Duke Ellington – Newport to Paris (1969)

1. Black Power (4:37)
2. Take the A Train (5:53)
3. Up Jump (Tenor Saxophonic Calisthenics) (3:00)
4. Black Butterfly (4:02)
5. Things Ain’t What They Used to Be (3:06)
6. El Gato (3:15)
7. Satin Doll (3:29)
8. Diminuendo and Crescendo in Blue (8:45)

Paris, France Salle Pleyel
November 1, 1969

trumpets: Cat Anderson, Cootie Williams, Mercer Ellington, Nelson “Cadillac” Williams
trombone: Lawrence Brown, Chuck Connors
saxophones: Johnny Hodges, Russell Procope, Norris Turney, Paul Gonsalves, Harold Ashby, Don Byas, Harry Carney
piano: Duke Ellington
bass: Victor Gaskin
drums: Rufus Jones

1969 marked Duke Ellington’s 70th year, and in honor of the occasion, Jazz Impresario George Wein sent Ellington and his band out on a European tour, a 70th birthday tour, so to speak. In a brief concert series entitled “Newport to Paris”, for the first time on record we have the chance to hear Duke and the band performing live in Paris, and the Salle Pleyel in November, 1969. On this night we hear Duke and his orchestra in rare form, presenting a few of such newly written compositions, featuring luminaries like Cootie Williams, Johnny Hodges, Lawrence Brown, Russell Procope, Paul Gonsalves, Cat Anderson and even special guest Don Byas.