List of top 30 shellac records by the Duke Ellington Orchestra
This list contains the title and composer (s) of the pieces, date of recording, date of entry into the charts, highest position and length of stay in the charts. The presetting takes place according to the entry date in the charts. It can also be sorted by title and label. |
The list of top 30 shellac records by the Duke Ellington Orchestra includes all pieces by the orchestra that hit the United States charts ( Top 30 ) between 1927 ( East St. Louis Toodle-Oo ) and 1953 (Boo-Dah) , including three number one hits between 1930 and 1938. For his book Pop Memories 1890-1954, the music historian Joel Whitburn evaluated various hit parades in parallel, including sheet music sales, radio broadcasts, official record label sales lists and charts from the industry journal Variety . The data does not only refer to Billboard magazine , which had only published a weekly hit parade since late 1935 / early 1936.
In addition to pure jazz tracks, “commercial” recordings were also sold on shellac records, namely the tracks accepted by the general public. Because these were probably the most important medium in and next to radio; they made the musicians known, gave them the chance for further recordings and helped them to generate income. ”In the case of Duke Ellington's orchestra , it was the resulting royalties that ensured the continued existence of the in the later times of the“ big band's death ” Orchestra. The chronological list also illustrates “the gradual change in taste towards more jazz and then the abandonment of jazz-oriented music over the years” and “the great importance of jazz musicians for all popular music, especially that of the 1930s and 1940s (...) Quite a few of the songs from films and musicals were successful in the charts only because of them and became evergreens because of the jazz and swing versions ”.
Title, composer (s) | Label, number | Date of recording | Date of entry into the chart | Highest position | Weeks | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
East St. Louis Toodle-Oo (Ellington) |
Columbia 953 |
March 14, 1927 | July 30, 1927 | 10 | 4th | Duke Ellington's first hit was famous for the growling effects of Bubber Miley and "Tricky Sam" Nanton . B-side was "Hop Head". |
Black and Tan Fantasy (Ellington) |
Victor Records 21137 |
Oct 26, 1927 | May 3, 1928 | 15th | 3 |
After the first recording on April 7, 1928 for Brunswick, only the second version for Victor entered the charts. B-side was "Hop Head". |
Creole Love Call (Ellington) |
Victor 21137 |
Oct 26, 1927 | May 5, 1928 | 19th | 1 | The piece was coupled with "The Blues I Love to Sing" on the 78. Adelaide Hall sang in both pieces . The Creole Love Call then became a long-lasting Ellington classic. Parts of the composition build on King Oliver's "Camp Meeting Blues". |
Doin 'the New Low Down (Fields - McHugh) |
Okeh 8602 |
July 10, 1928 | Nov 24, 1928 | 20th | 1 | The dancer Bill Robinson presented the song of the songwriting team Dorothy Fields and Jimmy McHugh in the revue Blackbirds of 1928 ; The singer here is Irving Mills . |
Diga Diga Doo (Fields - McHugh) |
Okeh 8602 |
July 10, 1928 | Dec. 1, 1928 | 17th | 1 | Another song from the revue Blackbirds of 1928 . The song appeared on Okeh under the pseudonym "The Harlem Footwarmers". |
The Mooche (Ellington) |
Okeh 8623 |
Oct. 1, 1928 | December 29, 1928 | 16 | 2 | The piece was named after a slow dance of time; In 1930 Ellington took him on again. “Another jungle number that should have a long life. (…) The Mooche shows again the characteristics of Ellington's method: the key shift, the change between major and minor, the sharp contrast in the colors as the music moves through the band. ”B-side was“ Hot and Bothered ”. |
Three Little Words (Kalmar - Ruby) |
Victor 22528 |
Aug 28, 1930 | Oct 18, 1930 | 1 | 13 | Ellington's first number 1 hit; he stayed in this position for three weeks. The vocals are from Bing Crosby and his Rhythm Boys . The piece was also known through the film Check and Double Check , in which the orchestra played. |
