''New Orleans Suite'' is a studio album by the American pianist, composer, and bandleader

Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous jazz orchestra from 1923 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D.C., Ellington was based ...

, recorded and released on the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...

label in 1970.A Duke Ellington Panorama
accessed April 13, 2010 The album contains the final recordings of longtime Ellington saxophonist

Johnny Hodges Cornelius "Johnny" Hodges (July 25, 1907 – May 11, 1970) was an American alto saxophonist, best known for solo work with Duke Ellington's big band. He played lead alto in the saxophone section for many years. Hodges was also featured on soprano ...

, who died between the album's two recording sessions. The album won a Grammy Award in 1971 for Best Jazz Performance by a Big Band.Grammy Awards Database
/ref> The suite was commissioned by

George Wein George Wein (October 3, 1925 – September 13, 2021) was an American jazz promoter, pianist, and producer.

for the 1970

New Orleans Jazz Festival The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival (commonly called Jazz Fest or Jazzfest) is an annual celebration of local music and culture held at the Fair Grounds Race Course in New Orleans, Louisiana. Jazz Fest attracts thousands of visitors to New ...

Reception

Dan Morgenstern's glowing review of the album in 1971 for ''

DownBeat ' (styled in all caps) is an American music magazine devoted to "jazz, blues and beyond", the last word indicating its expansion beyond the jazz realm which it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1934 in Chi ...

'' awarded it five stars. "The music is evocative, highly atmospheric and marked throughout by the gorgeous ensemble textures that set this orchestra apart from every other big band in the history of jazz", he wrote. "This is a great record, and by any standard one of the major musical events of 1971." Morgenstern had praise for several of the soloists, especially Johnny Hodges (in his swan song), Paul Gonsalves' "profoundly emotional" tribute to both Sidney Bechet and Hodges, Cootie Williams, Norris Turney, and Harold Ashby.Morgenstern, D
Downbeat Magazine
accessed April 24, 2020 In his review for ''

Sounds In physics, sound is a vibration that propagates as an acoustic wave, through a transmission medium such as a gas, liquid or solid. In human physiology and psychology, sound is the ''reception'' of such waves and their ''perception'' by the ...

'', Jack Hutton remarked that "a Creole influence permeates the work, a lazy Delta feel laden with nostalgic sadness which is a probably a truer reflection of the historic city than the good-time

trad Trad. is often an abbreviation of the word "traditional". It may also refer to: Music *Trad jazz, a style of jazz music in the 1950s and 1960s *Néo-trad, a musical style that arose in Quebec around the turn of the 21st century *Irish traditional m ...

which has helped to popularise it." He praised the solos of

Norris Turney Norris Turney (September 8, 1921, Wilmington, Ohio, United States – January 17, 2001, Kettering, Ohio) was an American jazz flautist and saxophonist. Biography Turney began his career in the Midwest, playing in territory bands such as the Jet ...

, criticized those of

Cootie Williams Charles Melvin "Cootie" Williams (July 10, 1911 – September 15, 1985) was an American jazz, jump blues, and rhythm and blues trumpeter. Biography Born in Mobile, Alabama, Williams began his professional career at the age of 14 with the Yo ...

, and concluded that "This suite, while it doesn't rank with Ellington's greatest works, proves that the piano player is still vitally creative well into his seventies." ''

The Penguin Guide to Jazz ''The Penguin Guide to Jazz'' is a reference work containing an encyclopedic directory of jazz recordings on CD which were (at the time of publication) currently available in Europe or the United States. The first nine editions were compiled by ...

'' includes the album as part of its suggested "Core Collection," and awards it a four-star rating.

