists mostly not previously associated with him. The Ellington and Count Basie orchestras recorded together and he made a record with Coleman Hawkins, plus some work for Frank Sinatra's new Reprise label. In 1962, he participated in a session which produced the "Money Jungle" (United Artists) album with Charles Mingus and Max Roach, and also recorded with John Coltrane for Impulse. Musicians who had previously worked with Ellington returned to the Orchestra as members: Lawrence Brown in 1960 and Cootie Williams two years later. Ellington was by now performing all over the world, a significant portion of each year was now spent making overseas tours, and he formed notable new working relationships, among which included the Swedish vocalist Alice Babs, and South African musicians Dollar Brand and Sathima Bea Benjamin (A Morning in Paris, 1963/2007). His earlier hits were now established standards, earning Ellington impressive royalties.
Ellington receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Nixon, 1969.Ellington was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize in 1965, but was turned down. His reaction at 67 years old: "Fate is being kind to me. Fate doesn't want me to be famous too young." He performed the first of his Sacred Concerts, an attempt at fusing Christian liturgy with jazz, in September of the same year, and even though it received mixed reviews, Ellington was enormously proud of the composition and performed it dozens of times. This concert was followed by two others of the same type in 1968 and 1973, called the Second and Third Sacred Concerts, respectively. This caused enormous controversy in what was already a tumultuous time in the United States. Many saw the Sacred Music suites as an attempt to reinforce commercial support for organized religion, though Ellington simply said it was, "the most important thing I've done." The piano upon which the Sacred Concerts were composed is part of the collection of the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History. Like Haydn and Mozart, Ellington conducted his orchestra from the piano - he always played the keyboard parts when the Sacred Concerts were performed.
Ellington continued to make vital and innovative recordings, including The Far East Suite (1966), "The New Orleans Suite" (1970), and "The Afro-Eurasian Eclipse" (1971), much of it inspired by his world tours. It was during this time that Ellington recorded his only album with Frank Sinatra, entitled Francis A. & Edward K..
Ellington was awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1966. He was later awarded several other prizes, the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1969, and the Legion of Honor by France in 1973, the highest civilian honors in each country.
Duke Ellington died in New York City on May 24, 1974, a month after his 75th birthday, and was interred in the Woodlawn Cemetery, The Bronx, New York City. At his funeral attended by over 12,000 people at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, Ella Fitzgerald summed up the occasion, "It's a very sad day. A genius has passed." Mercer Ellington picked up the reins of the orchestra immediately after Duke's death.
Work in films and the theater
Ellington's film work began in 1929 with the short film Black and Tan Fantasy. His Symphony In Black, which introduced Billie Holiday, was performed on film in 1935, winning an Academy Award as the best musical short subject. He also appeared in the 1930 Amos 'n' Andy film Check and Double Check. He and his Orchestra continued to appear in films throughout the 1930s and 1940s, both in short films and in features such as Murder at the Vanities, and Belle Of The Nineties, (1934), and Cabin In The Sky (1943). In the late 1950s, his work in films took the shape of scoring for soundtracks, notably Anatomy of a Murder (1959), with James Stewart, in which he appeared fronting a roadhouse combo, and Paris Blues, (1961), which featured Paul Newman and Sidney Poitier as jazz musicians.
He wrote an original score for Shakespeare's Timon of Athens that was first used in the Stratford Festival production that opened July 29, 1963 for director Michael Langham, who has used it for several subsequent productions, most recently in an adaptation by Stanley Silverman that expands on the score with some of Ellington's best-known works.
Ellington composed the score for the musical "Jump For Joy," which was performed in Los Angeles in 1941. Ellington's sole book musical, Beggar's Holiday, was staged on Broadway in 1946. Sophisticated Ladies, an award-winning 1981 musical revue, incorporated many of the tunes he made famous.
Numerous memorials have been dedicated to Duke Ellington, in cities from New York and Washington, DC to Los Angeles.
In Ellington's birthplace of Washington, D.C., there is a school dedicated to his honor and memory as well as one of the bridges over Rock Creek Park. The Duke Ellington School of the Arts educates talented students, who are considering careers in the arts, by providing intensive arts instruction and strong academic programs that prepare students for post-secondary education and professional careers. The Calvert Street Bridge was renamed the Duke Ellington Bridge; built in 1935, it connects Woodley Park to Adams Morgan.
On February 24, 2009, the United States Mint launched a new coin featuring Duke Ellington, making him the first African-American to appear by himself on a circulating U.S. coin. Ellington appears on the reverse ("tails") side of the District of Columbia quarter. The coin is part of the U.S. Mint's 50 State Quarters Program and celebrates Ellington's birthplace in the District of Columbia. Ellington is depicted on the quarter seated at a piano, sheet music in hand, along with the inscription "Justice for All."
Ellington lived for years in a townhouse on the corner of Manhattan's Riverside Drive and West 106th Street. After his death, West 106th Street was officially renamed Duke Ellington Boulevard. A large memorial to Ellington, created by sculptor Robert Graham, was dedicated in 1997 in New York's Central Park, near Fifth Avenue and 110th Street, an intersection named Duke Ellington Circle.
Although he made two more stage appearances before his death, Ellington performed what is considered his final "full" concert in a ballroom at Northern Illinois University on March 20, 1974.[citation needed] The hall was renamed the Duke Ellington Ballroom in 1980.
A statue of Ellington at a piano is featured at the entrance to UCLA's Schoenberg Hall. According to UCLA magazine, "When UCLA students were entranced by Duke Ellington's provocative tunes at a Culver City club in 1937, they asked the budding musical great to play a free concert in Royce Hall. "I've been waiting for someone to ask us!" Ellington exclaimed.
"On the day of the concert, Ellington accidentally mixed up the venues and drove to USC instead. He eventually arrived at the UCLA campus and, to apologize for his tardiness, played to the packed crowd for more than four hours. And so, "Sir Duke" and his group played the first-ever jazz performance in a concert venue."
He is of only five jazz musicians ever to have been featured on the cover of Time (the other four being Louis Armstrong, Thelonious Monk, Wynton Marsalis, and Dave Brubeck).
Tributes
Sathima Bea Benjamin -- South African vocalist wrote "Gift of Love" in memory of Duke Ellington on her 1987 album Love Light.
Dave Brubeck -- dedicated "The Duke" (1954) to Ellington and it became a standard covered by others, both during Ellington's lifetime (such as Miles Davis in 1957 on Miles Ahead) and posthumously (such as George Shearing in 1992 on I Hear a Rhapsody: Live at the Blue Note).
Tony Bennett frequently altered the lyrics to "Lullaby of Broadway" in live performance, to sing, "You rock-a-bye your baby 'round/to Ellington or Basie," as a personal tribute to the two jazz giants.
Judy Collins -- wrote "Song For Duke" in 1975, and included it on her album Judith.
Miles Davis -- one month after Ellington's death, created his half-hour dedicated dirge "He Loved Him Madly" (1974) collected on Get Up with It.
The jazz-influenced band Steely Dan recorded a note-for-note version of an early Ellington standard, "East St. Louis Toodle-oo," on their album Pretzel Logic, using treated slide guitars to re-create the plunger-muted "jungle sound" of the original Ellington horns.
Mercer Ellington -- (1919–1996) led The Duke Ellington Orchestra after his father's death.
Stevie Wonder -- wrote the song "Sir Duke" as a tribute to Ellington in 1976.
Paul Ellington -- leads The Duke Ellington Orchestra (1996-?).
Barrie Lee Hall, Jr -- often leads The Duke Ellington Orchestra in Paul Ellington's absence. Mr. Hall played in the orchestra under both the Duke and Mercer.
Charles Mingus -- composed "Open Letter to Duke"
Lorraine Feather -- has composed lyrics to many of Ellington's instrumental compositions,recorded on CD's including "Dooji Wooji" and "Such Sweet Thunder."
The Modern Jazz Quartet composed two original Ellington tributes for their album "For Ellington."
Homage from critics
Gunther Schuller wrote, "Ellington composed incessantly to the very last days of his life. Music was indeed his mistress; it was his total life and his commitment to it was incomparable and unalterable. In jazz he was a giant among giants. And in twentieth century music, he may yet one day be recognized as one of the half-dozen greatest masters of our time."
Martin Williams said "Duke Ellington lived long enough to hear himself named among our best composers. And since his death in 1974, it has become not at all uncommon to see him named, along with Charles Ives, as the greatest composer we have produced, regardless of category."
In 2002, scholar Molefi Kete Asante listed Duke Ellington on his list of 100 Greatest African Americans.
Grammy Awards
Ellington earned 13 Grammy awards from 1959 to 2000, nine while he was alive.
Duke Ellington composed over 3000 songs, including: "It Don't Mean A Thing If It Ain't Got That Swing", "Sophisticated Lady", "Mood Indigo", “Solitude", "In a Mellotone", and "Satin Doll".