Ring Dem Bells (Mills - Ellington) |
Victor 22528 |
Aug 26, 1930 | Nov 29, 1930 | 17th | 1 | Another song from the movie Check and Double Check . Cootie Williams can be heard as a scat singer . "The piece deserves our interest through the skillful use of call and answer , which makes the simple melody appear rhythmically much more complex than if it were just standing there alone." |
Blue Again (Fields - McHugh) |
Victor 22603 |
Nov 28, 1930 | Feb. 7, 1931 | 12 | 2 | A hit known from the Ipanema Troubadours , with Sid Gary as the singer. On the B-side was "To Whom It May Concern," a recording by Bert Lown's Biltmore Hotel Orchestra. |
Mood Indigo (Ellington) |
Victor 22587 |
Dec 10, 1930 | Feb 14, 1931 | 3 | 10 |
The piece was recorded a year earlier by Ellington as "Dreamy Blues". The soloists here are Arthur Whetsol (tp) and Barney Bigard (cl). "Ellington's first real hit." B-side was "When a Black Man's Blue". |
Rockin 'in Rhythm (Mills - Ellington) |
Brunswick 6038 |
Jan. 14, 1931 | March 14, 1931 | 19th | 1 | The second recording of the instrumental piece based on a theme by Harry Carney . It became one of the most famous Ellington compositions, in which again the origin of the parts is difficult to determine. B-side was "Twelfth Street Rag". |
Creole Rhapsody I / II (Ellington) |
Brunswick 6093 |
Jan. 16, 1931 | July 18, 1931 | 18th | 2 | The first "serious" and lengthy piece on the charts by Ellington and "crucial to his career because it was taken as proof by those who saw jazz as a potential art form that Ellington was a real composer." |
Limehouse Blues (Furber - Braham) |
Victor 22743 |
June 16, 1931 | 22 Aug 1931 | 13 | 3 |
A melody from an English musical supposedly introduced by the Califormia Rambers and Red Nichols , which became the jazz standard through the Ellington version . "Limehouse" is a district of Stepney in the London port area on the north Thames. |
It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing) (Ellington) |
Brunswick 6265 |
Feb 2, 1932 | Feb. 27, 1932 | 6th | 6th | Ellington's 14th track became the model for the emerging swing era . The singer is Ivie Anderson , soloists are Tricky Sam Nanton , Johnny Hodges , Harry Carney and the band leader. |
Creole Rhapsody I / II (Ellington) |
Victor 36049 |
July 11, 1931 | March 19, 1931 | 6th | 6th | The second recording of the longer piece; the soloists are Arthur Whetsol, Cootie Williams, Tricky Sam Nanton, Johnny Hodges, Barney Bigard and Ellington. The excess length was created "through a real multi-part composition with a program character that extends the 32-bar song scheme." |
Rose Room (In Sunny Roseland) (Williams / Hickman) |
Brunswick 6265 |
Feb 11, 1932 | March 26, 1932 | 17th | 1 | The piece was dedicated to the dance hall of the St. Frances Hotel in San Francisco. The band leader Art Hickman had composed it in 1917. Fletcher Henderson , Artie Shaw and Benny Goodman soon added it to their repertoires. The harmonies were the basis for Ellington's composition " In a Mellotone ". |
Moon Over Dixie (Mills - Koehler - Ellington) | Brunswick 6317 |
Feb 2, 1932 | June 18, 1932 | 14th | 3 |
A daily hit with drummer Sonny Greer as singer. Ted Koehler wrote the text . B-side was "Baby When You Ain't There." |
Blue Ramble (Ellington) |
Brunswick 6336 |
May 18, 1932 | July 9, 1932 | 16 | 3 | The Ellington composition was coupled with the standard "Sheik of Araby"; The soloists on this jungle style instrumental piece were Lawrence Brown , Arthur Whetsol and Cootie Williams. |
Drop Me Off in Harlem (Ellington) |
Brunswick 6527 |
Feb. 17, 1933 | May 6, 1933 | 17th | 3 | The melodic piece was only recorded this once by Ellington. Only in 1957 did Ella Fitzgerald record with the Ellington Orchestra. B-side was "Slippery Horn." |
Sophisticated Lady (Parish - Mills - Ellington) |
Brunswick 6600 |
