We Got It Good and That Ain't Bad: An Ellington Songbook

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
As a pianist equally at home in European and American classical styles, Andre Previn, along with bassist David Finck, pays tribute to Duke Ellington here in truly Ellingtonian manner. In the late 1930s, Ellington recorded some sides with the young bass master Jimmy Blanton. While Previn's piano style owes more to Chopin and Erroll Garner, and Finck's basstones are rooted in the tradition of Ray Brown and Scott La Faro, both players render these sterling selections from the Ellington canon in the same Duke-Blanton fashion. With his dark chord clusters, Previn stays true to the Ducal piano sound from the Billy Strayhorn classics like "Take the A Train," the Afro-Eurasian "Isfahan," and the harmonically intoxicating "Chelsea Bridge." Previn displays his solo chops on the swinging and soulful renditions of Ellington's title track, and the hymnal "Come Sunday." Of course, the Ellington hits--including "Do Nothin' Till You Hear from Me" and "In a Mellow Tone"--are revisited, along with the great alto saxophonist Johnny Hodges's riff number, "Squatty Roo." Lesser-known compositions, like the blue-toned "Serenade to Sweden" and "I Didn't Know About You, are rendered in a reverent and melodious manner fit for a Duke. --Eugene Holley Jr.

Tracks:

Take The 'A' Train
Isfahan
I Got It Bad (And That Ain't Good)
Do Nothin' Till You Hear From Me
Chelsea Bridge
Things Ain't What They Used To Be
In A Sentimental Mood
Squatty Roo
Come Sunday
Serenade To Sweden
I Didn't Know About You
In A Mellow Tone
It Don't Mean A Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)

Amazon.com

As a pianist equally at home in European and American classical styles, Andre Previn, along with bassist David Finck, pays tribute to Duke Ellington here in truly Ellingtonian manner. In the late 1930s, Ellington recorded some sides with the young bass master Jimmy Blanton. While Previn's piano style owes more to Chopin and Erroll Garner, and Finck's basstones are rooted in the tradition of Ray Brown and Scott La Faro, both players render these sterling selections from the Ellington canon in the same Duke-Blanton fashion. With his dark chord clusters, Previn stays true to the Ducal piano sound from the Billy Strayhorn classics like "Take the A Train," the Afro-Eurasian "Isfahan," and the harmonically intoxicating "Chelsea Bridge." Previn displays his solo chops on the swinging and soulful renditions of Ellington's title track, and the hymnal "Come Sunday." Of course, the Ellington hits--including "Do Nothin' Till You Hear from Me" and "In a Mellow Tone"--are revisited, along with the great alto saxophonist Johnny Hodges's riff number, "Squatty Roo." Lesser-known compositions, like the blue-toned "Serenade to Sweden" and "I Didn't Know About You, are rendered in a reverent and melodious manner fit for a Duke. --Eugene Holley Jr.

Track Listings:

Track Listings

track listings

Track Listings

Roll the Bones

Verdi: Falstaff [Box set]

Unlucky Boy [Import]

Slow Down

Three Sets: A Compilation of Jambands from Across the Country

The Johnnie Taylor Chronicle [Import]

Touch of Class

Two Ships

West Textures

Trance of Seven Colors

Ups & Downs: Early Recordings and B-Sides

Til We're Dead [Import]

Trip Do West [Import]

Grace

Tony Scott