Through the ranks of Duke Ellington & His Orchestra passed some of the biggest names in jazz, including Billy Strayhorn, Johnny Hodges, Cootie Williams, Bubber Miley, Barney Bigard, Ben Webster, Harry Carney, Sonny Greer, Otto Hardwick, Clark Terry, Jimmy Blanton, Ray Nance, Paul Gonsalves, and Wellman Braud. Many musicians stayed with him for decades. And while all of them were remarkable in their own right, and they all would have probably made it into the annals of jazz history no matter who they played for, it was Ellington's genius as a composer, pianist, bandleader, celebrity personality, and, most importantly, arranger, that made them the most incredible orchestral unit in the history of jazz. His ability to write and arrange for personalities, rather than instruments, made every solo and every section of every arrangement breathe with character. A giant on the 20th century American cultural scene, Duke Ellington was widely regarded as a legend during his own lifetime.
Early life
Edward Kennedy Ellington was born on April 29, 1899 to James Edward Ellington and Daisy Kennedy Ellington. They lived with his maternal grandparents at 2129 Ward Place, NW in Washington, D.C., USA.
James Edward Ellington was born in Lincolnton, North Carolina on April 15, 1879 and moved to Washington, D.C. in 1886 with his parents. Daisy Kennedy, was born in Washington, D.C. on January 4, 1879, and was the daughter of a former American slave. J.E. made blueprints for the United States Navy. He also worked as a butler for Dr. Middleton F. Cuthbert, a prominent white physician, and occasionally worked as a White House caterer. Daisy and J.E. were both piano players—she playing parlor songs and he operatic airs.
At the age of seven, Ellington began taking piano lessons from Mrs. Marietta Clinkscales. Daisy surrounded her son with dignified women who reinforced his manners and taught him to live elegantly. From his father, he absorbed self-confidence. Ellington’s childhood friends noticed that "his casual, offhand manner, his easy grace, and his dapper dress gave him the bearing of a young nobleman", and began calling him Duke. Ellington credited his "chum" Edgar McEntree, "a sharp dresser himself," with the nickname. "I think he felt that in order for me to be eligible for his constant companionship, I should have a title. So he called me Duke."
Though Ellington took piano lessons, he was more concerned with baseball. "President Roosevelt (Teddy) would come by on his horse sometimes, and stop and watch us play," he recalled. Ellington went to Armstrong Technical High School in Washington, D.C. He got his first job selling peanuts at Washington Senators’ baseball games where he conquered his stage fright.
In the summer of 1914, while working as a soda jerk at the Poodle Dog Café, he wrote his first composition, "Soda Fountain Rag" (also known as the "Poodle Dog Rag"). Ellington created "Soda Fountain Rag" by ear, because he had not yet learned to read and write music. "I would play the 'Soda Fountain Rag' as a one-step, two-step, waltz, tango, and fox trot," Ellington has recalled. "Listeners never knew it was the same piece. I was established as having my own repertoire." In his autobiography, Music is my Mistress, (1973) Ellington comments he missed more lessons than he attended, feeling at the time that playing the piano was not his talent. Over time, this would change. Ellington started sneaking into Frank Holiday's Poolroom at age fourteen. Hearing the poolroom pianists play ignited Ellington's love for the instrument and he began to take his piano studies seriously.
Ellington began listening to, watching, and imitating ragtime pianists, not only in Washington, D.C., but also in Philadelphia and Atlantic City, where he vacationed with his mother during the summer months.[citation needed] Dunbar High School music teacher Henry Lee Grant gave him private lessons in harmony. With the additional guidance of Washington pianist and band leader Oliver "Doc" Perry, Ellington learned to read sheet music, project a professional style, and improve his technique. Ellington was also inspired by his first encounters with James P. Johnson and Luckey Roberts, early jazz piano giants. Later in New York he took advice from Will Marion Cook, Fats Waller, and Sidney Bechet. Ellington started to play gigs in cafés and clubs in and around Washington, D.C. and began to realize his love for music. His attachment grew to be so strong that he turned down an art scholarship to the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn in 1916. He dropped out of Armstrong Manual Training School, where he was studying commercial art, just three months shy of graduation.
From 1917 through 1919, Ellington launched his musical career, painting commercial signs by day and playing piano by night. Duke's entrepreneurial side came out when if a customer would ask him to make a sign for a dance or party, he would ask them if they had musical entertainment, if not Ellington would ask if he could play for them. He also had a messenger job with the U.S. Navy and State Departments. Ellington moved out of his parents' home and into one which he bought for himself as he became a successful ragtime, jazz, and society pianist. At first, he played in other ensembles, and in late 1917 formed his first group, "The Duke’s Serenaders" ("Colored Syncopators", his telephone directory advertising proclaimed)[citation needed]. He was not only a member, but also the booking agent. His first play date was at the True Reformer's Hall where he took home 75 cents.
Ellington played throughout the Washington, D.C. area and into Virginia for private society balls and embassy parties. The band included Otto Hardwick, who switched from bass to saxophone; Arthur Whetsol on trumpet; Elmer Snowden on banjo; and Sonny Greer on drums. The band thrived, performing for both African-American and white audiences, a rarity during the racially divided times.[citation needed]
Marriage and family
With his career taking off, Ellington felt secure enough to marry his high school sweetheart, Edna Thompson, on July 2, 1918 when he was 19. Shortly after their marriage, on March 11, 1919 Edna gave birth to their only son, Mercer Kennedy Ellington, who went on to play trumpet, lead his own band and work as the road manager of his father's band, eventually taking it over after Duke's death. He was an important archivist of his father's musical life. Ellington's sister, Ruth, later ran Tempo Music, Ellington's music publishing company.
Ellington's granddaughter Mercedes is a dancer who has performed in network television productions. Grandson Paul Ellington is a pianist and composer who now leads the Duke Ellington Orchestra.
Early career
When his drummer Sonny Greer was invited to join the Wilber Sweatman Orchestra in New York City, Ellington made the fateful decision to leave behind his successful career in Washington, D.C. and aspire to the challenge of Harlem. The 'Harlem Renaissance' was in progress. New dance crazes, like the Charleston, were bred there as well as African-American musical theater, including Eubie Blake's Shuffle Along. After the young musicians left the Sweatman Orchestra to strike out on their own, they found an emerging jazz scene that was highly competitive and hard to crack. They hustled pool by day and played whatever gig they could find. The young band met Willie "The Lion" Smith who showed them the scene and even gave them spare cash. They played at rent-house parties to get by. After a few months, the young musicians returned to Washington, D.C. feeling discouraged.
But in June 1923, a gig in Atlantic City, New Jersey led to a play date at the prestigious Exclusive Club in Harlem, followed in September 1923 by a move to the Hollywood Club, 49th and Broadway, and a four-year engagement which gave Ellington a solid artistic base. The group was called Elmer Snowden and his Black Sox Orchestra and had seven members, including James "Bubber" Miley, a trumpeter whose growling style changed the "sweet" dance band sound of the group to one that was edgier and hotter. They renamed themselves "The Washingtonians". When Snowden left the group in early 1924, Ellington took over as bandleader. After a fire, the club was re-opened as the Club Kentucky (often referred to as the "Kentucky Club"), an engagement which set the stage for the biggest opportunities in Ellington's life.
Ellington made eight records in 1924, receiving composing credit on three including Choo Choo. In 1925, Ellington contributed four songs to Chocolate Kiddies, an all-African-American revue which introduced European audiences to African-American styles and performers. "Duke Ellington and his Kentucky Club Orchestra" grew to a ten-piece organization, developing their distinct sound, displaying the non-traditional expression of Ellington’s arrangements, the street rhythms of Harlem, and the exotic-sounding trombone growls and wah-wahs, high-squealing trumpets, and sultry saxophone blues licks of the band members. For a short time, the great soprano saxophonist Sidney Bechet played with the group, imparting his propulsive swing and superior musicianship on the young band members. This helped attract the attention of some of the biggest names of jazz, including Paul Whiteman.
In 1927, King Oliver turned down a regular booking for his group as the house band at Harlem's Cotton Club; the offer passed to Ellington. With a weekly radio broadcast and famous clientèle nightly pouring in to see them, Ellington and his band thrived in the period from 1932 to 1942, a "golden age" for the poor boys from Washington D.C.
Trumpeter Bubber Miley was a member of the orchestra for only a short period but had a major influence on Ellington's sound.[citation needed] An early experimenter in jazz trumpet growling, Miley is credited with morphing the band's style from rigid dance instrumentation to a growling 'jungle' style. He also composed most of "Black and Tan Fantasy" and "Creole Love Call". An alcoholic, Miley had to leave the band before they gained wider fame. He died in 1932 at the age of twenty-nine. He was an important influence on Cootie Williams, who replaced him.
