Blue Rose | ||||
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Studio album by Rosemary Clooney and Duke Ellington and His Orchestra | ||||
Released | May 21, 1956 | |||
Recorded | January–February 1956 | |||
Genre | Traditional pop, vocal jazz | |||
Length | 39:04 | |||
Label | Columbia | |||
Producer | Irving Townsend | |||
Rosemary Clooney and Duke Ellington and His Orchestra chronology | ||||
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Duke Ellington chronology | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Allmusic | [1] |
Blue Rose is the debut studio album by Rosemary Clooney, in collaboration with Duke Ellington and his orchestra, released in mono on Columbia Records, catalogue CL 872. Although she had appeared on albums before, it had been in the context of either a musical theater or multiple artist recording. The album also marked the return of Ellington to Columbia after an absence of four years, and was one of the first examples of overdubbing being used as an integral part of the creation, rather than for effects or to correct mistakes.
During the early 1950s, it had been the policy of both company president Goddard Lieberson and producer Mitch Miller at Columbia to discourage their roster of popular singers from planning full albums, the LP reserved for serious work such as classical music or original cast recordings. [2] This policy changed with the success of popular music albums on other labels, and to give the return of Ellington to the fold exposure beyond the jazz audience, producer Irving Townsend decided on pairing the Ellington band with a singer for a full album, choosing Clooney for her sultry voice and her spate of hit records throughout the decade. [3]
The project encountered difficulty from Clooney being both on the outs with her usual producer Mitch Miller and pregnant in Los Angeles, with the Ellington Orchestra being recorded in New York. [4] With Townsend at the helm, Clooney agreed to the project, and long-time Ellington orchestrator and musical foil Billy Strayhorn was dispatched to guide Clooney through the arrangements and recording in L.A.
Recordings of the Ellington Orchestra took place on January 23 and 27, 1956, at Columbia's 30th Street Studio in New York, and Clooney's vocals were recorded for overdubbing to the New York track on February 8 and 11 in Los Angeles. [5] The material selected originated from the Ellington songbook, and all songs were arranged by Strayhorn. The title tune was specifically written by Ellington for the album and Clooney.
On June 15, 1999, Legacy Records reissued the album remastered for compact disc. Two bonus tracks were added from the sessions that were not included on the original LP, released as Columbia single 55591 "If You Were in My Place (What Would You Do?)" and its b-side "Just A-Sittin' and A-Rockin'." [6]
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Hey Baby" | Duke Ellington | 3:53 |
2. | "Sophisticated Lady" | Duke Ellington, Irving Mills, Mitchell Parish | 2:57 |
3. | "Me and You" | Duke Ellington | 2:28 |
4. | "Passion Flower" | Billy Strayhorn, Milton Raskin (lyrics) | 4:33 |
5. | "I Let a Song Go Out of My Heart" | Duke Ellington, Irving Mills, Henry Nemo, John Redmond | 2:37 |
6. | "It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)" | Duke Ellington, Irving Mills | 2:48 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Grievin'" | Duke Ellington, Billy Strayhorn | 4:20 |
2. | "Blue Rose" | Duke Ellington | 2:21 |
3. | "I'm Checkin' Out - Goombye" | Duke Ellington, Billy Strayhorn | 3:09 |
4. | "I Got It Bad (and That Ain't Good)" | Duke Ellington, Paul Francis Webster | 3:07 |
5. | "Mood Indigo" | Duke Ellington, Barney Bigard, Irving Mills | 6:28 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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12. | "If You Were in My Place (What Would You Do?)" | Duke Ellington, Irving Mills, Henry Nemo | 3:01 |
13. | "Just A-Sittin' and A-Rockin'" | Duke Ellington, Billy Strayhorn, Lee Gaines | 2:40 |
The Stockholm Concert, 1966 is a 1966 live album by the American jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald, accompanied in part by the Duke Ellington Orchestra. The recording remained unreleased until 1984.
Ella and Basie! is a 1963 studio album by Ella Fitzgerald, accompanied by Count Basie and his orchestra, with arrangements by Quincy Jones and Benny Carter. It was later reissued with slightly different cover art as On the Sunny Side of the Street.
Far East Suite is a 1967 concept album by American jazz musician Duke Ellington, inspired by his group's tour of Asia. Ellington and longtime collaborator Billy Strayhorn wrote the compositions.
