Cd, case and inserts are in mint / near mint condition, looks new. Original Capitol Records / BMG pressing. This is not a promotional version.

1. Satin Doll
2. Warm Valley
3. Flamingo
4. Just A-Sittin' and A-Rockin'
5. Black and Tan Fantasy
6. Things Ain't What They Used to Be
7. Happy Go Lucky Local
8. Rockin' in Rhythm
9. C Jam Blues
10. Bakiff
11. Caravan
12. Harlem Air Shaft
13. Serious Serenade
14. It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)

Album Notes
Personnel: Duke Ellington (piano); Ray Nance (vocals, trumpet, violin); Russell Procope (alto saxophone, clarinet); Rick Henderson (alto saxophone); Jimmy Hamilton (tenor saxophone, clarinet); Paul Gonsalves (tenor saxophone); Harry Carney (baritone saxophone, bass clarinet); Willie Cook, Clark Terry, Cat Anderson (trumpet); Britt Woodman, Quentin Jackson, Juan Tizol, Alfred Cobbs, George Jean, John Sanders (trombone); Billy Strayhorn (celeste); Wendell Marshall, Oscar Pettiford, Jimmy Woode (bass); Butch Ballard, Dave Black (drums); Ralph Collier (congas); Frank Rullo (bongos).Producer: Dave Dexter.Compilation producer: Michael Cuscuna.Recorded between 1953 and 1955.Personnel: Duke Ellington (piano).Recording information: 1953-1955.Duke Ellington's brief tenure at Capitol Records (1953-55) is often dismissed by jazz historians who find fault with the sessions' lush, near-orchestral sound or who question the bandleader's decisions to re-record many of his '30s and '40s standards. However, neither criticism holds up. Ellington's 15-member band--featuring stalwarts Cat Anderson, Ray Nance, Paul Gonsalves and Harry Carney--plays with its usual brilliance, but producer Dave Dexter captures the orchestra with unusual warmth, creating a deep, radiant sound unusual for jazz. Re-recordings of Ellington classics like "Black and Tan Fantasy," "Caravan" and a ten-minute "It Don't Mean A Thing" (featuring a lengthy and inspired tenor improvisation by Gonsalves) in new and often radically different arrangements are shown off to strong advantage in this new sonic ambience. THE BEST OF DUKE ELLINGTON is a long-overdue invitation to re-examine one of Ellington's most fruitful periods.

Guaranteed to play perfectly.

Fibits

Duke Ellington CD, The Best of, Greatest - BMG