May 16, 1933 | May 27, 1933 | 3 | 16 | On the back was the subsequent hit "Stormy Weather". Ellington had previously recorded the piece at the "Drop Me Off in Harlem" session for Columbia; However, the Brunswick version was successful in the charts. B-side was "Stormy Weather." |
I'm Satisfied (Ellington) |
Brunswick 6638 |
Aug 15, 1933 | Sep 2 1933 | 11 | 3 | Recorded on his return from the European tour. The singer is Ivie Anderson. B-side was "Jive Stomp." |
In the Shade of the Old Apple Tree (Williams - Van Alstyne) |
Brunswick 6646 |
Aug 15, 1933 | Sep 30 1933 | 13 | 2 | A long forgotten song from 1905; The soloists are Freddy Jenkins (tp), Joe Nanton (tb), Johnny Hodges (as) and Barney Bigard (cl). |
Saturday Night Function (Bigard - Ellington) |
Columbia 2832 |
May 28, 1929 | Nov 25, 1933 | 14th | 2 | A record officially released under the name of the drummer Sonny Greer , with which Ellington wanted to make him better known for his orchestra. |
Daybreak Express (Ellington) |
Victor 24501 |
Dec. 4, 1933 | Feb. 17, 1934 | 10 | 7th | “It was with Daybreak Express that Ellington experimented for the first time on the harmonies of Tiger Rag and constructed a perfect acoustic impression of a moving train.” “Duke used the railway effect in several of his pieces, (…) but Daybreak Express is a masterpiece of this genre. (...) The piece is of course program music, a show piece that demonstrates Ellington's love for pure sound. ”The recording was used in 1953 as the soundtrack for a short film of the same title. |
Cocktails for Two (Johnston - Coslow) |
Victor 24617 |
Apr 12, 1934 | May 5, 1934 | 1 | 15th | Second number 1 hit, which remained in this position for five weeks, also became Ellington's 25th successful record. The song was featured in the film musical Murder at the Vanities by Carl Brisson and then sung in the film musical She Loves Me Not by Miriam Hopkins. Spike Jones recorded a joke version in 1941. |
Moonglow ( Hudson - Venuti - De Lange ) |
Brunswick 6987 |
Sep 12 1934 | Oct 6, 1934 | 2 | 16 | Versions of this piece by four performers were noted in the charts; Ellington's version stayed at # 2 for two weeks. In 1936 Benny Goodman had a hit with it. |
(In My) Solitude (Ellington) |
Brunswick 6987 |
Sep 12 1934 | Oct. 27, 1934 | 2 | 16 | The evergreen in the Ellington repertoire hit the charts in the same year in a version by the Mills Brothers . The song was then voted best song of the year by the ASCAP . |
Saddest Tale (Ellington) |
Brunswick 7310 |
Sep 12 1934 | Nov 17, 1934 | 9 | 3 | Soloists on this piece include Ellington Barney Bigard, Joe Nanton, Johnny Hodges, Cootie Williams and Harry Carney on bass clarinet . B-side was "Jump'n'bout Rhythm." |
Merry-Go-Round (Mills - Ellington) |
Brunswick 7440 |
Apr 30, 1935 | June 8, 1935 | 6th | 5 | A new recording of the 1933 version that did not hit the charts at the time. Ellington brought in two bassists for the recording, Hayes Alvis and Billy Taylor . It is one of the "excellent examples of Duke's ability to convert a motorized noise or even the feeling of a carousel ride into music." |
In a Sentimental Mood (Ellington) |
Brunswick 7461 |
Apr 30, 1935 | July 13, 1935 | 14th | 3 | The soloists on this Ellington evergreen were Otto Hardwicke , Harry Carney (ss), Rex Stewart (cor), Lawrence Brown (tb). B-side was "Showboat Shuffle." |
Accent on Youth (Seymor - Lawnhurst) |
Brunswick 7514 |
Aug 19, 1935 | 21 Sep 1935 | 6th | 7th | The title song of the film of the same name. Tenor saxophonist Ben Webster is part of the orchestra's recording for the first time; The soloist is Johnny Hodges . B-side was "Truckin '." |
Cotton (Koehler - Bloom) |
Brunswick 7526 |
Aug 19, 1935 | Oct 12, 1935 | 4th | 6th | A song from the Cotton Club Parade in 1935 . It wasn't until March 1936 that Ellington had a hit in the charts. B-side was "Margie". |
Isn't Love the Strangest Thing? (Benny Davis - J. Fred Coots ) |
Brunswick 7625 |
