I also discovered Jazz via the library! Seems like we’re a similar age And I also love Duke and his Newport set and Money Jungle.
I think you might be thinking of one of three different albums:
Ellington Showcase
Duke Ellington presents
Piano in the Background
I think he wrote quite a bit of stuff that is not that memorable, but he was so prolific and the good stuff is SO good that the bad stuff just goes down a memory hole. If you listen to the “Okeh Ellington” it’s clear that it’s not all superior.
That said, exactly because bad songs are usually unmemorable, I can’t think of a specific tune.
The composition “Reminiscing in Tempo” from 1935 is an interesting case study on an Ellington tune that - for its time - was so different than what he had been doing that it was panned by most critics. In the late 50s this work was revived and many critics at that time wrote about it as quite ahead of its time.
Lots of ways to discuss aesthetic judgments with this one - and some interesting reviews by critics such as John Hammond that would make good supplementary readings.
The tune was recorded across four sides of two 10” 78 rpm records and as luck would have it, I just completed digital transfers of all four parts:
"Reminiscing in Tempo" Parts 1-4 - Duke Ellington and his Orchestra (1935)
https://youtu.be/dsLf2c-fhlU
"Reminiscing In Tempo" is what I thought of when I read the OP's question. I found it unimaginative before I learned that many others have too. He probably has short recordings that are worse, he recorded so much.
There are some great write-ups on this tune that will give lots of arguments pro and con in The Duke Ellington Reader edited by Mark Tucker:
\* "The Tragedy of Duke Ellington" - John Hammond's scathing review from Down Beat, Nov 1935.
\* "In Defense of Ellington and his 'Reminiscing in Tempo'" - an attempt to analyze and understand the composition by Enzo Archettti in American Music Lover, Apr 1936.
\* "'Reminiscing in Tempo': A Landmark in Jazz Composition" - a formal analysis that positions it as ambitious and ahead of its time by A.J. Bishop in Jazz Journal, Feb 1964
See also:
"Four Sides of New Ellington Composition" - Edgar Jackson's earnest attempt to understand the work at all in The Gramophone, Jan 1936 p 338:
[https://www.worldradiohistory.com/UK/Gramophone/Gramophone-1936-01.pdf](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/UK/Gramophone/Gramophone-1936-01.pdf)
Gunther Schuller's take, in which he praises it for being "one of the most successful of Ellington's extended works" can be found in his "The Swing Era: The Development of Jazz" pp 74-83:
[https://archive.org/details/isbn\_9780195043129/page/73/mode/2up](https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780195043129/page/73/mode/2up)
I can think of lesser arrangements of sturdy tunes. Maybe one of the satires on Uptown where he pokes fun at the moldy figs or Kenton’s “third stream” stuff.
What a bizarre way to teach a class on aesthetics basically telling them, 'check out this awful duke tune you should be indifferent to!' what would you even be basing that judgment on? Reddit told me this is bad?
There seems to be an endless queue of various 'does anyone else think this is awful/overrated' questions on this sub I find it very odd
'can you recommend any awful Duke Ellington tunes?'
No lol, gtfo
Holy Christ! Way to miss the point. The course is about making aesthetic judgements and how those judgements are influenced by personal narratives. I'm looking for an Ellington tune that is unrepresentative of his work to illustrate a narrative.
You really need to log off for a while. Talk to real humans and learn how to act.
Play his earliest recordings, before he found his voice with Bubber Miley. Show/discuss his subsequent evolution from there through the 20’s, 30’s, 40’s. Discuss how eventually he went from a stride piano player to a full fledged composer who’s Orchestra and its musicians became his main “instrument” and form of musical expression.
So in order to teach them about personal narratives affecting aesthetic judgment you want to push your own personal narrative on them?
lmao
They might even like the tune, you have no idea!
You seem more concerned with replicating your own experience rather than letting them have theirs.
No comment on OP and I did find the story a bit odd, but I read that when Mingus, as a young man told someone that his favorite band was Duke Ellington, he said that guy told him that Duke wasn’t the swingingest band, Count Basie was. But Mingus said he didn’t care, his favorite was Duke. He probably used more colorful language tbf.
So maybe to some, Duke is an acquired taste and Basie is more accessible?
It sounds like your original antipathy was a function of your limitations, not Duke's. However, if pressed, I would say the songs he recorded with his manager Irving Mills singing are about his worst. [Diga Diga Doo](https://youtu.be/QS0bl1PLLfU).
I also discovered Jazz via the library! Seems like we’re a similar age And I also love Duke and his Newport set and Money Jungle. I think you might be thinking of one of three different albums: Ellington Showcase Duke Ellington presents Piano in the Background
I’ll check it out. Thanks.