Track listing

All compositions by Duke Ellington. # "Blues for New Orleans" - 7:40 # "Bourbon Street Jingling Jollies" - 4:00 # "Portrait of Louis Armstrong" - 3:02 # "Thanks for the Beautiful Land on the Delta" - 3:38 # "Portrait of Wellman Braud" - 4:05 # "Second Line" - 6:00 # "Portrait of Sidney Bechet" - 3:55 # "Aristocracy a la Jean Lafitte" - 3:57 # "Portrait of Mahalia Jackson" - 4:53 *Recorded at National Recording Studio in New York, NY on April 27 (tracks 1, 2, 4, 6 & 8) and May 13 (tracks 3, 5, 7 & 9), 1970.

Personnel

– piano *

– trumpet * Fred Stone – trumpet *

Money Johnson Harold "Money" Johnson (February 23, 1918 – March 28, 1978) was an American jazz trumpeter. Early life Johnson was born in Tyler, Texas, on February 23, 1918. He first played trumpet at age 15. Primarily a trumpeter, he also recorded with the tr ...

, Al Rubin – trumpet (tracks 1, 2, 4, 6 & 8) *

Cat Anderson William Alonzo "Cat" Anderson (September 12, 1916 – April 29, 1981) was an American jazz trumpeter known for his long period as a member of Duke Ellington's orchestra and for his wide range, especially his ability to play in the altissimo ...

– trumpet (tracks 3, 5, 7 & 9) *

Booty Wood Mitchell W. Wood, better known as Booty Wood (December 27, 1919 – June 10, 1987) was an American jazz trombonist. Career Wood played professionally on trombone from the late 1930s. He worked with Tiny Bradshaw and Lionel Hampton in the 1940s ...

– trombone *

Julian Priester Julian Priester (born June 29, 1935) is an American jazz trombonist and occasional euphoniumist. He is sometimes credited "Julian Priester Pepo Mtoto". He has played with Sun Ra, Max Roach, Duke Ellington, John Coltrane, and Herbie Hancock. Bio ...

– trombone * Dave Taylor – bass trombone (tracks 1, 2, 4, 6 & 8) * Chuck Connors – bass trombone (tracks 3, 5, 7 & 9) *

Russell Procope Russell Keith Procope (August 11, 1908 – January 21, 1981) was an American clarinetist and alto saxophonist who was a member of the Duke Ellington orchestra. Before Ellington Procope was born in New York City, United States, and grew up in S ...

– alto saxophone, clarinet *

– alto saxophone (tracks 1, 2, 4, 6 & 8) *

– alto saxophone, clarinet, flute *

Harold Ashby Harold Ashby (March 27, 1925, in Kansas City, Missouri, United States – June 13, 2003, in New York City) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. He worked with Duke Ellington's band, replacing Jimmy Hamilton in 1968. In 1959, he recorded backing ...

– tenor saxophone, clarinet *

Paul Gonsalves Paul Gonsalves ( – ) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist best known for his association with Duke Ellington. At the 1956 Newport Jazz Festival, Gonsalves played a 27-chorus solo in the middle of Ellington's "Diminuendo and Crescendo in Blue ...

– tenor saxophone *

Harry Carney Harry Howell Carney (April 1, 1910 – October 8, 1974) was a jazz saxophonist and clarinettist who spent over four decades as a member of the Duke Ellington Orchestra. He played a variety of instruments but primarily used the baritone saxopho ...

– baritone saxophone, clarinet, bass clarinet *

Wild Bill Davis Wild Bill Davis (November 24, 1918 – August 17, 1995) was the stage name of American jazz pianist, organist, and arranger William Strethen Davis. He is best known for his pioneering jazz electric organ recordings and for his tenure with t ...

– organ (track 1) *

Joe Benjamin Joseph Rupert Benjamin (November 4, 1919 – January 26, 1974) was an American jazz bassist. Born in Atlantic City, New Jersey, Benjamin played with many jazz musicians in a variety of idioms. Early in his career he played in the big bands of Art ...

– bass * Rufus Jones – drums

References

{{Authority control 1970 albums Atlantic Records albums Duke Ellington albums Grammy Award for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album