Feb. 27, 1936 | March 28, 1936 | 12 | 3 | The only version of the piece that made it to the charts. The singer is Ivie Anderson. Ellington biographer Hans Ruland counts it among the "harmless commercial titles that live mainly from Ivie Anderson's charm." B-side was "That Never to Be Forgotten Night". |
Love Is Like a Cigarette (Jerome - Kent) |
Brunswick 7627 |
Feb. 28, 1936 | Apr 4, 1936 | 8th | 10 | Ellington had success with the old song from the Broadway musical Algeria (1908); There were no other notable jazz recordings of the piece. His biographer James Lincoln Collier mentions the "harmless", "hideously commercial title" that in the years after his mother's death "his vigor was so destroyed that his productivity fell sharply". In the first twelve months after her death, he recorded only 16 tracks, including "Isn't Love is the Strangest Thing?" And "Love Is Like a Cigarette". |
Clarinet Lament (Barney's Concerto) (Ellington - Bigard) |
Brunswick 7650 |
Feb. 27, 1936 | May 9, 1936 | 12 | 3 |
An original written especially for the band by Ellington and a feature for clarinetist Barney Bigard. Here “once again Bigard's wonderfully melodious, intertwined playing, whose virtuosity never looked suspicious for a show, comes into its own.” B-side was “Echoes of Harlem” ´. |
Echoes of Harlem (Cootie's Concerto) (Ellington) |
Brunswick 7650 |
Feb. 27, 1936 | May 16, 1936 | 19th | 1 | Another feature piece for an Ellington soloist, which was also recorded in versions by other trumpeters such as Roy Eldridge and Jonah Jones as well as several times by Cootie Williams. |
Oh babe Maybe Someday (Ellington) |
Brunswick 7667 |
Apr 9, 1936 | June 6, 1936 | 8th | 5 | Despite the chart success, the piece had no further recordings by the Ellington Orchestra. B-side was “Monopoly Swing” by the Will Hudson Orchestra. |
Jazz Lips (Ellington) |
Bluebird 6396 |
Nov 14, 1929 | June 20, 1936 | 20th | 1 | The piece is not identical to the song of the same name by Lil Hardin , which Louis Armstrong's Hot Five recorded in 1926. Soloists are Cootie Williams (tp) and Tricky Sam Nanton (tb). B-side was "Sloppy Joe". |
Yearning for Love (Lawrence's Concerto) (Mills - Mitchell - Parish - Ellington) |
Brunswick 7752 |
Feb. 28, 1936 | Oct 31, 1936 | 16 | 1 | This was another composition with which Ellington highlighted one of his musicians, this time his trombonist Lawrence Brown , which, however, was not very well received at the time, "when Dorsey and Teagarden rode this Sweet mesh ...". Another hit for the Ellington Orchestra did not follow until May 1937. |
The New East St. Louis Toodle-Oo (Ellington - Miley) |
Master 101 |
March 5, 1937 | May 1, 1937 | 16 | 2 | A new recording of his first signature tune from 1927. Soloists are cootie Williams and Barney Bigard. B-side was "I've Got to Be a Rug Cutter". |
There's a Lull in My Life (Gordon - Warren) |
Master 117 |
Apr 9, 1937 | May 22, 1937 | 18th | 1 | A song from the musical Wake Up and Live (1937); In the jazz area, Teddy Wilson also hit the charts with this song. B-side was "It's Swell on You". |
Scattin 'at the Kit-Kat (Mills - Ellington) |
Master 123 |
March 5, 1937 | June 5, 1937 | 17th | 1 | The title referred to the Kit-Kat club in London-Haymarket, which Ellington and his musicians had often visited on their European tour in 1933. B-side was "New Birmingham Breakdown". |
Caravan (Ellington - Tizol) |
Master 131 |
May 20, 1937 | July 3, 1937 | 4th | 18th | One of Ellington's “Latin” titles such as “Bakiff”, “Moon Over Cava” or “Moonlight Fiesta”, which owes its success mainly to the handwriting of Juan Tizol , who also plays a smooth trombone solo. "Caravan" was one of the titles that Ellington kept constantly in the repertoire and which became one of the most famous jazz standards . In 1949, Billy Eckstine had the next hit with "Caravan". |
All God's Chillun Got Rhythm (Kahn - Kaper - Jurman) |
Master 137 |
June 8, 1937 | July 31, 1937 | 14th | 2 | The Bronislau Kaper song came from the Marx Brothers film A Day at the Races (1937). On the same day, another recording of the song for the Variety label with Ivie Anderson and Rex Stewart, Harry Carney and Hayes Alvis was made under the band name Ivie Anderson & Her Boys from Dixie . Ivie had also presented the song in the film with Harpo Marx . B-side was "Alabama Home". |
