Table of Contents

Contents
1. You can feel it all over: Duke Ellington's impact on Modern Music
Foreword
Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington
Stevie Wonder
Steely Dan
Miles Davis
Sun Ra
James Brown
Sly Stone
George Clinton
A Discussion with Frank "Kash" Waddy
Prince
Frank Zappa
Gunther Schuller
Charles Mingus
Ravi Shankar
Afterword
Ellington Recordings
Ellington's Legacy

About the Author

Peter Lavezzoli is the author of The King of All, Sir Duke: Ellington and the Artistic Revolution, which is also published by Continuum. As a percussionist and vocalist, Lavezzoli explores the connection between musical and spiritual expression. He lives in Fort Lauderdale, FL

Reviews

"[A] total and contagious awe for one of jazz's greatest composers. Lavezzoli's interviews afford vivid behind-the-scenes details." --Publishers Weekly

"Inspired by the lyrics of Stevie Wonder's 1976 hit "Sir Duke," this work contains an interesting and controversial mix of material....presenting Ellington through the work of stylistically dissimilar musicians forces the reader to listen to Ellington with new ears." --Library Journal

"Peter Lavezzoli has written a fine book about Duke Ellington, one that will find a home in many libraries and homes. The King of All, Sir Duke: Ellington and the Artistic Revolution reveals the wonder that was Duke Ellington. In addition to an excellent foreword, there is a section detailing Ellington, followed by selections concerning individuals touched in some way by Ellington. If you read only one jazz book this year, please make this the one you decide to read! A truly remarkable book. You can feel the man behind the legend, and you can fully comprehend what a great American talent and genius Duke Ellington was, and remains." -www.jazzreview.com

"A labor of love." --JazzTimes

His total and contagious awe for one of jazz's greatest composers, bandleaders and ambassadors notwithstanding, Lavezzoli doesn't add much to Ellington's legend. A fellow musician as well as a musicologist, Lavezzoli avoids standard biography in this paean to his hero, describing Ellington's life in just a few pages. The bulk of the book explores other musicians' links to Ellington through interviews with musicians and jazz critics about his life and legacy. Certainly, Ellington has influenced countless musicians viz the book's title, from Stevie Wonder's tribute song but Lavezzoli only partially succeeds at delineating these links. He convincingly cites rocker Frank Zappa's intriguing debts, as a composer and a businessman, to Ellington, but other connections remain vague: that Ellington and funk star George Clinton share an "emphasis on freedom of expression in a large band context" isn't pithy enough. Lavezzoli's interviews sometimes afford vivid behind-the-scenes details: according to one musician, Ellington would chastise a band member who had been carousing too much by featuring him, thereby making him work harder. But often the interviews lapse into lingo too obscure for the nonspecialist, e.g., Butch Ballard describes a fellow musician playing with "A lot of press rolls, closed choke-cymbal stuff, and a whole lot of 2/4." (Apr.) Forecast: Ken Burns's recent PBS blockbuster has summoned a ready audience for all things jazz. But with its combination of overly familiar historical information and inaccessible interview material, this book is unlikely to reach many readers. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

"[A] total and contagious awe for one of jazz's greatest composers. Lavezzoli's interviews afford vivid behind-the-scenes details." --Publishers Weekly
"Inspired by the lyrics of Stevie Wonder's 1976 hit "Sir Duke," this work contains an interesting and controversial mix of material....presenting Ellington through the work of stylistically dissimilar musicians forces the reader to listen to Ellington with new ears." --Library Journal
"Peter Lavezzoli has written a fine book about Duke Ellington, one that will find a home in many libraries and homes. The King of All, Sir Duke: Ellington and the Artistic Revolution reveals the wonder that was Duke Ellington. In addition to an excellent foreword, there is a section detailing Ellington, followed by selections concerning individuals touched in some way by Ellington. If you read only one jazz book this year, please make this the one you decide to read! A truly remarkable book. You can feel the man behind the legend, and you can fully comprehend what a great American talent and genius Duke Ellington was, and remains." -www.jazzreview.com
"A labor of love." --JazzTimes