In 1927 Ellington made a career-advancing agreement with agent-publisher Irving Mills giving Mills a 45% interest in Ellington's future. The brash, shrewd Mills had an eye for new talent and early on published compositions by Hoagy Carmichael, Dorothy Fields, and Harold Arlen. During the 1930s, Ellington's popularity continued to increase, largely as a result of the promotional skills of Mills, who got more than his fair share of co-composer credits. Mills arranged recording sessions on the Brunswick, Victor, and Columbia labels which gave Ellington popular recognition. Mills took the management burden off of Ellington's shoulders, allowing him to focus on his band's sound and his compositions.[citation needed] Ellington ended his association with Mills in 1937, although he continued to record under Mills' banner through 1940.
At the Cotton Club, Ellington's group performed all the music for the revues, which mixed comedy, dance numbers, vaudeville, burlesque, hot music, and illegal alcohol. The musical numbers were composed by Jimmy McHugh and the lyrics by Dorothy Fields (later Harold Arlen and Ted Koehler), with some Ellington originals mixed in. Weekly radio broadcasts from the club gave Ellington national exposure. In 1929, Ellington appeared in his first movie, a nineteen-minute all-African-American RKO short, Black and Tan, in which he played the hero "Duke". In the same year, The Cotton Club Orchestra appeared on stage for several months in Florenz Ziegfeld's Show Girl, along with vaudeville stars Jimmy Durante, Eddie Foy, Jr., Al Jolson, Ruby Keeler, and with music and lyrics by George Gershwin and Gus Kahn. That feverish period also included numerous recordings, under the pseudonyms "Whoopee Makers", "The Jungle Band", "Harlem Footwarmers", and the "Ten Black Berries". In 1930, Ellington and his Orchestra connected with a whole different audience in a concert with Maurice Chevalier and they also performed at the Roseland Ballroom, "America's foremost ballroom". Noted composer Percy Grainger was also an early admirer and supporter.
In 1929, when Ellington conducted the orchestra for Show Girl, he met Will Vodery, Ziegfeld’s musical supervisor. In his 1946 biography, Duke Ellington, Barry Ulanov wrote: “From Vodery, as he (Ellington) says himself, he drew his chromatic convictions, his uses of the tones ordinarily extraneous to the diatonic scale, with the consequent alteration of the harmonic character of his music, its broadening, The deepening of his resources. It has become customary to ascribe the classical influences upon Duke - Delius and Debussy and Ravel - to direct contact with their music. Actually his serious appreciation of those and other modern composers, came after his meeting with Vodery.” Ulanov, Barry. Duke Ellington, Creative Age Press, 1946.
As the Depression deepened, the recording industry took a dive, dropping over 90% by 1933. Ellington and his orchestra survived the hard times by taking to the road in a series of tours. Radio exposure also helped maintain his popularity. Ivie Anderson was hired as their vocalist (Sonny Greer had been providing occasional vocals). Normally, Ellington led the orchestra by conducting from the keyboard using piano cues and visual gestures; very rarely did he conduct using a baton. As a bandleader, Ellington was not a strict disciplinarian but he maintained control of his orchestra for decades to come with a crafty combination of charm, humor, flattery, and astute psychology. A complex, private person, he revealed his feelings to only his closest intimates and effectively used his public persona to deflect attention away from himself.
While their United States audience remained mainly African-American in this period, the Cotton Club had a near exclusive white clientèle and the band had a huge following overseas, demonstrated both in a trip to England in 1933 and a 1934 visit to the European mainland. The English visit saw Ellington win praise from members of the "serious" music community, including composer Constant Lambert, which gave a boost to his aspirations to compose longer "serious" pieces. And for agent Mills, it was a publicity triumph, as Ellington was now "internationally famous". On their tour through the segregated South in 1934, they avoided some of the traveling difficulties of African-American musicians by touring in private railcars, which provided easy accommodations, dining, and storage for equipment, while avoiding the indignities of segregated facilities.
The death of Ellington's mother in 1935 led to a temporary slump in his career. Competition was also intensifying[citation needed], as African-American and white "Swing Bands" began to rocket to popular attention, including those of Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey, Jimmy Dorsey, Jimmie Lunceford, Benny Carter, Earl Hines, Chick Webb, and Count Basie. Swing dancing became a youth phenomenon, particularly with white college audiences, and "danceability" drove record sales and bookings. Jukeboxes proliferated nationwide spreading the gospel of "swing". Ellington band could certainly "swing" with the best of them, but Ellington's strength was mood and nuance, and richness of composition, hence his statement "jazz is music; swing is business". The challenge for Ellington at that time was to create a workable balance between his ceaseless artistic exploration and the popular requirements of that era.[citation needed] Ellington countered with two innovations. He made recordings for smaller groups (sextets, octets, and nonets) drawn from his then 15-man orchestra and he composed pieces that were concerto-like and focused on a specific instrumentalist, as with Jeep's Blues for Johnny Hodges and Yearning for Love with Lawrence Brown.
In 1937, Ellington returned to the Cotton Club which had relocated to the mid-town theater district. In the summer of that year, his father died, and due to many expenses Ellington's financial condition was tight. Things improved in 1938 and he met and moved in with Cotton Club employee Beatrice "Evie" Ellis. After splitting with agent Irving Mills, he signed on with William Morris. The 1930s ended with a very successful European tour just as World War II loomed.
Ellington delivered some huge hits during the 1930s, which greatly helped to build his overall reputation "Mood Indigo" in 1930, "It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)" in 1932, "Sophisticated Lady" in 1933, "In a Sentimental Mood" in 1935, "Caravan" in 1937, "I Let A Song Go Out Of My Heart" in 1938. Following shortly were "Do Nothing Till You Hear from Me" in 1940 and "Take the "A" Train" (written by Billy Strayhorn) in 1941.
The most important event of Ellington’s “golden age” was the arrival of Billy Strayhorn.[citation needed] Hired as a lyricist, Strayhorn , nicknamed "Swee' Pea" for his mild manner, eventually became a vital member of the Ellington Organization and as Ellington described him, "my right arm, my left arm, all the eyes in the back of my head, my brain waves in his head, and his in mine". Strayhorn, with his Classical music training, applied that knowledge to arrange and polish future Ellington works. Ellington came to rely on Strayhorn's harmonic judgment, discipline, and taste.
Duke in the 1940s
The band reached a creative peak in the early 1940s[citation needed], when Ellington wrote for an orchestra of distinctive voices and displayed tremendous creativity. In November 1943 Ellington debuted Black, Brown and Beige in Carnegie Hall which told the struggle of African-Americans, and began a series of concerts ideally suited to displaying Ellington's longer works. While some jazz musicians had played at Carnegie Hall before, few had performed anything as elaborate as Ellington’s work. Some of the musicians created a sensation in their own right. The short-lived Jimmy Blanton transformed the use of double bass in jazz, allowing it to function as a solo rather than a rhythm instrument alone. Ben Webster too, the Orchestra's first regular tenor saxophonist, started a rivalry with Johnny Hodges as the Orchestra's foremost voice in the sax section. Ray Nance joined, replacing Cootie Williams who had "defected", contemporary wags claimed, to Benny Goodman. Nance, however, added violin to the instrumental colors Ellington had at his disposal. A privately made recording of Nance's first concert date, at Fargo, North Dakota, in November 1940, is probably the most effective display of the band at the peak of its powers during this period. This recording is one of the first of innumerable live performances which survive, made by enthusiasts or broadcasters, significantly expanding the Ducal discography as a result.
Three-minute masterpieces flowed from the minds of Ellington, Billy Strayhorn (from 1939), Ellington's son Mercer Ellington, and members of the Orchestra. "Cotton Tail", "Mainstem", "Harlem Airshaft", "Streets of New York" and dozens of others date from this period.
Ellington's long-term aim became to extend the jazz form from the three-minute limit of the 78 rpm record side, of which he was an acknowledged master.[citation needed] He had composed and recorded Creole Rhapsody as early as 1931, and his tribute to his mother, "Reminiscing in Tempo," had filled four 10" record sides in 1935; however, it was not until the 1940s that this became a regular feature of Ellington's work. In this, he was helped by Strayhorn, who had enjoyed a more thorough training in the forms associated with classical music than Ellington. The first of these, "Black, Brown, and Beige" (1943), was dedicated to telling the story of African-Americans, the place of slavery, and the church in their history. Unfortunately, starting a regular pattern, Ellington's longer works were generally not well-received; Jump for Joy, an earlier musical, closed after only six performances in 1941.
The first recording ban of 1942-3 had a serious effect on all the big bands because of the resulting increase in royalty payments to musicians. The financial viability of Ellington's Orchestra came under threat, though Ellington's income as a songwriter ultimately subsidized it. Ellington always spent lavishly and although he drew a respectable income from the Orchestra's operations, the band's income often just covered expenses.
