Ellington Is Forever 1
Kenny Burrell was reportedlyDuke Ellington's favorite guitarist, and it's easy to understand why. Burrell combines many of the qualities that contributed to make Ellington's own music so distinctive: sophisticated ease, harmonic nuance, rare tunefulness, and unfettered swing, all combined with a clear sense of earthy underpinnings in the blues. Burrell has always included Ellington's music in his repertoire--obscure tunes as well as the familiar--and he has taught courses in Ellington's music at the University of California at Los Angeles. That developed familiarity shows in this 1975 session, which includes groups of various sizes and features a stunning collection of soloists, including the underrecognizedThad Joneson his dark-hued cornet, tenor saxophonistJoe Henderson, and Burrell's frequent partner, the organistJimmy Smith. While many Ellington tributes err on the side of reverence, Burrell respects the music enough to play it in a distinctive and vigorous way, mixing in modernist soloists, singer Ernie Andrews, and even Latin percussion to put his personal stamp on it.--Stuart Broomer