Album Reviews

The big band era was over and Duke Ellington was past his most creative years by the time this set was recorded, but the year was 1960 and no doubt the art of recording was reaching a pinnacle. If you have any doubts, check out this Classic reissue cut from the three track original.

Audiophiles are dumped on for chasing sound over music, but sometimes that hunt can lead to rich new veins of musical discovery.

I found an original copy of this record at a garage sale filled with big band LPs, about which I knew very little. I was into be-bop and modern jazz but not this kind of stuff, or so I thought, because I'd been confusing big band with “dance band” music, although the two can be synonymous.

There was a wall of albums like this one, as I remember it, and I was disappointed that I'd found nothing of interest, but I was at the sale and the records were a buck each and this was a Columbia “6 eye” Lp vintage early '60s, so I bought it for what I figured would be spectacular sound.

Boy, was it ever! But more importantly, I loved the music. Was I pissed that I'd probably passed over a treasure trove of similar records? You betcha! But I had this one and the hunt was on. Now I've got a big collection of The Duke, going back to the fabulous sounding monos of the early '50's and of course CDs from The Duke's pre-LP era period, arguably his most creative and exciting, sound quality be damned. Sometimes being a sound fanatic can lead to musical adventures.

This set recorded at CBS's fabled 30th street studio features a great Duke band including the freight train sax section of Johnny Hodges, Harry Carney, Paul Gonzalves, Jimmy Hamilton and Russell Procope, plus a fabulous trumpet section led by Ray Nance, and the awesome Sam Woodyard on drums.

Though it's called Piano in the Background, that's hardly the case, as Ellington plays all over the 10 tracks. He lets the horns do most of the talking however. The album begins and ends with train songs. The opener, “Happy Go Lucky Local,” written in 1946, was lifted for an early rock and roll song-I forget which-but if you're of a certain vintage, you'll immediately recognize the riff even if you don't know the Duke song.

Closing out the set is “Take the A Train, written by Billy Strayhorn, which you know whether you know it or not. In between are other Duke standards like “It Don't Mean a Thing (If it Ain't Got That Swing),” and “Perdido.”

The album is a great intro to Ellington's music, though it's not prime Duke, and the recording will knock your shoes and socks off. This reissue kills the original in most every way, but if your system is bright, this disc will sound bright. It is not bright sounding, however, just open, extended, spacious and airy as hell. Saxes left, trumpets right, Sam Woodyard, bassist Aaron Bell and The Duke filling the center, make for a mighty spacious sound, with plenty of the cavernous 30th Street Studio in the mix. Lots of depth, dynamic excitement and everything you'd want on a great reissue. They don't make them like this anymore. Well, thanks to Classic Records, they do. They just can't make new recordings like this anymore and what a shame that is. I think you'll love this.