Meanwhile, the development of modern jazz, or bebop, the music industry's shift to solo vocalists such as the young Frank Sinatra as the Big Band age died out, and the diminishing popularity of ballroom and nightclub entertainment in the early television era all undermined Ellington's popularity and status as a trendsetter.[citation needed] Bebop rebelled against commercial jazz, dance jazz, and strict forms to become the music of jazz aficionados. Furthermore, by 1950 the emerging African-American popular music style known as Rhythm and Blues drew away the young African-American audience and soon Rock & Roll followed. In the face of these major social shifts, Ellington continued on his own course, but major defections soon affected his Orchestra and he started to retire earlier works composed for now departed members. For a time though Ellington continued to turn out major works, such as the Kay Davis vocal feature Transblucency and major extended compositions such as Harlem (1950), whose score he presented to music-loving President Harry Truman.
In 1951, Ellington suffered a major loss of personnel, with Sonny Greer, Lawrence Brown, and most significantly, Johnny Hodges leaving to pursue other ventures. Lacking overseas opportunities and motion picture appearances, Ellington Orchestra survived on "one-nighters" and whatever else came their way. Even though he made many television appearances, Ellington's hope that television would provide a significant new venue for his type of jazz did not pan out. The introduction of the 33 1/3 rpm LP record and hi-fi phonograph did give new life to older compositions. However by 1955, after ten years of recording for Capitol, Ellington no longer had a regular recording affiliation.
Ellington's appearance at the Newport Jazz Festival on July 7, 1956 returned him to wider prominence and exposed him to new audiences. The feature "Diminuendo and Crescendo in Blue", with saxophonist Paul Gonsalves's six-minute saxophone solo, had been in the band's book since 1937, but on this occasion it nearly created a riot. The revived attention should not have surprised anyone — Hodges had returned to the fold the previous year, and Ellington's collaboration with Strayhorn had been renewed around the same time, under terms amenable to the younger man. Such Sweet Thunder (1957), based on Shakespeare's plays and characters, and The Queen's Suite the following year (dedicated to Queen Elizabeth II), were products of the renewed impetus which the Newport appearance had helped to create.
A new record contract with Columbia produced Ellington's best-selling LP Ellington at Newport and yielded six years of recording stability under producer Irving Townsend, who coaxed both commercial and artistic productions from Ellington.[citation needed] In 1957, CBS (Columbia's parent corporation) aired a live television production of A Drum Is a Woman, an allegorical suite which received mixed reviews. Other festivals at Monterey and elsewhere provided new venues for live exposure, and a European tour in 1958 was wildly received. After a 25-year gap, Ellington and Strayhorn again wrote film scores, this time for Anatomy of a Murder and Paris Blues. Despite some personnel turnover, in 1960 Ellington still possessed a seasoned corps with Carney, Hodges, Williams, Brown, Nance, Hamilton, Procope, Anderson, and Gonsalves. Ellington and Strayhorn, always looking for new musical territory, produced adaptations of John Steinbeck's novel Sweet Thursday, Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite and Edvard Grieg's Peer Gynt. The late 1950s also saw Ella Fitzgerald record her Duke Ellington Songbook with Ellington and his orchestra—a recognition that Ellington's songs had now become part of the cultural canon known as the "Great American Songbook".
Detroit Free Press music critic Mark Stryker concludes that the work of Billy Strayhorn and Ellington in Anatomy of a Murder is "indispensible, although too sketchy to rank in the top echelon among Ellington-Strayhorn masterpiece suites like Such Sweet Thunder and The Far East Suite, but its most inspired moments are their equal." Film historians have recognized the soundtrack "as a landmark — the first significant Hollywood film music by African Americans comprising non-diegetic music, that is, music whose source is not visible or implied by action in the film, like an on-screen band." The score avoided the cultural stereotypes which previously characterized jazz scores and rejected a strict adherence to visuals in ways that presaged the New Wave cinema of the ’60s."
In the early 1960s, Ellington was between recording contracts, which allowed him to record with a variety of artists mostly not previously associated with him. The Ellington and Count Basie orchestras recorded together and he made a record with Coleman Hawkins, plus some work for Frank Sinatra's new Reprise label. In 1962, he participated in a session which produced the "Money Jungle" (United Artists) album with Charles Mingus and Max Roach, and also recorded with John Coltrane for Impulse. Musicians who had previously worked with Ellington returned to the Orchestra as members: Lawrence Brown in 1960 and Cootie Williams two years later. Ellington was by now performing all over the world, a significant portion of each year was now spent making overseas tours, and he formed notable new working relationships, among which included the Swedish vocalist Alice Babs, and South African musicians Dollar Brand and Sathima Bea Benjamin (A Morning in Paris, 1963/2007). His earlier hits were now established standards, earning Ellington impressive royalties.
Ellington receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Nixon, 1969.Ellington was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize in 1965, but was turned down. His reaction at 67 years old: "Fate is being kind to me. Fate doesn't want me to be famous too young." He performed the first of his Sacred Concerts, an attempt at fusing Christian liturgy with jazz, in September of the same year, and even though it received mixed reviews, Ellington was enormously proud of the composition and performed it dozens of times. This concert was followed by two others of the same type in 1968 and 1973, called the Second and Third Sacred Concerts, respectively. This caused enormous controversy in what was already a tumultuous time in the United States. Many saw the Sacred Music suites as an attempt to reinforce commercial support for organized religion, though Ellington simply said it was, "the most important thing I've done." The piano upon which the Sacred Concerts were composed is part of the collection of the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History. Like Haydn and Mozart, Ellington conducted his orchestra from the piano - he always played the keyboard parts when the Sacred Concerts were performed.
Ellington continued to make vital and innovative recordings, including The Far East Suite (1966), "The New Orleans Suite" (1970), and "The Afro-Eurasian Eclipse" (1971), much of it inspired by his world tours. It was during this time that Ellington recorded his only album with Frank Sinatra, entitled Francis A. & Edward K..
Ellington was awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1966. He was later awarded several other prizes, the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1969, and the Legion of Honor by France in 1973, the highest civilian honors in each country.
Duke Ellington died in New York City on May 24, 1974, a month after his 75th birthday, and was interred in the Woodlawn Cemetery, The Bronx, New York City. At his funeral attended by over 12,000 people at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, Ella Fitzgerald summed up the occasion, "It's a very sad day. A genius has passed." Mercer Ellington picked up the reins of the orchestra immediately after Duke's death.
Work in films and the theater
Ellington's film work began in 1929 with the short film Black and Tan Fantasy. His Symphony In Black, which introduced Billie Holiday, was performed on film in 1935, winning an Academy Award as the best musical short subject. He also appeared in the 1930 Amos 'n' Andy film Check and Double Check. He and his Orchestra continued to appear in films throughout the 1930s and 1940s, both in short films and in features such as Murder at the Vanities, and Belle Of The Nineties, (1934), and Cabin In The Sky (1943). In the late 1950s, his work in films took the shape of scoring for soundtracks, notably Anatomy of a Murder (1959), with James Stewart, in which he appeared fronting a roadhouse combo, and Paris Blues, (1961), which featured Paul Newman and Sidney Poitier as jazz musicians.
He wrote an original score for Shakespeare's Timon of Athens that was first used in the Stratford Festival production that opened July 29, 1963 for director Michael Langham, who has used it for several subsequent productions, most recently in an adaptation by Stanley Silverman that expands on the score with some of Ellington's best-known works.
Ellington composed the score for the musical "Jump For Joy," which was performed in Los Angeles in 1941. Ellington's sole book musical, Beggar's Holiday, was staged on Broadway in 1946. Sophisticated Ladies, an award-winning 1981 musical revue, incorporated many of the tunes he made famous.
Numerous memorials have been dedicated to Duke Ellington, in cities from New York and Washington, DC to Los Angeles.
In Ellington's birthplace of Washington, D.C., there is a school dedicated to his honor and memory as well as one of the bridges over Rock Creek Park. The Duke Ellington School of the Arts educates talented students, who are considering careers in the arts, by providing intensive arts instruction and strong academic programs that prepare students for post-secondary education and professional careers. The Calvert Street Bridge was renamed the Duke Ellington Bridge; built in 1935, it connects Woodley Park to Adams Morgan.
On February 24, 2009, the United States Mint launched a new coin featuring Duke Ellington, making him the first African-American to appear by himself on a circulating U.S. coin. Ellington appears on the reverse ("tails") side of the District of Columbia quarter. The coin is part of the U.S. Mint's 50 State Quarters Program and celebrates Ellington's birthplace in the District of Columbia. Ellington is depicted on the quarter seated at a piano, sheet music in hand, along with the inscription "Justice for All."
Ellington lived for years in a townhouse on the corner of Manhattan's Riverside Drive and West 106th Street. After his death, West 106th Street was officially renamed Duke Ellington Boulevard. A large memorial to Ellington, created by sculptor Robert Graham, was dedicated in 1997 in New York's Central Park, near Fifth Avenue and 110th Street, an intersection named Duke Ellington Circle.
Although he made two more stage appearances before his death, Ellington performed what is considered his final "full" concert in a ballroom at Northern Illinois University on March 20, 1974.[citation needed] The hall was renamed the Duke Ellington Ballroom in 1980.
