Duke Ellington is universally recognized as one of the towering figures of 20th-century music, both a brilliant composer and one of the preeminent musicians in jazz history. From early pieces such as East St. Louis Toodle-O , Black and Tan Fantasy , It Don't Mean a Thing , and Mood Indigo , to his more complex works such as Reminiscing in Tempo and Black, Brown and Beige , to his later suites and sacred concerts, he left an indelible mark on the musical world. Now, in The Duke Ellington Reader , Mark Tucker offers the first historical anthology of writings about this major African-American musician. The volume includes over a hundred selections--interviews, critical essays, reviews, memoirs, and over a dozen writings by Ellington himself--with generous introductions and annotations for each selection provided by the editor. The result is a unique sourcebook that illuminates Ellington's work and reveals the profound impact his music has made on listeners over the years. The writers gathered here represent a Who's Who of jazz criticism: Gunther Schuller, Whitney Balliett, Martin Williams, Gary Giddins, Stanley Crouch, Albert Murray, Nat Hentoff, Hugues Panassie, Stanley Dance, to name just a few. Their writings span Ellington's entire career, from the days when Duke Ellington's Washingtonians appeared at New York's Club Kentucky ("Probably the 'hottest' band this side of the equator"), to the Duke's glorious reign at the Cotton Club, to his later years as global ambassador of American music. Tucker has included some of the classic essays written about Ellington, such as R. D. Darrell's "Black Beauty," the first significant critical essay on Ellington's work and still one of the most important; Richard O. Boyer's lengthy New Yorker profile "The Hot Bach," printed here in its entirety; and Martin Williams's "Form Beyond Form," one of the best capsule introductions to Ellington's art. Throughout the book, the reader receives a balanced overview of Ellington's life as composer and performer, as public personality and private individual. Tucker provides a number of pieces on Ellington's compositions, including an entire chapter devoted to critical response to Ellington's Black, Brown and Beige , and there are also many moving pieces on Ellington the man, such as Ralph Ellison's tribute to Ellington on his 70th birthday, and Stanley Dance's funeral address. Finally, Tucker rounds out the collection with profiles on many of the outstanding musicians who worked with Ellington, among them Johnny Hodges, Bubber Miley, Billy Strayhorn, Ivie Anderson, Sonny Greer, Joe "Tricky Sam" Nanton, and Ben Webster. This is a landmark volume in jazz criticism, a kaleidoscopic portrait of Duke Ellington's creative world, documenting his extraordinary achievements as composer, songwriter, bandleader, and pianist. It is an essential companion for Ellington enthusiasts, jazz fans, and serious students of American music. This superb anthology covers the entire length of the composer's career, from his landfall in Manhattan in 1923 to the Old Master period of the early 1970s. There are dozens of reviews, essays, appreciations, and memoirs, written not only by music critics but by such heavy hitters as Ralph Ellison, Simone de Beauvoir(!), and Blaise Cendrars. The book also includes a selection of Ellington's own dicta--be sure not to overlook his 1937 polemic from "Down Beat": "Ellington Refutes Cry That Swing Started Sex Crimes!" Superbly edited and endlessly intriguing, the Reader is an essential volume for Ellington nuts and neophytes alike. YA-A wonderfully comprehensive volume devoted to the music of Duke Ellington. Tucker includes over 100 articles, interviews, critical essays, reviews, memoirs, plus over a dozen of Ellington's own writings. The authors of these selections include jazz critics such as Nat Hentoff, Stanley and Helen Dance, and Martin Williams, to name a few. Examples of Ellington's musical scores are interspersed throughout this marvelous anthology. With a few exceptions, the arrangement is chronological from 1917 when Duke first played professionally to 1974 when he died. The focus here is on the genius of his music within the context of the American social scene. A worthwhile addition to any library. Pat Royal, Crossland High School, Camp Springs, MD Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. This reader, compiled by Ellington expert Tucker, consists of 100 pieces about and by the bandleader, composer, and pianist. It includes mostly never-before-reprinted interviews, essays, reviews, and memoirs by such noted jazz writers as Whitney Balliett, Nat Hentoff, and Leonard Feather, along with useful introductions by the editor. Starting with the Duke's early years, the book covers in-depth the Cotton Club years (1927-32), Ellington's 1933 trip to Europe, the Swing era, and the seminal work, Black, Brown and Beige (1943). It continues by tracing the postwar critical acceptance of Ellington and the s