Azure (Mills - Ellington) |
Master131 | May 14, 1937 | Aug 21, 1937 | 13 | 4th | Although there were other recordings by Cab Calloway , JC Heard , Les Brown and others, only the original version made it onto the charts. The arranger was Joe Lippman . "Performed cautiously by Bigard together with Carney on bass clarinet in a sad Ellington mood." |
Harmony in Harlem (Mills - Ellington - Hodges) |
Brunswick 8044 |
Sep 20 1937 | Feb 12, 1938 | 15th | 2 | Another feature piece Ellington featured soloists, this time Cootie Williams and Johnny Hodges. There were later recordings by Charlie Barnet and in 1940 by an all-star band around Benny Carter called The Quintones . |
If You Were in My Place (Nemo - Mills - Ellington) |
Brunswick 8093 |
Feb. 24, 1938 | March 19, 1938 | 10 | 3 | Only Ellington's original made it onto the charts, although there were other versions of Jimmy Dorsey (with June Richmond ) and Mildred Bailey . The band singer is again Ivie Anderson. |
I Let a Song Go Out of My Heart (Nemo - Richmond - Mills - Ellington) |
Brunswick 8108 |
March 3, 1938 | March 26, 1938 | 1 | 19th | The third number one hit by the Ellington Orchestra, which stayed at the top for three weeks. Instrumental number with a memorable passage at the beginning of the piece with two saxophones in a common chorus ; Harry Carney's baritone saxophone takes over the main melody; the alto saxophones by Hodges / Carney provide the accompaniment. The following year, the song made the Top 20 in five versions : by Ellington, Goodman, Mildred Bailey, Hot Lips Page and Connee Boswell . Characterized by that “indescribable Ellington mood, a mixture of glamor and sadness.” B-side was “The Gal from Joe's”. |
The Gal from Joe’s (Mills - Ellington) |
Brunswick 8108 |
Feb. 2, 1938 | Apr 30, 1938 | 20th | 1 | The lyrical alto saxophone by Johnny Hodges starts after the 1-2-3-4 opening with phrases that set themselves apart from the wah-wah of the brass. A year later, Charlie Barnet made it into the top 20 again with the piece . |
Lambeth Walk (Furber - Gay) |
Brunswick 8204 |
4th Sep 1938 | Sep 10 1938 | 7th | 7th | A song from the English theater musical Me and My Girl (1938) that Ellington made a hit of the day. Al Donahue and Russ Morgan also made hits in the top 20 . |
Prelude to a Kiss (Gordon - Mills - Ellington) |
Brunswick 8204 |
Aug 9, 1938 | Oct. 29, 1938 | 18th | 8th | Another piece from the “Lambeth Walk” session that became a classic in the Ellington repertoire. A second take, recorded on the same session, was released on Columbia. Later there were also vocal versions of the piece by Billie Holiday , Ella Fitzgerald , Sarah Vaughan and June Christy . Ellington was only able to place another hit in the charts in May 1940, probably also due to his European tour from April 1 to May 10, 1939. |
You, You, Darlin ' (Scholl - Jerome) |
Victor 26537 |
March 6, 1940 | May 11, 1940 | 28 | 1 | In April the sweet band leader Kay Kyser and shortly after Ellington Bob Crosby were in the charts with the daily hit. Herb Jeffries was the band singer here . B-side was "So Far, So Good". |
Ko-Ko (Ellington) |
Victor 26577 |
March 6, 1940 | June 1, 1940 | 25th | 1 | The classic by the Blanton-Webster band , now regarded as one of the most remarkable tracks in the Ellington repertoire, only made it to number 25 on the charts for a week. The soloists on this recording were Juan Tizol in the first chorus and Tricky Sam Nanton. There were no recordings of other musicians of "Ko-Ko" in the swing era. The Ellington composition should not be confused with Charlie Parker 's 1945 piece of the same name . B-side of "Ko-Ko" was "Conga Brava". |
At a Dixie Roadside Diner (Leslie - Burke) |
Victor 26719 |
May 28, 1940 | 21 Sep 1940 | 27 | 1 | The hit recorded in Chicago was only recorded by the Ellington Orchestra and Charlie Barnet . B-side was "The Greatest Mistake". |