A statue of Ellington at a piano is featured at the entrance to UCLA's Schoenberg Hall. According to UCLA magazine, "When UCLA students were entranced by Duke Ellington's provocative tunes at a Culver City club in 1937, they asked the budding musical great to play a free concert in Royce Hall. "I've been waiting for someone to ask us!" Ellington exclaimed.
"On the day of the concert, Ellington accidentally mixed up the venues and drove to USC instead. He eventually arrived at the UCLA campus and, to apologize for his tardiness, played to the packed crowd for more than four hours. And so, "Sir Duke" and his group played the first-ever jazz performance in a concert venue."
He is of only five jazz musicians ever to have been featured on the cover of Time (the other four being Louis Armstrong, Thelonious Monk, Wynton Marsalis, and Dave Brubeck).
Tributes
Sathima Bea Benjamin -- South African vocalist wrote "Gift of Love" in memory of Duke Ellington on her 1987 album Love Light.
Dave Brubeck -- dedicated "The Duke" (1954) to Ellington and it became a standard covered by others, both during Ellington's lifetime (such as Miles Davis in 1957 on Miles Ahead) and posthumously (such as George Shearing in 1992 on I Hear a Rhapsody: Live at the Blue Note).
Tony Bennett frequently altered the lyrics to "Lullaby of Broadway" in live performance, to sing, "You rock-a-bye your baby 'round/to Ellington or Basie," as a personal tribute to the two jazz giants.
Judy Collins -- wrote "Song For Duke" in 1975, and included it on her album Judith.
Miles Davis -- one month after Ellington's death, created his half-hour dedicated dirge "He Loved Him Madly" (1974) collected on Get Up with It.
The jazz-influenced band Steely Dan recorded a note-for-note version of an early Ellington standard, "East St. Louis Toodle-oo," on their album Pretzel Logic, using treated slide guitars to re-create the plunger-muted "jungle sound" of the original Ellington horns.
Mercer Ellington -- (1919–1996) led The Duke Ellington Orchestra after his father's death.
Stevie Wonder -- wrote the song "Sir Duke" as a tribute to Ellington in 1976.
Paul Ellington -- leads The Duke Ellington Orchestra (1996-?).
Barrie Lee Hall, Jr -- often leads The Duke Ellington Orchestra in Paul Ellington's absence. Mr. Hall played in the orchestra under both the Duke and Mercer.
Charles Mingus -- composed "Open Letter to Duke"
Lorraine Feather -- has composed lyrics to many of Ellington's instrumental compositions,recorded on CD's including "Dooji Wooji" and "Such Sweet Thunder."
The Modern Jazz Quartet composed two original Ellington tributes for their album "For Ellington."
Homage from critics
Gunther Schuller wrote, "Ellington composed incessantly to the very last days of his life. Music was indeed his mistress; it was his total life and his commitment to it was incomparable and unalterable. In jazz he was a giant among giants. And in twentieth century music, he may yet one day be recognized as one of the half-dozen greatest masters of our time."
Martin Williams said "Duke Ellington lived long enough to hear himself named among our best composers. And since his death in 1974, it has become not at all uncommon to see him named, along with Charles Ives, as the greatest composer we have produced, regardless of category."
In 2002, scholar Molefi Kete Asante listed Duke Ellington on his list of 100 Greatest African Americans.
Grammy Awards
Ellington earned 13 Grammy awards from 1959 to 2000, nine while he was alive.
Someone
Duke Ellington Lyrics
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A Spell Inside I'm walking down the walk of shame Where is my way…
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A Zi The worst time seems to be over But I'm tired to…
Aaron Lewis I'm damaged goods, I'm complicated I sure do know how to…
Air Supply When you first found love Was it all that you…
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Akon and T-Pain/Akon Someone On and on… and on and on Down this round I’m…
Albin Loán It started with the eyes They're like a drug to me I'm…
ALEX RAMP Girl you know I gotta keep a hundred times When your…
Altered States There's a saying old says that love is blind Still were…
Andrew Kamen Double blind studies Muddy the water Non sequiturs drip out …
Androcles Someone told me you had gone And found somebody new Yeah the…
Anna of the North There's something in the water I can feel you getting under…
Anna Wise Someone who needs me…
Anna-Lena Winter There's something in the water I can feel you getting under…
Arizona Young We lie awake, it's still that summer break As I mutter…
Artie Shaw There's a saying old says that love is blind Still were…
Ascension I need a spirit who can touch my life I need…
Asking Alexandria Even though I'm on my own, I know I'm not…
Astrid Williamson You look like a person who lives on the road You…
Axis (I found someone I needed badly Who'll follow me gladly whe…
B3nchMarQ Oh yeah yeah I need someone Just to let me know Yeah okay…
Bandcamp "Well I'm battered down I'm burnt out like a half of…
Basia Bulat When the summer wind races Through my thoughts Where there w…
BAYUK I don′t wanna be alone I just want someone to hold I'm…
Bert Kaempfert And His Orchestra There's a saying old says that love is blind Still were…
Beth Orton I wanna sit and talk and laugh with you as…
Big Day Someone is calling himself Through the air Someone is ru…
Billy Adams Chewy, chewy, chewy Always got a mouthful of such sweet thin…
Blake Are you tough enough son Will you make the grade Cause it's…
Blitz This is where the good times went With his brains lying…
Blossom Dearie Lately, I find myself out gazing at stars, Hearing guitars…
Blue I'm feeling strange now Like being on the run There are to…
Bobby & Laurie Your bags are packed and waiting By the door If you really…
Boom Dice Someone to hold Someone to care Someone who knows how much I…
Boston I hear you won't even say my name I know things…
Box the Oxford Oh, I've been told that man's worse off alone And I…
Brian Culbertson Since we met We never let our feelings go too far From…
Bruce & Sammy Frye Someone teach me how to walk straight Someone teach me how…
Buddy Holly Stayin' at home waitin' for you Just won't get it 'cause…
Calein Someone said You are happy now You found Someone to love An…
Chiasm I see you And I know what to feel inside For the…
Cirque Du Soleil If someone Would lend a hand Then someone else Might make…
Clare Fischer Don't mind telling you, in my humble fash That you thrill…
Clever 여태 어딨었니 baby 나 혼자서 매일 이렇게 눈물만 흘렸어 without you girl answer…
Corey Hart I do not see, I do not speak Still I hear…
D-Low Beats Under a temperamental sun On the dark hillside of your sorro…
D.H.T Driving down an endless road Taking friends or moving alone…
D.H.T ft Esmee You can't eat, you can't sleep, you can weep when…
D.H.T. & Edmée Driving down an endless road Taking friends or moving alone…
D.H.T. feat Edmee You can't eat, you can't sleep, you can weep when…
D.H.T. Ft. Edmee Driving down an endless road Taking friends or moving alone…
D.H.T./Edmée You can't eat, you can't sleep, you can weep when…
d.h.t.; edmée Driving down an endless road Taking friends or moving alone…
Daisy I′m sure that he won't like the taste of my…
David Cassidy If ever someone needed someone Then that someone's me who'…
Dear You come around late at night, the clock is telling…
DeBarge Someone just like me Runnin' into someone just like you An a…
Deco Pilot In the city of lights I was lost in the dark I…
Del-Phi's I know you're not the only one That warned me and…
Denyah People fall apart And people disappear I learned that fair…
Dhan How can I be someone? Somebody in someone's mind I can tell…
DHT You can't eat, you can't sleep, you can weep when…
DHT And Edmee Driving down an endless road Taking friends or moving alone…
DHT feat EDMEE You can't eat, you can't sleep, you can weep when…
DHT feat. Edmée You can′t eat, you can't sleep, you can weep when…
Dht Feat. Edmйe Driving down an endless road Taking friends or moving alone…
DHT featuring Edmee You can't eat, you can't sleep, you can weep when…
Diddy/SWV Uh, uh, uh, uh Lookin' at my Rollie, it's about that…
Dirt Poor Robins I dare you to love me after all that I've…
Disciple All I see inside Is a longing for something that's outside T…
DJ Friction; McLean There's a saying old says that love is blind Still were…
Dori Caymmi V1 You, Well you can't touch me And I can't speak now It's t…
Double K I'll Tip in 이 게임에 와서 느낌 보고 play해 U…
Downhere What we believe, is evident in how we live, How we…
Drain Eyes Can Tell The Story About fearsome occurrences In our ow…
Drain S.T.H Set my soul to fly Someone has to die And I feel…
