Description
2-CD box (LP-size) with 125-page hardcover book, 53 tracks. Playing time 155:36 mns
The Cotton Club, 1923-1940, is still the most famous jazz club of all time. Run by the underworld and patronised by New York's high society, 'The Aristocrat of Harlem' employed the cream of African-American entertainers, dancers and musicians. Duke Ellington was just one of many who made his name there. It was the focal point of the Harlem Renaissance, and now an important new Bear Family release takes you back there. During the night of April 20-21, 1931, the German commentator Hellmut H. Hellmut reports live from the Cotton Club, but the recordings lay dormant in the vaults, until they were discovered and identified by the legendary John Hammond's former assistant, Michael Brooks.
The broadcast highlights artists who otherwise left few recordings, or none at all (Cab Calloway's orchestra accompanies such stars-in-their-day as Lethia Hill, Eddie Rector and The Cotton Club Trio). The show is also among the earliest surviving sound documents of German radio.
In addition, the 2-CD-Set contains commercial recordings from the Cotton Club era, including a 1929 attempt to re-create the live atmosphere of the Cotton Club in the recording studio. Other artists, most of whom were destined to become Cotton Club stars in later years, are also featured. The set is rounded out with a previously unissued take, recorded in 1937 by The Tramp Band which, with different personnel, excited Cotton Club audiences during the 1920s, plus previously unissued live recordings from Duke Ellington at the Cotton Club.
The accompanying hardcover book by Horst J. P. Bergmeier and Rainer E. Lotz is profusely illustrated. It traces the development of Harlem, explains the interrelation between club management and organized crime, documents the details of Cotton Club shows from beginning to the end, and researches the biographies of the individuals involved.
Track Listing
Disc 1:- Terry, Gordon - I'll Make Fun For You (instrumental)
- Calloway, Cab - (Please Give Me) Something To Remember You By
- Hill, Lethia - Minnie The Moocher
- Calloway, Cab & Ensemble - The Mystery Song
- Rector, Eddie - St. Louis Blues
- Calloway, Cab - Just A Gigolo
- Cotton Club Trio - Farewell Blues
- Cotton Club Band - A Nite At The Cotton Club (Part 1a)
- Ellington, Duke - A Nite At The Cotton Club (Part 1b)
- Ellington, Duke - A Nite At The Cotton Club (Part 2a)
- Ellington, Duke - A Nite At The Cotton Club (Part 2b)
- Ellington, Duke - A Nite At The Cotton Club (Part 2c)
- Mills, Irving - Hot Feet
- Williams, Cootie - Ain't Misbehavin'
- Robertson, Dick - Blue Rhythm
- Calloway, Cab - Mystery Song
- Ellington, Duke - I'll Make Fun For You
- Wilborn, Dave - I've Found A New Baby
- Preer, Andy - I Must Have That Man
- Hall, Adelaide - Miss Linda Brown (takes )
- Holman, Libby - Ease On Down
- Armstrong, Louis - I Just Couldn't Take It Baby
- Waters, Ethel - As Long As I Live
- Horne, Lena - Excerpts from the Revue 'Black And White Bird
- Hall, Adelaide - (Truckin/Solitude/I Can't Give You
- Various - History - Anything But Love/I Must Have That
- Various - History - Man/Diga Diga Doo/Truckin')
- Various - History - Stepping Into Swing Society
- Ellington, Duke - If You Were In My Place
- Ellington, Duke - Mood Indigo
- Ellington, Duke - East St. Louis Toodle-Oo (close of show)
- Ellington, Duke - East St. Louis Toodle-Oo (start of 2nd show)
- Ellington, Duke - Oh Babe, Maybe Someday (& IVIE ANDERSON)
- Ellington, Duke - Prelude In C Sharp Minor
- Ellington, Duke - Rockin' In Rhythm
- Ellington, Duke - Three Blind Mice
- Ellington, Duke - On The Sunny Side Of The Street(& I.ANDERSON)
- Ellington, Duke - Dinah's In A Jam
- Ellington, Duke - Harmony In Harlem
- Ellington, Duke - At Your Beck And Call (& IVIE ANDERSON)
- Ellington, Duke - Solitude (& IVIE ANDERSON)
- Ellington, Duke - Gal From Joe's
- Ellington, Duke - Ridin' On A Blue Note
- Ellington, Duke - If Dreams Come True
- Ellington, Duke - Lost In Meditation (& IVIE ANDERSON)
- Ellington, Duke - Demi-Tasse (Ev'ry Day)
- Ellington, Duke - Echoes Of Harlem
- Ellington, Duke - Birmingham Breakdown
- Ellington, Duke - Rose Room
- Ellington, Duke - It's The Dreamer In Me (& IVIE ANDERSON)
Additional Details
Label: Bear Family Records
Genre: Jazz
Run Time: 155 mins
Release Date: 01/02/07
UPC: 4000127163400
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