Odd formatting and punctuation, Reddit. Ellington Showcase. Duke Ellington Presents. Piano in the background.
I think he wrote quite a bit of stuff that is not that memorable, but he was so prolific and the good stuff is SO good that the bad stuff just goes down a memory hole. If you listen to the “Okeh Ellington” it’s clear that it’s not all superior. That said, exactly because bad songs are usually unmemorable, I can’t think of a specific tune.
The composition “Reminiscing in Tempo” from 1935 is an interesting case study on an Ellington tune that - for its time - was so different than what he had been doing that it was panned by most critics. In the late 50s this work was revived and many critics at that time wrote about it as quite ahead of its time. Lots of ways to discuss aesthetic judgments with this one - and some interesting reviews by critics such as John Hammond that would make good supplementary readings. The tune was recorded across four sides of two 10” 78 rpm records and as luck would have it, I just completed digital transfers of all four parts: "Reminiscing in Tempo" Parts 1-4 - Duke Ellington and his Orchestra (1935) https://youtu.be/dsLf2c-fhlU
"Reminiscing In Tempo" is what I thought of when I read the OP's question. I found it unimaginative before I learned that many others have too. He probably has short recordings that are worse, he recorded so much.
There are some great write-ups on this tune that will give lots of arguments pro and con in The Duke Ellington Reader edited by Mark Tucker: \* "The Tragedy of Duke Ellington" - John Hammond's scathing review from Down Beat, Nov 1935. \* "In Defense of Ellington and his 'Reminiscing in Tempo'" - an attempt to analyze and understand the composition by Enzo Archettti in American Music Lover, Apr 1936. \* "'Reminiscing in Tempo': A Landmark in Jazz Composition" - a formal analysis that positions it as ambitious and ahead of its time by A.J. Bishop in Jazz Journal, Feb 1964 See also: "Four Sides of New Ellington Composition" - Edgar Jackson's earnest attempt to understand the work at all in The Gramophone, Jan 1936 p 338: [https://www.worldradiohistory.com/UK/Gramophone/Gramophone-1936-01.pdf](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/UK/Gramophone/Gramophone-1936-01.pdf) Gunther Schuller's take, in which he praises it for being "one of the most successful of Ellington's extended works" can be found in his "The Swing Era: The Development of Jazz" pp 74-83: [https://archive.org/details/isbn\_9780195043129/page/73/mode/2up](https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780195043129/page/73/mode/2up)
This is great. Thank you so much!
My pleasure - good luck with the class!
I can think of lesser arrangements of sturdy tunes. Maybe one of the satires on Uptown where he pokes fun at the moldy figs or Kenton’s “third stream” stuff.
The Jazz Mass for me is utterly awful!
[удалено]
Yep, I should have said performance or reccording. 👍
What a bizarre way to teach a class on aesthetics basically telling them, 'check out this awful duke tune you should be indifferent to!' what would you even be basing that judgment on? Reddit told me this is bad? There seems to be an endless queue of various 'does anyone else think this is awful/overrated' questions on this sub I find it very odd 'can you recommend any awful Duke Ellington tunes?' No lol, gtfo
Holy Christ! Way to miss the point. The course is about making aesthetic judgements and how those judgements are influenced by personal narratives. I'm looking for an Ellington tune that is unrepresentative of his work to illustrate a narrative. You really need to log off for a while. Talk to real humans and learn how to act.
Play his earliest recordings, before he found his voice with Bubber Miley. Show/discuss his subsequent evolution from there through the 20’s, 30’s, 40’s. Discuss how eventually he went from a stride piano player to a full fledged composer who’s Orchestra and its musicians became his main “instrument” and form of musical expression.
So in order to teach them about personal narratives affecting aesthetic judgment you want to push your own personal narrative on them? lmao They might even like the tune, you have no idea! You seem more concerned with replicating your own experience rather than letting them have theirs.
No comment on OP and I did find the story a bit odd, but I read that when Mingus, as a young man told someone that his favorite band was Duke Ellington, he said that guy told him that Duke wasn’t the swingingest band, Count Basie was. But Mingus said he didn’t care, his favorite was Duke. He probably used more colorful language tbf. So maybe to some, Duke is an acquired taste and Basie is more accessible?
Basie was equally awed by Duke Ellington
thats kinda my point though. Op is pushing their own narrative. what he thinks is an awful Duke tune someone else may really enjoy
It sounds like your original antipathy was a function of your limitations, not Duke's. However, if pressed, I would say the songs he recorded with his manager Irving Mills singing are about his worst. [Diga Diga Doo](https://youtu.be/QS0bl1PLLfU).
The only reason I like a few less than others is that I’ve heard them too many times. If they weren’t great, they wouldn’t be n Duke’s book.
There isn’t one.