faine books
  • Home
  • About
  • Music Books
    • Serendipity Doo-Dah #1
    • Serendipity Doo-Dah #2
    • Ellington at the White House
    • The Best Gig in Town
  • Short Stories
    • Prisoner Chaser
    • Taxi Driver
  • Blog
  • Contact

Duke Ellington: America’s Premier Composer?

3/28/2018

1 Comment

 
Ellington at Hurrican Club
Duke Ellington directing his orchestra at the Hurricane Club, 1943. Photo: Gordon Parks.
LISTEN TO BLOGCAST
In 2006, the Atlantic magazine compiled a list of the 100 most influential Americans of all time. Two musicians made the list: Louis Armstrong and Elvis Presley. At least they got one right! (Kidding, of course.)

The two were selected from a short list prepared by drama and music critic Terry Teachout: Louis Armstrong, George Gershwin, Aaron Copland, Elvis Presley, and Bob Dylan. Teachout had this to say about his second pick:

Of all inspired artists who created what is now called the Great American Songbook, it was Gershwin who did the most to infuse it with quintessentially American sounds of ragtime and jazz . . . At the same time, he produced a series of pop-flavored concert works, starting with Rhapsody In Blue, in which he pioneered the crossover genre, and in Porgy and Bess, he tore down the wall that had separated opera from musical comedy.

So, here we have the author of Duke: A Life of Duke Ellington picking George Gershwin and Aaron Copland over Ellington.

Hmmm.

See my review of Teachout’s book in next month’s post.

1 Comment
write an essay online link
4/19/2018 09:25:20 am

A curiously studied but not an especially pleasant one, as Instruct out appears to go so distant out of his way to humanize his subject that one of my melodic heroes depicted as an ace controller, unfeeling womanizer, habitual liar, and customary cheat of other people's melodic thoughts who knew small around composition past his skill for tonal color. Educate out could be a sensibly great but dreary author, and I assume it's beneficial to have a point by point bio of the Duke accessible, but this one leaves mud splattered all over the urbane and charming open persona we came to know and adore.

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Picture
    Picture

    BUY NOW

    Picture

    BUY NOW


    EMAIL SIGNUP
    Receive news of upcoming blogs and events.


    Most Popular

    Music Blogs 2015–2023
    Business Advice from Miles Davis
    Miles and Me at the Modern Jazz Club

    Categories

    All
    Album Review
    Book Review
    Ellington
    Film Review
    Guest Post
    Jazz Albums
    Jazz History
    Jazz Musicians
    Music History
    Musicians
    Nixon
    Top 10 Jazz Albums

    Archives

    August 2023
    July 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015

    RSS Feed


FAINE BOOKS

Home  About  Books  Stories  Blog  Contact

Copyright © 2023 Edward Faine. All Rights Reserved.
Proudly powered by Weebly

BACK TO TOP

© 2021 FaineBooks

© DivTag Templates Ltd | All Rights Reserved