Record of the Day: Duke Ellington, “The Great Paris Concert”

Duke Ellington
“The Great Paris Concert” (2 CD Atlantic Jazz 304-2)

Anyone who has seen the documentary “Memories of Duke” made in 1968 by Gary Keys will have been impressed by the physical stamina of the members of Duke Ellington’s band; already at an advanced age they would grind out concerts without interruption, often with two performances a day, to immediately leave again and reach another city (after exhausting bus journeys) and start all over again, like a group of schoolchildren forced to a perpetual trip through the countries of the world.
What is surprising is how this very tiring work routine did not particularly affect the musical level of the orchestra; naturally there were evenings when things went wrong, but in general once on stage the musicians managed to give the best of themselves and sometimes, as in this masterpiece recorded in 1963 at the Olympia in Paris, to far exceed their standard.

Paris had always been a city beloved by Ellington; he had made his debut there in 1933 at the Salle Pleyel and had returned there ever since.
regularly with the band, also to compose incidental music for the theater and make radio recordings. The warmth shown to him by the French public pushed Duke to spur on the thoroughbreds who played in his orchestra even more than usual, and his piano also appeared even more dazzling and full of ideas. This CD manages to capture the boiling atmosphere of those Parisian evenings thanks also to a recording of excellent quality.

The audience goes into ecstasy from the opening “Kinda Dukish”, followed by a blazing “Rockin’ in Rhythm” that announces a truly special evening. From that moment on, for an hour and a half Duke sails through numerous titles from his catalog without letting go for a moment. Excellent solos and breathtaking ensemble passages are the common denominator of this album that on the tireless rhythm of Ernie Shepard (double bass) and Sam Woodyard (drums) sees titles such as “Concerto for Cootie”, “Happy Go-Lucky Local”, “All of Me”, “Perdido”, “The Star-Crossed Lovers” parade.

It is very interesting to listen to the rarely performed “Suite Thursday”, but the concert’s high point is reached in the evocative fresco of colors that characterizes “Tone Parallel to Harlem”, originally composed in 1950 for Arturo Toscanini’s NBC Symphony.

Carlo Boccadoro, composer and conductor, was born in Macerata in 1963. He lives and works in Milan. He collaborates with soloists and orchestras in different parts of the world. He is the author of numerous books on musical subjects.

This text is taken from “Lunario della musica: Un disco per ogni giorno dell’anno” published by Einaudi, courtesy of the author and the publisher.