Drain STH Set my soul to fly Someone has to die And I feel…
Drew Monson I miss someone I don′t know that well, know that…
Duke Ellington & His Orchestra There's a saying old says that love is blind Still were…
E.N.E.R.O You up there, Don't you think there's something you can do? …
E.N.E.R.O. Knew that it was wrong the first night I met…
Ear Shot And if you could make up For every single time you…
Earshot And if you could make up For every single time you…
Edmee You can't eat, you can't sleep, you can weep when…
El DeBarge Someone just like me Runnin' into someone just like you An a…
Electric Nana I want to talk to you with the sound of…
Eli Maybe I made some mistakes Maybe you shouldn't talk that way…
Elysian Fields Walking through land mines Just to get beside you Picking …
emawK You ask your allergies why they're such a bother You feel…
Erika de Casier Don't tell me that I'm lost, case closed Don't tell me…
Eskobar w/ Heather Nova So is it goodbye? Is it time to set you free? Is…
Etta James There's a saying old, says that love is blind Still we're…
Even as We Speak There upon the darkest night I float in constellations made …
F-Minus You will live the way you're aimed and answer by…
Fireboy Dml Take my time Don't take my life Do this right It'll change y…
Flynn & Denton Drowning in sirens, I found comfort in silence Wading this w…
Forrest Nelson You're not someone that I need I don't wanna fall Baby, plea…
Franklin McKay Don't you know that it takes A bigger man to walk…
Freestyle Someone - Freestyle Live @ 19 East Someone just like me Run…
Friction & McLean There's a saying old says that love is blind Still were…
Friday Santana Cause I need someone for me Someone to hold it down Cause…
Future of Forestry Turn my head Break my heart with mercy Just move my feet …
Gabe Kubanda There’s always someone who can make your life easier There’s…
Gabriel Garzon Montano I love you like when we began Friends, lovers, friends, love…
Gallery Someone, someone who needs me like I need someone Someone to…
Gem It's two am and I can't sleep The memories are drowning…
Geneviève Racette [feat. City And Colour] Mister, Missus, I'm suspicious of all your little make up…
Geographer You know no one's gonna love you Like I could have…
Gerald Levert Somebody if anybody Someone told you That I've been hanging …
Geri Halliwell You said I'd always be your little girl. Thought that would…
Golden and Rust Beanie with the cuffed jeans Wouldn’t have it any other way …
Grace Weber VERSE 1 I park the car and breathe, I’m trying to…
Gracenote Now that you're across the sea thinking of it makes me…
Grand Funk Railroad Why, oh why, oh why should I care for someone, Who…
H.A.R.M. Mm-mm-hmm Didn't mean to destroy you I know I ignored you B…
Halfway Atlantic Your kiss tastes like salt And also like the cigarettes you…
Hannah Stop pulling me apart Stop opening up my heart You know you…
Hanson You were looking for somebody Sans trop y croire, tu attend…
HDNSTIK.VIBES (Verse 1) You pull me closer cnd Then you wisper You're the …
HELLSTRVCK Said you want someone Cause you've been by yourself Said…
Highway I heard he's out with someone new Wish her luck 'cause…
Hilary Duff I found myself today Oh, I found myself and ran away But…
Hoover And through all Alex's wondrous Childhood he would honor an…
Hooverphonic And through all Alex's wondrous Childhood he would honor and…
J.T Meirelles Feels like you could do anything to me And I'd still…
Jack Hylton and His Orchestra There's a saying old says that love is blind Still were…
Jackie Minton Blue eyes and black hat Imagine that How'd he even see me…
Jake Mirador Pretty people getting in a freezing port town car Overpriced…
James Someone, is trying to pick me apart Trying to open up…
James Taylor Someone, I'm searching for someone Who'll be true, who'll c…
Jan Krist There's a saying old says that love is blind Still were…
Jason Kao Hwang / Edge Pour another glass of wine You've been drinking with the lig…
Jermaine Paul I'm here alone on a Friday night Waiting here beside the…
Jim and the Applejuice Yeah, I'm single atm and looking for a real girl Who's…
Joachim 3:46 with no specific time to be There’s just a little…
Joan Armatrading Someone's in the background While we're on the phone Giving …
Joey Emmanuel Hey! You ain't ever killed a man, right? You ain'…
John Foxx Someone who walks with you Shines a light in everything you…
John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers Just a silly kind of quarrel When we made each other…
Johnny Mathis Someone really loves you, guess who? Someone really needs yo…
Jona & Claude Vonstroke another round with someone like you it can only hold me…
Journey All alone again tonight A place you know too well Guess ther…
JOY-KEY Tell me where your head has gone Why do you hide…
Js [intro - Kandi] Someone, someone (I got) someone, someone (…
JS (Johnson Sisters) [intro - Kandi] Someone, someone (I got) someone, someone…
Jubël I see you walk, see you walk into the night Are…
Jubel [drivemusic.me] SOMEONE'S PRAYING FOR... I'm the only one that can see thr…
Julie & The Carjackers Lately, I find myself out gazing at stars, Hearing guitars…
July Talk I'm a stolen car Your favorite deadbeat bar Your Friday di…
julytalk I'm a stolen car Your favorite deadbeat bar Your Friday dirt…
June You threw me a glance It was the last Time I'd ever…
Just I got my hopes up high Before you were even mine Under…
K.A.A.N. Knew that it was wrong the first night I met…
Kalle B You were, you were right there (Ready for me baby) Truth…
Kelly Clarkson So this is my apology For saying all those shitty things I…
Kenny Lattimore Since we met We never let our feelings go too far From…
KennyEcstacy - wWw.DaiGia.In Yes, I'll take you back again, you knew I would For…
Kim Sawol 너는 누군가에게 너무 특별해 영원히 잊을 수 없는 사람이 되기도 하고 네가 사랑받기에 결국 이해…
King K.O.N.G. Knew that it was wrong the first night I met…
KMeRcY I need a girl, someone that will hold me down And…
Kristine W I can't remember a time when you weren't there To dry…
Kyla So long, I've waited, for, a chance To talk, about, our…
L.P.S You love 'em You love 'em There's nothing There's nothing Yo…
L.P.S. Lately, I find myself out gazing at stars, Hearing guitars…
Lee Greenwood Love should mean so much But the only kind I`ve…
LEEDS There's a saying old says that love is blind Still were…
Leipe You came to my life Tell me to do wise And I…
Lena Park 그대 처음 만났을때엔 아무렇지 않았어 그저 좋은 사람으로만 생각했었는데 그대…
Lena Park (박정현) 그대 처음 만났을때엔 아무렇지 않았어 그저 좋은 사람으로만 생각했었는데 그대 내가…
Leyya I'll figure out for sure How to safe me To not blame…
Linda Eder We all lose our way sometimes Get caught out in the…
LO-FI CHILL Wake up alone In the morning, with no one at my…
Long Story Short I looked for your reflection In a shadow on the ground And…
Loren Noyman Over the mountain, across the sea Is there someone who somet…
Louie DeVito Hello? Hello... Veronica, don't hang up the phone, It's me,…
Lucy Spraggan You may never be a scientist You may never fire…
Lustral I need a spirit who can touch my life I need…
Mag.44 Finjo ser invisível Pra não ter que te encarar Afogo na pisc…
Marian Lately, I find myself out gazing at stars, Hearing guitars…
Martin Schenkel wouldn`t it be easyjust to tell all aboutthe things that…
Marvin Dolo I've been praying I've been craving for someone who craves m…
Matthew A. Wilkinson Ooh, ooh Hadn't loved like this I hadn't felt this in months…
MGMT Someone's telling the toll to me I'm cut and I'm weeping…
Michael Schulte Sat in the corner Eyes on your phone You sat right next…
Miguel Angel Munoz Based on my information my baby's just went Hawai She's bee…
Mike Cavanaugh Just want someone to sing to Someone to write about Someone …
Mike Opani feat. Nina I thought it'd only be a moment Like a night of…
Mila Drumke There's a saying old says that love is blind Still were…
Mohamed Chaker شَــخص مَــا صَـحَّيَ إِحسَـاس فِـيَّا كُـنت ملَـجِّــــمَاه…
Momus I've been walking round the town looking for someone just…
MONSTA X Maybe this is crazy Crazy just to wonder Wonder if there's s…
Musiq I never wanted a woman that wanted Me for my name…
N.C.S.O. Knew that it was wrong the first night I met…
Name Taken You said that you can't be someone, when the world's…
Nana Mouskouri You've said that nobody cares where you're going And that yo…
Nancy Wilson There's a saying old says that love is blind Still were…
Nectr Face the moment here with grace, Feel and let it fade…
Nelccia I′m homesick for a place Im not sure even exists Where…
NeraNature I've been doing some thinking And I wish want a fresh…
Nine Lies V1 You, Well you can't touch me And I can't speak now It's t…
northkid Hey, how you been? Did you ever go to Berlin? Are you…
October Project 9. SOMEONE If you long for someone Who will take…
