Duke Ellington

Pictures

Listen to, buy or share

Buy

Buy on Amazon Amazon Expand purchase options
  • Digital download
  • Amazon Amazon
  • 7digital 7digital
  • Juno Juno
  • iTunes iTunes
  • Physical media
  • Amazon Amazon Search
  • eBay eBay Search
  • 7,823,629
    scrobbles
  • 620,244
    listeners

Tags

Everyone’s tags

Biography

Duke Ellington (Edward Kennedy Ellington, Washington, D.C., 29 April, 1899 - New York City, 24 May, 1974), was an American composer, pianist, and bandleader.

Through the ranks of Duke Ellington’s Orchestra passed some of the biggest names in jazz, including Johnny Hodges, Cootie Williams, Bubber Miley, Joe “Tricky Sam” Nanton, Barney Bigard, Ben Webster, Harry Carney, Sonny Greer, Otto Hardwick, Clark Terry, Jimmy Blanton, Ray Nance, Paul Gonsalves, and Wellman Braud. Many musicians stayed with him for decades. And while all of them were remarkable in their own right, and they all would have probably made it into the annals of jazz history no matter who they played for, it was Ellington’s genius as a composer, pianist, bandleader, celebrity personality, and, most importantly, arranger, that made them the most incredible orchestral unit in the history of jazz. His ability to write and arrange for personalities, rather than instruments, made every solo and every section of every arrangement breathe with character. A giant on the 20th century American cultural scene, Duke Ellington was widely regarded as a legend during his own lifetime.

Early life

Edward Kennedy Ellington was born on April 29, 1899 to James Edward Ellington and Daisy Kennedy Ellington. They lived with his maternal grandparents at 2129 Ward Place, NW in Washington, D.C. James Edward Ellington was born in Lincolnton, North Carolina on April 15, 1879 and moved to Washington, D.C. in 1886 with his parents.[4] Daisy Kennedy, was born in Washington, D.
Read more… Edit bio

Featured tracks

Featured tracks

Top Albums

Listening Trend

620,244listeners all time
7,823,629scrobbles all time
Recent listeners trend:

Start scrobbling and track your listening history

Last.fm users scrobble the music they play in iTunes, Spotify, Rdio and over 200 other music players.

Create a Last.fm profile

Shoutbox

Leave a comment. Log in to Last.fm or sign up.

Listening Now

Top Listeners

Email Newsletter

Universal Music Group Get exclusive tour, release & promotion updates on Duke Ellington from Universal Music.