is series offers complete chronological collections of Ellington's recordings, and this volume chronicles his initial rise to glory. In 1928 and '29, Ellington and his orchestra where the toast of New York City, presiding with regality and uncommon style over Harlem's celebrated hot spot, the Cotton Club. The musicians almost audibly revel in that first flush of major success; just listen to the lascivious muted trumpet on "No, Papa, No", or the inspired, frenetic clarinet that darts around the aptly titled "Flaming Youth". The Ellington band was the essence of sophisticated '20s high society on one hand, a gang of maniacally swinging innovators on the other. At the time of this recording, they had not yet taken some of the artistic leaps that would lead them to even greater glory in the '30s and '40s. They were still essentially a dance band, but as these selections show, they were one to be reckoned with.|
Rovi