Don Ellis (Ed Sullivan)

[AM Matt]

From October 19, 1969, trumpeter Don Ellis "Concerto For Trumpet" (from "The Ed Sullivan Show")

 

[JOv2]

The time delay was nice. Interesting how some members of his trumpet section played the quarter-tone trumpet while others did not. Can't say I think very much of the piece -- and seeing a bunch of guys who look like the Association but dress like Steppenwolf...is like seeing a bunch of guys who look like the Association but dress like Steppenwolf ; but, man, Don has that impeccable Severinsen-like tone, which, in a word is Beautiful -- with a capital "B".

 

[AM Matt]

Don died back in December of 1978 of cancer.

 

[Bobberman]

Never heard of Don Ellis until now but I like his tone and style of sound the song is pretty good

 

[JOv2]

Never heard of Don Ellis until now but I like his tone and style of sound the song is pretty good

Check out Electric Bath, arguably his most well known LP and a staple of 1960s big band recordings. Good stuff.

 

[AM Matt]

"Concerto For Trumpet" is from 1966 "Live At Monterey".

 

[Bobberman]

Check out Electric Bath, arguably his most well known LP and a staple of 1960s big band recordings. Good stuff.

Good stuff indeed Thanks JOv2

 

[rbisherw]

Huge Don Ellis fan here.

While I find good stuff on all his albums, "Soaring" "Tears of Joy" and "Autumn" are not to be missed.

 

[JOv2]

From the '69 performance, looks like Don played a quarter-tone Holton -- similar to this model.

 

[Rudy]

This was my first Don Ellis album:



Starts with the track "33 222 1 222" ("....and that's just area code," Ellis says in the introduction).

 

[JOv2]

Starts with the track "33 222 1 222" ("....and that's just area code," Ellis says in the introduction).

Knowing Don, I would've figured it was how you're supposed to count the 2nd repeat of the 9-bar D-section leading into the the 13/8 D.S. al coda...

 

[Rudy]

Knowing Don, I would've figured it was how you're supposed to count the 2nd repeat of the 9-bar D-section leading into the the 13/8 D.S. al coda...

I still can't get 3⅔/4 time through my head...

 

[JOv2]

I still can't get 3⅔/4 time through my head...

Well, mathematically, you can take it to 11/12. Of course, I assumed there was no such thing as a "twelfth" note per se (...er, except in Don Ellis' world); but, lo and behold, from Wikipedia: twelfth notes are one eighth note in an eighth note triplet. Who would've guessed?

 

[Moritat]

Don Ellis was very underrated and overlooked. Had some great lps on Pacific Jazz, Columbia and New Jazz/Prestige. Some great soloing on this one...

 

[rbisherw]

Attn: Don Ellis fans

Don Ellis "Live in Europe" 2 CD concert from 1968 available soon from Sleepy NIght in the UK.
This is soundboard recording, so should have decent sound quality.

 

[rbisherw]

My copy of "Live in Europe" should arrive this week.
Keeping my fingers crossed the audio is as good as promised by Sleepy Night.

 

[Rudy]

My copy of "Live in Europe" should arrive this week.
Keeping my fingers crossed the audio is as good as promised by Sleepy Night.

Let us know how it sounds!

I played a couple of Ellis tracks last week, between doing needle drops of some John Klemmer albums. I had to hear the Ellis version of "Excursion #2" (which Klemmer plays on) from the Fillmore album.

 

[rbisherw]

Let us know how it sounds!

I played a couple of Ellis tracks last week, between doing needle drops of some John Klemmer albums. I had to hear the Ellis version of "Excursion #2" (which Klemmer plays on) from the Fillmore album.

Copy arrived and I gotta say, pleasantly surprised.

Certainly not an audiophile grade (think ECM) recording, however quite good. * Detected a few anomalies (occasional slight fade out and tape hiss), however the recording is certainly well above "bootleg quality" and sound is better than the live tracks from side two of Autumn" which were recorded a few weeks after this release with the same personnel.

A must purchase for Ellis fans and if you like John Klemmer, he is featured prominently on KC Blues and Last Summers Spell.

* in all fairness, I may be over critical, as I have a good system and my first "critical" listen was through excellent (Senn HD800) headphones.