As we continue our journey with Duke Ellington, we come across a true Ellington masterpiece: Black Beauty.
Written as a tribute to the legendary musical theater star Florence
Mills (shown above) after her tragic passing in 1927, this tune is one of Duke’s most
elegant early compositions.
The Washingtonians on Brunswick
Let’s start with this version from 1928 with the band billed as The
Washingtonians on Brunswick Records:
You can hear that "Jungle" growl beginning to
soften into something more melodic and stately.
The Solo Spotlight
In addition to that recording with the full band, Duke also cut a solo piano version for Okeh:
This is a real treat for us because Duke was so famous as a composer/arranger/bandleader that it can be easy to forget he was also a world-class pianist!
The Sidemen Step Out
Duke recorded prolifically with his orchestra, but he also
participated in sessions with smaller "units" from within the band,
often issued under the names of his star sidemen.
As an example, here is a later, swing-era version of “Black
Beauty” recorded in 1939 by Cootie Williams and his Rug Cutters on
Vocalion Records:
What a great feature for trumpet king Cootie Williams, who
had established himself as not only a worthy successor to Bubber Miley in the
growl department, but also as a brilliant all-around player.
Backing Cootie is an awesome mini-reed section of Johnny
Hodges, Barney Bigard and Harry Carney, plus Billy Taylor on bass, Sonny Greer
on drums and Duke himself on piano!
The Legacy: Ahmad Jamal
For a non-Ellington-involved recording, we jump ahead
to 1956 to hear the great Ahmad Jamal with his trio on the Epic label.
Jamal’s use of space and his light touch bring a whole new dimension to Duke’s
melody.
Here's his take on Black Beauty:
Does Duke’s solo piano version hit you harder than the
full band arrangement, or do you prefer the 1939 swing update?
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