What did Ellington listen to?

[hopkins]

Just read Lewis Porter’s latest newsletter mentioning record purchases of some artists at the Colony record shop:

https://lewisporter.substack.com/?utm_campaign=pub&utm_medium=web

Delius is mentioned as an Ellington favorite (this is also documented elswhere)

I have always wondered what Ellington listened to at home. Do we have an idea of what his record collection contained?

Edited May 14, 2023 by hopkins

[Teasing the Korean]

He must have listened to Grieg and Tchaikovsky, if for no other reason than to make his own albums of their music.

[BillF]

3 hours ago, hopkins said:

 

I have always wondered what Ellington listened to at home. 

"Duke's Place"? 🙂

[JSngry]

He had his band of players to listen to and be inspired by! 

[hopkins]

All good guesses, and I assume there's little information out there. Coleman Hawkins only listened to classical at home. I read somewhere that Ben Webster in Europe had tapes of early jazz piano (Fats, etc). I was just curious if there were any info out there about Ellington. Also, he spend a lot of time on the road...

Edited May 14, 2023 by hopkins

[Dub Modal]

A lot of time on the road with Carney driving. They probably listened to a lot of radio. 

[BillF]

3 hours ago, hopkins said:

All good guesses, and I assume there's little information out there. Coleman Hawkins only listened to classical at home. I read somewhere that Ben Webster in Europe had tapes of early jazz piano (Fats, etc). I was just curious if there were any info out there about Ellington. Also, he spend a lot of time on the road...

Yes, re Hawkins, I recall reading that someone calling him on the phone could hear opera playing.

[Teasing the Korean]

I think he listened to Les Baxter's Le Sacre du Sauvage and Jungle Jazz, as his Afro Bossa album features some distinctive Baxter-esque devices.

[Gheorghe]

uh, hard to say, I always knew that MINGUS listened a lot to Ellington, but never considered who Ellington was listenin´ to. Hip as he must have been he listend to those who came after him. He was very much ahead of his time.  He was very aware of Bird, Monk , Bud, Miles, Trane, Mingus , that was Duke. 

[hopkins]

Vis a vis Monk, I forget where I recently read this... one of his musicians (Nance?) was playing Monk in his train compartment on his portable record player, Duke walked and asked who is playing, and commented: "he sounds like me"...

Found it: https://www.quora.com/What-did-Duke-Ellington-think-of-Thelonious-Monk

Edited May 15, 2023 by hopkins

[optatio]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Nutcracker_Suite_(Duke_Ellington_album) 

[John L]

Given that Duke Ellington himself made so many of his own studio recordings of his bands, I imagine that he must have spent some time in the post-war years listening to these recordings.  

 

[Dub Modal]

Per a Johnny Hodges interview snippet I just read, Johnny says Duke was influenced by Willie Smith, James Johnson and Fats Waller. So I'm guessing he listened to a lot of these guys' records at some point. 

[hopkins]

3 hours ago, Dub Modal said:

Per a Johnny Hodges interview snippet I just read, Johnny says Duke was influenced by Willie Smith, James Johnson and Fats Waller. So I'm guessing he listened to a lot of these guys' records at some point. 

Yes, Ellington even played "Carolina Shout" for Johnson. His "Portrait of the Lion" is testimony of his admiration for Smith.

Dance also quotes Ellington as having said of Bechet's 1921 recording of "I'm Coming, Virginia" as "the greatest thing I ever heard in my life...it knocked me out". 

[sgcim]

On 5/14/2023 at 7:16 AM, hopkins said:

Just read Lewis Porter’s latest newsletter mentioning record purchases of some artists at the Colony record shop:

https://lewisporter.substack.com/?utm_campaign=pub&utm_medium=web

Delius is mentioned as an Ellington favorite (this is also documented elswhere)

I have always wondered what Ellington listened to at home. Do we have an idea of what his record collection contained?

A doctoral student I was talking to recently said Duke listened to some of the Neo-Classical composers, and used some of their ideas in his music.

Speaking of Delius, there was a good story about Duke, Delius and Percy Grainger.

Grainger did a presentation at one of the music colleges he taught at (Julliard?), and he announced that he was going to present a concert of music by the greatest living composer, but Delius wasn't available, so he had to get the second greatest living composer, Duke Ellington. Duke and his band gave them a concert they'd never forget.