OneRepublic Patience Took you for everything Looked like a diamond ring …
Only Son I was laying in a parking lot You were praying…
P. Diddy Uh, uh, uh, uh Lookin' at my Rollie, it's about that…
Palomine I’ve seen a smile on the outside of you But there’s…
Paul Bley Lately, I find myself out gazing at stars, Hearing guitars…
Paul Oakenfold I need a spirit who can touch my life I need…
Pink floyd and the beatles If I needed someone to love You're the one that I'd…
PinkPirate I felt the grass in between Breach the gap from you…
Pist.on Dont wipe that smile off your face Dont change that look…
Plastic Farm I'll be singing in the street You know where to find…
Poundhound Oh what did I do to you Teacher said to sit…
Queens of the Stone Age Once you're lost in taillight's blue You don't find your way…
R.I.O Knew that it was wrong the first night I met…
Rainville Save my soul from what I've done Said my prayers yet…
Rapture An empty word Falling from inside My empty head Inside I thi…
Ray Conniff I knew that there'd be someone because He told me…
Red Hot Chili Peppers Someone There are no worries for someone Life's in no hur…
Red Hot Chili Peppers - "The Zephyr Song" Single (By The Way) There are no worries for someone Life's in no hurry for…
Red Hot Chili Peppers䀁 Someone There are no worries for Someone Life's in no hurry …
RJD2 Alright! [(whistling)] (x2) What may be, We've been here…
Robert Earl Out my door the leaves are falling The cold wild wind…
Romes You see into me Don't even try to hide the things That…
Ron Block My father was an old man, he worked so hard…
Rorschach Insecurity No identity Finding it hard To cope with reality …
Rowen Reecks I'm lookin' for Someone to hold Someone to care Someone who'…
S.W.V. Malilel'imango ingasiyo yakho Malilel'imango ingasiyo yakho …
Sam Concepcion You can't sleep You can't eat You can't weak When you lov…
Samie Bower Please don’t go and take this personal, I know that…
Savvy & Mandy There's a saying old says that love is blind Still were…
Sawyer Brown It must be awful cold up on the moon It's dark…
Showoff A certain someone must be out there, waiting for a…
Simmonds & Jones Take her mind & I'll massage it Get real deep inside…
Simmonds & Jones feat. Joanna Law Someone who's watching over you tonight) If you do your best…
Simple Minds Stay, I'm burning slow, with me in the rain Walking in…
Sky Fetish So we have to go To we have a change Like…
Someone (Feat. Mclean) There's a saying old says that love is blind Still were…
Spraggan Lucy You may never be a scientist You may never fire…
Status All around an open fire, no-one's got a name The flame…
Stefanie Sun My hair was long and shiny... you said you can't…
Stella Parton Oh I need someone to help me get over someone To…
Steve Harley Seeing you re is such a good thing Now can say…
Steven Loki Howell This California sunset, from this Nashville sublet, remind…
STIV4TRAP Я там, как кто-то где-то Я где-то, как кто-то там-то Кидаю в…
Suck For Sympathy Don't you think I'm right this time You got lost in…
Suicide Machines Oh yeah I've been running all my life And I face the…
Sukrit Wisetkaew จะดูรอบหนัง จะตีหน้าสดใส ก็ช่วยไม่ได้ไม่ได้ให้มันหยุดเหงา จะ…
Sun Yan-Zi my hair was long & shining you said you can't believe how…
SWV Uh, uh, uh, uh Lookin' at my Rollie, it's about that…
SWV feat. Diddy Taking a quiz or taking a subtitle. No sleep correck in…
SWV feat. Puff Daddy Uh, uh, uh, uh Lookin' at my Rollie, it's about that…
SWV Puff daddy [Puff] Lookin' at my Rollie, it's about that time For SWV …
T.L. Mazumdar Lately, I find myself out gazing at stars, Hearing guitars…
Tabb And Sound`N`Grace Trying hard to make it right Oh, I fail, I need…
Tammany Hall NYC Someone's late, I'll wait. In time, time will show. Someon…
Terminal Choice You go to bed like every night But there is fear…
The Bird and the Bee I know how I feel Lonely in the black of…
The Chateaux Someone, I need someone who'll melt my heart I always run…
The debarge Someone just like me Runnin' into someone just like you An a…
The Divine Comedy Someone I once knew Told someone like you "Love is just a…
The Gramjelly-O Knew that it was wrong the first night I met…
The Ink Spots Someone's rocking my dreamboat, Someone's invading my dream…
The Jetts (P. Falciglia/C. Mastrangelo) I need someone whoa how I nee…
THE LOST KNIGHTS With the scars up on my nose makes me makes…
The Lovers Well, I don't want just a girl to fool around…
The Mekons We never have to stretch our imagination It is our own…
The Radio Dept It amazes me how much I want you We seem…
The Rembrandts We've been together now for such a long time Through every…
The Springs You won't step on any toes In those plain and muted…
The Suicide Machines Oh yeah I've been running all my life And I face the…
The Sunday Sadness It's raining On a Sunday night The room is cold but I'm…
Tim & Bill There's a somebody I'm longing to see I hope that she…
Tony G-Break Skin to skin Disposal of morality By the vile Deceiving inno…
Trevor Moran And your love, And your love. When the lights come crashin…
TSS It's raining, on a Sunday night The room is cold but…
Tumsa Someone is crying right at the door to your heart Someone…
U2 You got a face not spoiled by beauty I have some…
UFO American beauty Came up and spoke She touched her toes And w…
Undish Someone told that faith made strong. Someone told that Jesus…
VanoTek Falling apart under avenue lights All of these streets don’t…
Vanotek Denitia Falling apart of heaven head to new lights All of these…
Vanotek/Denitia Falling apart under avenue lights All of these streets don’t…
Various Artists Heaven please send to all mankind, Understanding and peace o…
Venke Knutson I made a stupid move and now you're gone I gave…
Vikki Gilmore Ooh Running round in circles I learned to play a game Where…
w.i.w Malilel'imango ingasiyo yakho Malilel'imango ingasiyo yakho …
We Have Band I was thinking about the times I was can you? Can you…
Whoiszp I wanna be someone That don't need someone I think I need…
Wink We've been together now for such a long time Through every…
X-Pleasure 걘 가끔 언제 만나자면 나오곤 하던 애였는데 참 엊그저께 만난 거 같아 그냥…
Yan-zi my hair was long & shining you said you can't believe how…
Yoon Han You and I unconsciously, looked at each other and we Both…
Yung Trip Someone told me that they wouldn′t ever leave me Someone tol…
บี้ สุกฤษฎิ์ จะดูรอบหนัง จะตีหน้าสดใส ก็ช่วยไม่ได้ไม่ได้ให้มันหยุดเหงา จะ…
于湉 Someone 你疲倦 的双眼 模糊视线 被撕毁 曾经纯真的无畏 你厌倦 空气中 刺耳轰隆 沉睡中盼望着 彩虹的影踪 …
孫燕姿 my hair was long & shining you said you can't believe how…
政学Zed-X Meet me at the back I’ll see u in the morning I…
蔡依林 Oh oh oh oh oh oh Oh oh oh oh oh…
黒夢 You up there, Don't you think there's something you can do? …
박정현 그대 처음 만났을때엔 아무렇지 않았어 그저 좋은 사람으로만 생각했었는데 그대 내가…
We have lyrics for these tracks by Duke Ellington:
"c" Jam Blues Baby, take me down to Duke's place Wildest box in town…
'Don't Mean A Thing' Wah-dah-doo Wah-dah-doo Wah-dah-doo, dah-dah-doo, dah-dah-do…
0 I went from hero To zero And I'm still sinking down Money…
01. Star Spangled Banner Oh say can you see by the dawn's early light, What…
15. Sophisticated Lady They say into your early life romance came And in this…
17. Day In Day Out Day in, day out That same old voodoo follows me about That…
29. Mood Indigo Now you have been blue, yes but you ain't been…
5 O'Clock Whistle: Five O'Clock Whistle The five o'clock whistle's on the blink The whistle won't bl…
A Beautiful Friendship This is the end of a beautiful friendship It ended a…
A Flower Is A Lonesome Thing A flower is a lovesome thing A luscious living lovesome thin…
A Foggy Day I was a stranger in the city Out of town were…
A Ghost Of A Chance I need your love so badly, I love you, oh,…
A Gypsy Without a Sonf In the dark of deepest night There comes a haunting sigh Flo…
A Gypsy Without a Song In the dark of deepest night There comes a haunting sigh F…
A Mellow Tone In a mellow tone Feeling fancy free And I'm not alone I've g…
A Midnight In Paris I never knew the charm of spring I never met it…
A Sailboat in the Moonlight A sailboat in the moonlight and you Wouldn't that be heaven,…
A Sentimental Mood In a sentimental mood I can see the stars come…
A Souvenir of Duke Ellington В ночном кафе играют скрипки Поет, как девушка, рояль И ярко…
Ain't But the One Ain't got the change of a nickel Ain't got no bounce…
Ain't Misbehavin No one to talk with All by myself No one to walk…
Ain't Nobody Nowhere Nothin' Without God Ain't nobody nowhere nothin' without God Ain't nobody nowhe…
Ain't Nothin' Nothin' Ain't got the change of a nickel Ain't got no bounce…
Ain't the Gravy Good Though folks with good intentions Tell me to save my tears W…
Alabamy Home I'm goin' home Down there among the fields of cotton, Down w…
