Ladies and gentlemen, Duke Ellington....

Welcome to "A Duke Ellington Panorama." These pages are mainly a guide to the recordings of Duke Ellington released on CDs, LPs and 78s (with a few cassettes included as well). These pages are constantly growing, so check back every now and then.

Last major update: March 14, 2005. There are now 4,954 Ellington recordings indexed on "A Duke Ellington Panorama."

Your host has almost completed a major update; the many wonderful Ellington albums that have been reissued in 2003 and 2004 have all been added. The only item still to be done is the making of a new composer section, which will replace the composer listing which used to be on the sessions pages. Once completed, this will greatly simplify the process of updating "A Duke Ellington Panorama" so you won't have to wait so long between major updates.

If you are already listening to some Ellington, the only thing you might be lacking is a perfectly made martini.

News
The Duke Ellington Society Washington, D.C. Visit The Duke Ellington Society homepage here.	The Duke Ellington Music Society DEMS is an international organization devoted to studying the recordings of Duke Ellington. "A Duke Ellington Panorama" has the great honor of hosting The International DEMS Bulletin. Our collection of DEMS Bulletins has been growing. It is now complete! Visit the DEMS homepage here.
The Latest! The latest in the Classics Chronological Series is 1953 vol 2 (Classics 1432 - this is the 45th volume in this wonderful series). Neatwork's alternate takes are progressing slowly, volume 10 is the latest. The Treasury Shows has been stuck at volume 12 for some time now. The Masters of Jazz series was discontinued after Volume 12. New or Notable Fantastic music in fantastic sound. Read more about the amazing Ko-Ko here. Dreyfus Jazz has released another volume on Ellington called Take The "A" Train to complement their magnificient Ko-Ko.

GETTING AROUND

Take The 'A' Train

To explore "A Duke Ellington Panorama," click on the headings in the frame at the top of the page. You can "Take The 'A' Train" whenever you wish to return to this page.

If you do not see the headings at the top of the page, "Take The "A" Train" right now.

DEDICATION

I would like to dedicate these Ellington pages to the members of the Duke Ellington Society, Washington, D.C. I attended my first meeting in November, 1995. The members were considering moving to new quarters for their monthly meetings, from a fraternity house to a church. They had been in the same place for decades. Members began to wax eloquently about the great times they had and all the musicians who had played in that fraternity house. One member even had to stand up and touch the piano. "I remember that Duke Ellington himself played this piano for us," he said. I remember thinking to myself, "There's no way they can leave this place." When the President opened the matter to debate, there was only one question: "Can we still have happy hour at the Church? They will let us drink, won't they?" When that question was answered in the affirmative, the membership unanimously voted to move their monthly meetings to the Church. So much for sentimentality. I knew I had fallen in with a good group.

THANKS

Luciano Massaglio and Giovanni Volonte for their "The New Desor: Duke Ellington Story on Records." This is a two volume discography of more than 1600 pages.

Sjef Hoefsmit for the Duke Ellington Music Society Bulletin. The DEMS Bulletin contains a wealth of information about Ellington recordings.

W.E. Timner for his fine "Ellingtonia: The Recorded Music of Duke Ellington and His Sidemen," presently in a Fourth Edition published in June 1996. If you want more information than you find here, Timner is the place to go.

Jerry Valburn for his "Duke Ellington on Compact Disc." Valburn's Ellington collection (at the Library of Congress) is the largest in the world. Yet Mr Valburn has kept up with the very latest Ellington releases on Compact Disc.

Jack Towers, who recorded the Fargo, North Dakota concert, for his willingness to loan a near stranger precious and inscribed Ellington material. God bless you, Jack, I photocopied it.

Richard Ehrenzeller for his excellent column "The Digital Jungle" in the TDES (N.Y.) newsletter.

Christian Dangleterre, Hans Christian Dörrscheidt, Sjef Hoefsmit, Ted Hudson, and Geff Ratcheson for providing me with otherwise elusive Ellington recordings.

Edward Kennedy Ellington, Love You Madly

On the day Saint Peter stamps my hand at the Gates of Heaven, the first thing I'll want to hear is The Fourth Concert of Sacred Music.