Sepia Panorama (Ellington) |
Victor 26731 |
July 24, 1940 | Nov 2, 1940 | 24 | 1 | “Sepia Panorama” was a pure jazz piece and one of Ellington's many “color compositions”. The soloists were bassist Jimmy Blanton , Ellington himself and Ben Webster. The piece was not recorded by any other musicians. |
Flamingo (Grouya - Anderson) |
Victor 27326 |
Dec 28, 1940 | June 14, 1941 | 11 | 4th | This song is mostly associated with Earl Bostic's 1951 rhythm and blues version ; The Ellington Orchestra had the first success with Herb Jeffries as the band singer. Only in Ellington's recording, which was made in Chicago, was the song by Edmund Anderson (lyrics) and Ted Grouya noted in the charts. It was also recorded by Will Bradley , Bob Crosby , Gene Krupa and Jimmie Lunceford . |
Take the "A" Train ( Billy Strayhorn ) |
Victor 27380 |
Feb 15, 1941 | July 26, 1941 | 11 | 7th | Among the first numbers that the newly added arranger Billy Strayhorn wrote was his best-known composition " Take the" A "Train" , which then became the band's signature melody. The title came from the fact that the city of New York added the "D" line to its subway system in the northern parts of the city, which turned into the Bronx , so that to get to Harlem , where Ellington performed, one no longer takes any train Could take north. Strayhorn now had to thank for taking line "A". |
I Got It Bad and That Ain't Good (Ellington - Webster) |
Victor 27531 |
June 26, 1941 | Oct 11, 1941 | 13 | 3 | The song, sung by Ivie Anderson, was part of the Ellington musical Jump for Joy , which played for several months in Los Angeles but never hit Broadway . The record recording was also made in Hollywood with the same line-up as “Take the“ A ”Train”. B-side was “Chocolate Shake,” sung by Ivy Anderson. |
Don't Get Around Much Anymore (Ellington) |
Victor 26610 |
May 4th 1940 | May 1, 1943 | 8th | 14th | After the recording ban , the composition recorded as “Never No Lament” appeared after three years with a new title and was a success. The piece highlights Johnny Hodges and Cootie Williams with his growling trumpet. B-side was “Cotton Tail”. The title also reached # 1 on the Harlem Hit Parade in 1943 . |
Perdido (Tizol) |
Victor 27880 |
Jan. 21, 1942 | May 22, 1943 | 21st | 1 | The number recorded in Chicago the year before became a jazz classic, despite a greater success in the charts, shaped by the Latin elements of the Puerto Rican valve trombonist Juan Tizol . Due to the recording ban there were initially no further recordings of this piece by other artists. B-side was "Rain Check." |
Take the "A" Train (Strayhorn) |
Victor 27380 |
Feb 15, 1941 | July 3, 1943 | 19th | 1 | For the second time, Ellington's signature tune hit the charts and was in the top 20 for a total of eight weeks . Ray Nance's first trumpet solo in the Strayhorn number also contributed to the success. B-side was "The Sidewalks of New York". |
Bojangles (A Portrait of Bill Robinson) (Ellington) |
Victor 26644 |
May 28, 1940 | Aug 14, 1943 | 19th | 1 | the piece, which was recorded in Chicago in 1940, is dedicated to the dancer Bill “Mr Bojangles” Robinson ; It is one of the series of musical portraits of artists that Ellington admired and composed over the years, such as the singer Florence Mills , the pianist Willie The Lion Smith , the variety star Bert Williams and just “Mr. Bojangles ". |
A Slip of the Lip (Can Sink a Ship) (Henderson - Ellington) |
Victor 1528 |
July 28, 1942 | Nov 6, 1943 | 19th | 1 | The piece, recorded in Chicago last year, was the first successful composition by his son Mercer , which he had written with the pianist Luther Henderson. Ellington took on Ray Nance (vocals). It was coupled with "Sentimental Lady", the orchestra's subsequent hit. The title also made it to # 1 on the Harlem Hit Parade in 1944 . |
Sentimental Lady (Ellington) |
Victor 1528 |