Alice Blue Gown I once had a gown; it was almost new Oh, the…
All God's Chillun Got Rhythm Chillun', listen here to me This is my philosophy To see m…
All My Lovin' Close your eyes and I'll kiss you Tomorrow I'll miss you Rem…
All Of Me All of me Why not take all of me? Can't you see? I'm…
All The Things You Are Time and again I've longed for adventure Something to make m…
All Too Soon All too soon We had to part The moment you had touched…
Amor Amor, amor, amor This word so sweet that I repeat Means I…
Angelica Angelica cuando te nombro Me vuelve a la memoria Un…
Anytime Anyday Anywhere Anytime, any day, anywhere Say the word, you'd be heard I'll…
Are You Stickin' Where are you? Where have you gone without me? I thought you…
Around My Heart I let a song go out of my heart It was…
At a Dixie Roadside Diner At a Dixie roadside diner Down in Carolina Two blue eye bl…
Autumn Leaves The falling leaves drift by the window The autumn leaves of…
Autumn Serenade Through the trees comes autumn with her serenade Melodies th…
Azure Driftin' Dreamin' In an Azure mood, Stardust gleamin' Thru …
B D B April skies are in your eyes But, darling, don't be blue Do…
Baby Hey, hey hey baby! I want to know if you'll be…
Baby Won't You Please Come Home Won't you come home, bill bailey, won't you come home I…
Baby! Hey, hey hey baby! I want to know if you'll be…
Ballad in Blue There is a gay Lady in blue Haunting my dreams all…
Basin Street Blues Won't you come along with me To the Mississippi We'll take a…
Before My Time When the day fades away into twilight The moon is my…
Beige Lord, dear Lord I've loved, God almighty God of love, please…
Between the Devil and the Deap Blue Sea I don't want you, but I'd hate to lose you You've…
Black and Blue Cold empty bed, springs hard as lead Pains in my head,…
Black Brown & Beige Lord, dear Lord I've loved, God almighty God of love, please…
Black Butterfly You're a black butterfly With your wings frayed and torn, La…
Bli Blip While other lovers sing your praisesin phases deftly lyrical…
BliBlip While other lovers sing your praises in phases deftly lyrica…
Blip Blip While other lovers sing your praisesin phases deftly lyrical…
Blowin' In The Wind How many roads must a man walk down Before you call…
Blue Again Blue again Blue again And you know darn well It's you again …
Blue Moon Blue moon you saw me standing alone Without a dream in…
Blue Rose I want some red roses for a blue lady Mister florist,…
Blue Skies Blue skies smilin' at me Nothin' but blue skies do I…
Blues for Blanton I want some red roses for a blue lady Mister florist,…
Blues I Love To Sing I gotta right to sing the blues I gotta right to…
Blues in Blueprint There is a gay Lady in blue Haunting my dreams all…
Blues Skies Blue skies smilin' at me Nothin' but blue skies do I…
Blues Skies Pt. 2 Blue skies smilin' at me Nothin' but blue skies do I…
Body and Soul My heart is sad and lonely For you I sigh, for…
Boy Meets Horn In the dark of deepest night There comes a haunting sigh Flo…
Briwn-Skinned Gal in the Calico Gown She's a camp-town tune at a barbecue An old fashioned courte…
Brown Skin Gal She's a camp-town tune at a barbecue An old fashioned court…
Brown-Skin Gal She's a camp-town tune at a barbecue An old fashioned courte…
Bugle Call Rag You're bound to fall for the bugle call; You're gonna brag…
Bye and Bye I got a big surprise when I saw you smile I…
C-Jam Blues Baby, take me down to Duke's place Wildest box in town…
Call Me Irresponsible Call me irresponsible, call me unreliable Throw in undependa…
Candy Some say that love is sweet as a rose, Some say…
Caravan (Remastered Version) Night and stars above that shine so bright The mystery of…
charade When we played our charade We were like children posing Play…
Chelsea Bridge I was a stranger in the city Out of town were…
Chew Chew Chew If you're idle and lonesome too Don't know what to…
Chicago I got the surprise, the surprise of my life I had…
Chlo-E Chloe! Chloe! Someone's calling, no reply Nightshade's fal…
Chlo-E (Song Of The Swamp) Chloe! Chloe! Someone's calling, no reply Nightshade's falli…
Chocolate Shake She fuck me, man Yeah If she bout the check, make it…
Choo Choo Pardon me boy, is that the Chattanooga Choo Choo? Track twen…
Christopher Columbus Mr. Christopher Columbus Sailed the sea without a compass We…
Clouds in My Heart I left my heart in San Francisco. High on a hill…
Cocktails for Two In some secluded rendezvous That overlooks the avenue With s…
Come on Home Won't you come home, bill bailey, won't you come home I…
Come Rain or Come Shine I'm gonna love you Like no one's loved you Come rain or…
Come Sunday Lord, dear Lord I've loved, God almighty God of love, please…
Come To Baby Do I took a choo-choo-choo-choo Fast as I could take a choo-cho…
Cotton Come on, wail Wail, cotton tail Benny Webster, come on and b…
Could It Be You I'm so blue I don't know what to do All day…
Creole Love Call When I'm calling you Will you answer too? That means I offe…
Dancer In Love When the little blue bird who has never said a…
Dancers in Love 1 Every night in dream I hold you close in my…
Dancing in the Dark Dancin' in the dark till the tune ends We're dancin' in…
danke schoen Danke schoen, darling, Danke schoen, Thank you for all the j…
David Danced Oh, Lord, dear Lord above, God almighty God of love, please,…
Day Dream Funny the way I feel now Can't keep my feet on…
Day in Day in, day out That same old voodoo follows me about That…
Day-Dream Funny the way I feel now Can't keep my feet on…
Daydream Funny the way I feel now Can't keep my feet on…
days of wine and roses The days of wine and roses laugh and run away…
Dear Old Southland Dear old Southland I hear you calling me. And I long…
Deep Night Deep night, stars in the sky above Moonlight, lighting our p…
Deep Purple Woo, Wo-o-oo-wo-wo, Wo-o-oo-wo-wo, Wo-o-oo-wo-wo When the…
Diga Diga Diga Zulu man is feelin' blue Gear his heart beat a little…
Dimuendo in Blue There is a gay Lady in blue Haunting my dreams all…
Dinah Carolina Gave me Dinah; I'm the proudest one Beneath the…
Do Nothin Till You Hear From Me Someone told someone and someone told you But they wouldn't …
Doin The New Low Down It isn't alcohol no yaller gal at all thrills me…
Don't Be That Way April skies are in your eyes But, darling, don't be blue Do…
Don't Blame Me Ever since the lucky night I found you I've hung around…
Don't Get Around Anymore Missed the Saturday dance Heard they crowded the floor Could…
Don't Get Around Much Any More When I'm not playing solitaire I take a book down from…
Don't Get Around Much Anymore Missed the Saturday dance Heard they crowded the floor Could…
Don't Get Around Much More Anymore Missed the Saturday dance Heard they crowded the floor Cou…
Don't Get Round Much Anymore Missed the Saturday dance Heard they crowded the floor Could…
Don't Take Your Love From Me Tear a star from out the sky And the sky feels…
Don't Worry 'Bout Me Don't worry 'bout me I'll get along Forget about me Just be …
Don't You Know I Care Don't you know I care Or don't you care to…
Don't You Know I Care (Take 2) Don't you know i care or don't you care to know? if…
Dont Mean A Thing Wah-dah-doo Wah-dah-doo Wah-dah-doo, dah-dah-doo, dah-dah-do…
Dont You Know I Care Don't you know I care Or don't you care to…
Don`T Get Around Much Anymore Missed the Saturday dance Heard they crowded the floor Could…
Drag You're "hep" to what's buzzin', cousin; You're up on what's …
Dream Blues You ain't never been blue; no, no, no, You ain't…
Drop me off at harlem Drop me off in Harlem, Any place in Harlem, There's someone …
Duke Ellington's Introduction В ночном кафе играют скрипки Поет, как девушка, рояль И ярко…
Duke Loves You Madly Love you madly Right or wrong Sounds like a lyric of a…
Duke's In Bed My heart is heavy as lead Because the blues has done…
Duke's Place Baby, take me down to Duke's Place Wildest box in town…
Early Autumn When an early autumn walks the land and chills the…
East St. Louis I hate to see that evening sun go down I hate…
Ellington Duke: It Don'T Mean A Thing Wah-dah-doo Wah-dah-doo Wah-dah-doo, dah-dah-doo, dah-dah-do…
Ellington Greeting Into I Let A Song Go Out Of My Heart I let a song go out of my heart It was…
Embraceable You Embrace me, my sweet embraceable you! Embrace me, you irrepl…
Every Hour On the Hour I'm so blue I don't know what to do All day…
Everything but You You left me a horse from Texas A house with installments…
Everything I Love The very thought of you makes my heart sing Like an…
and many more tracks by Duke Ellington.
The lyrics are frequently found in the comments by searching or by filtering for lyric videos
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Jan Procházka
on Ducky Wucky
Doris Day