Duke Ellington

5 STARS DOWNBEAT MAGAZINE

INCLUDES 3 BONUS TRACKS

There are a number of reasons why "Money Jungle" is considered a unique jazz recording. First of all, the album stands out for its superb musical quality. It also marks a very rare trio session in the otherwise prolific discography of Duke Ellington. The album is best known, however, for being Duke’s only true recorded collaboration with two much younger jazz geniuses: Charles Mingus and Max Roach. To say that they were stars of “modern jazz” in contraposition with Ellington would be nearly an insult. Duke never ceased to change and grow musically, and like all masterpieces, his music always was (and still is) modern. Duke was a great admirer of most of the younger talents in jazz, including those from the bebop school.

Money Jungle reworks three older compositions: “Warm Valley” –first recorded in 1940–, “Caravan” –first taped in 1936–, and “Solitude” –first recorded in 1934. (For the latter two we have added orchestral studio versions by Ellington as a bonus). However, Duke wrote the bulk of the material specifically for the LP. Among these new compositions, only “Fleurette Africaine” (also known as “Les Fleurs Africaines” and “African Flower”) would enter Ellington’s concert repertoire (usually performed as an unaccompanied piano piece). It would also be recorded by various other artists, including Gary Burton and Michel Petrucciani. None of the other selections would be recorded again by Duke following the Money Jungle date, although “Wig Wise” was taped by other musicians, such as Billy Mays and Jason Moran.

PERSONNEL:

DUKE ELLINGTON, piano
CHARLES MINGUS, bass
MAX ROACH, drums

New York, September 17, 1962.

(*) BONUS TRACKS: (Duke Ellington & His Orchestra):
13: New York, October 14, 1957.
14: New York, December 18, 1950.
15: New York, May 1, 1962.

TRACKS:

01 MONEY JUNGLE
02 FLEURETTE AFRICAINE
03 VERY SPECIAL
04 WARM VALLEY
05 WIG WISE
06 CARAVAN
07 SOLITUDE
08 SWITCH BLADE
09 A LITTLE MAX (PARFAIT)
10 REM BLUES
11 BACKWARD COUNTRY BOY BLUES
12 SOLITUDE [alt tk]
13 SOLITUDE [orchestral version 1] (*)
14 SOLITUDE [orchestral version 2] (*)
15 CARAVAN [orchestral version] (*)

TOTAL TIME: 73:35 Min.