Russell Keith Procope was an American clarinetist and alto saxophonist who was a member of the Duke Ellington orchestra.
Ellington Indigos is a 1958 jazz album by Duke Ellington.
The Blanton–Webster Band is a compilation album that combines the master takes of all the recordings by Duke Ellington's Orchestra during the years of 1940 to 1942, involving bassist Jimmy Blanton and tenor saxophonist Ben Webster. The recordings were originally made for RCA Victor during what many critics regard as the Ellington orchestra's golden period. The three CDs contain many numbers which were to become classics, and the arrangements were frequently inventive and innovative.
Such Sweet Thunder is a Duke Ellington album, released in 1957. The record is a twelve-part suite based on the work of William Shakespeare.
The Great Paris Concert is a 1973 live double album by jazz pianist Duke Ellington preserving pieces of a series of performances given in Paris during February 1963, a decade prior the release. For the 1989 CD reissue, 10 additional recordings from the same series of Paris concerts were added to the release. These 10 performances had previously been released on the 1967 LP Duke Ellington's Greatest Hits: Recorded "Live" In Concert.
Never No Lament: The Blanton-Webster Band is a 2003 three-disc compilation combining the master takes of all the recordings by Duke Ellington's Orchestra during the years of 1940 to 1942 with an additional nine tracks, including five alternative takes and four additional masters. An expanded version of The Blanton–Webster Band, this reissue, according to Allmusic, "truly worth either an initial investment or reinvestment". All About Jazz: New York observed that these performances, from what is often considered "the band in its prime", "not only set the standard for big bands and jazz orchestras, but created an ideal near insurmountable to improve upon". The Penguin Guide to Jazz selected this compilation as part of its suggested "Core Collection."
Soul Call is a 1967 live album by Duke Ellington and his orchestra, recorded live at the Juan-les-Pins/Antibes Jazz Festival on the Côte d'Azur. Ella Fitzgerald appeared with Ellington and his band at the same festival, and a more complete version of Ellington's appearance at the festival is documented on the 1998 album Ella and Duke at the Cote D'Azur.
The Popular Duke Ellington is a studio album by American pianist, composer and bandleader Duke Ellington featuring many of the tunes associated with his orchestra rerecorded in 1966 and released on the RCA label in 1967.
Concert in the Virgin Islands is an album by American pianist, composer and bandleader Duke Ellington recorded and released on the Reprise label in 1965. The album features studio recordings that Ellington with the Boston Pops Orchestra conducted by Arthur Fiedler composed after he and his orchestra played concerts on St. Croix and St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands in April, 1965. This album includes the four-part Virgin Islands Suite, as well as numbers played at the concerts on the islands.
Piano in the Background is an album by American pianist, composer and bandleader Duke Ellington recorded and released on the Columbia label in 1960.
First Time! The Count Meets the Duke is an album by American pianists, composers and bandleaders Duke Ellington and Count Basie with their combined Orchestras recorded and released on the Columbia label in 1961.
Duke Ellington at the Bal Masque is an album by American pianist, composer and bandleader Duke Ellington recorded in 1958 and released on the Columbia label.
Blues in Orbit is an album by American pianist, composer and bandleader Duke Ellington recorded for the Columbia label in 1959 and released in 1960.
Live at the Blue Note is a live album by American pianist, composer and bandleader Duke Ellington recorded at The Blue Note nightclub in Chicago for the Roulette label in 1959.
Ellington '55 is an album by American pianist, composer and bandleader Duke Ellington recorded for the Capitol label in 1953 and 1954 and released in 1955. The album features the Ellington Orchestra's performances of popular big band compositions and was reissued on CD with two bonus tracks in 1999.
Masterpieces by Ellington is the first LP album by American pianist, composer, and bandleader Duke Ellington, recorded for the Columbia label in 1950. It was one of the earliest 12-inch LPs to take advantage of the extended time available and consisted of four tracks, three of them "concert arrangements" of Ellington standards and one, "The Tattooed Bride," a recent tone poem.
Ellington Uptown is an album by American pianist, composer and bandleader Duke Ellington, recorded for the Columbia label in 1951 and 1952. The album was re-released on CD in 2004 with additional tracks recorded in 1947 and originally released as the Liberian Suite EP.