July 28, 1942 | Nov 13, 1943 | 19th | 1 | Ellington's 64th hit track was also released on V-Disc . The Count Basie Orchestra put him back on the charts in February 1945 as "I Didn't Know About You". The title also made it to # 1 on the Harlem Hit Parade in 1944. |
Do Nothing till You Hear from Me ( Bob Russell - Ellington) |
Victor 1547 |
March 15, 1940 | Jan. 22, 1944 | 10 | 6th | The piece, recorded around four years earlier in Chicago, is one of the two trumpet concerts, namely the “Concerto for Cootie”. The new title brought a current reference to the wartime and the situation of soldiers fighting in Europe and the Pacific. The piece hit the charts in three versions in 1944, in addition to the original by Ellington, by Woody Herman and by Stan Kenton , who had his first hit with it. |
Main Stem (Ellington) |
Victor 1556 | June 26, 1942 | March 25, 1944 | 23 | 1 | The piece, recorded two years earlier in Hollywood, appeared under several titles in Ellington's discography, as "Main Stem", "Altitude" or "On Becoming a Square". Then it took another six months until Ellington hit the charts with “I'm Beginning to See the Light”. |
I'm Beginning to See the Light (James - Ellington - Hodges - George) |
Victor 1618 |
Dec. 1, 1944 | Feb 3, 1945 | 6th | 12 | Duke Ellington's first hit recorded after the recording ban ended ; at the same time, he and co-composer Harry James were in the charts. In April 1945 Ella Fitzgerald followed with the Ink Spots . Now it took exactly a year until Ellington's next hit "Come to Baby, Do". The song reached # 4 on the Race Records charts in 1945 |
Come to Baby, Do (James - Miller) |
Victor 1748 |
Oct 8, 1945 | Feb. 2, 1946 | 13 | 1 | The hit also hit the charts in a version of Les Brown ; Georgie Auld , Nat King Cole and Jimmy Dorsey made further recordings of the piece . It was not until June 1953 that Ellington's next and penultimate chart hit “Satin Doll” in 1953 followed. |
Satin Doll (Mercer - Strayhorn - Ellington) |
Capitol 2458 |
Apr 6, 1953 | June 11, 1953 | 27 | 3 | The piece was created during Ellington's first session in Hollywood on his new Capitol label. Despite its little success in the charts, the title remained in the band's repertoire and became a jazz standard, comparable to the numbers "Lullaby of Birdland" by George Shearing or " Take Five " by the Dave Brubeck Quartet, which were written during this period . Earl Hines later claimed its authorship. |
Boo-Dah (Strayhorn) |
Capitol | Apr 9, 1953 | Nov 21, 1953 | 30th | 1 | The piece, written shortly after the "Satin Doll" session, was the Duke Ellington Orchestra's seventieth and final hit on the Billboard Top 30 charts since 1927. The title refers to the sound of the melody and was written by Billy Strayhorn during the Dancing events written by the Ellington Band. The soloists here are the trumpeter Ray Nance and the clarinetist Jimmy Hamilton . |
Individual evidence
- ↑ In addition, Whitburn lists from the late 1930s on a top 30, in the earlier years he only evaluated the 10-20 successful titles each week.
- ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak al am an ao ap aq ar as at au av aw ax ay az ba bb bc bd be bf bg bh bi bj bk Gerhard Klußmeier : Jazz in the Charts. Another view on jazz history. Liner notes and booklet for the 100 CD edition. Membrane International GmbH. ISBN 978-3-86735-062-4
- ↑ The basis for the list is Joel Whitburn's work Pop Memories 1890-1954 (Record Research Inc., Menomone Falls, Wisconsin, 1986), which lists the titles determined by the Billboard charts that were among the top 30 popular hits - calculated according to the Record sales, radio and jukebox use as well as the then largely unmanipulated hit parades. Compare Gerhard Klußmeier: Jazz in the Charts, p. 9.
- ^ AH Lawrence: Duke Ellington and His World (London: Routledge, 2001) p. 96 ISBN 0-415-93012-X
- ↑ a b c d e f James L. Collier: Duke Ellington. Genius of jazz . Ullstein, Berlin 1999, ISBN 3-548-35839-X
- ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l Hans Ruland Duke Ellington - His life, his music, his records , Oreos Verlag 1983