There are many albums that give tribute to the legendary Duke Ellington, but most of the time they simply reproduce the big band hits. Regrettable is the fact that small group units and Ellington compositions from the 1950s tend to get lost in the mist of hits like “Take The ‘A’ Train” , which is actually included here.But what bandleader and conga player RJ Spangler has done is bring to light overlooked songs of the immortal Duke Ellington, and the cache that has been delivered here mixes vintage Ducal delights with a dash of modernity, successfully augmented by the Spangler’s percolating congas. The band consists of Michael Zaporski/p, Trevor Lamb/b, Sean Poerlmutter/dr, Alex Harding/bs, Ryan Bills/ts, Cristpher Tabaczzynski/ts-cl, Goode Wyche III/bs-cl, James O’Donnell/tp-pec, Tbone Paxtone/tb, Charlie Miller/tp and Kasan Belgrave/cl, and they create, as oppose to re-create sounds of Ellingtonia.
You get some vintage trombone plunging deeper that a Kardashian neck line on the growling “The Swingers Get The Blues Too,” while the wild “Tigress” has wailing reeds from Tabaczynski and Colista. Tbone Paxton swings and sings through “Moon Maiden” and O’Donnell does an impressive Satchmo voice as he scats through “A Train”. Lamb and Zaporski have fun conversing on a playful “Purple Gazelle” and jungle reeds and wah wah brass sweat it out on “Almost Cried”. No Ellington album would be complete without some thick baritone sax, and Wyche KKK delivers on ‘VIP’s Boogie” and holds down the foundation on the percussive avalanche of “Tigress”. This album is filled with sounds that are timeless treasures. Any trips coming to the West Coast? These guys are a gas!