“You know, I want you to make a record with me,
And I’m going to write a number specially for you.”
Duke Ellington
We’ve all been there. We’ve run into an old friend we haven’t seen in a while. We remember. We catch up. And before we part, we promise to get together soon.
When Duke Ellington ran into Colman Hawkins and said the above quote, I don’t think either of them thought it would take twenty years to put an album together. It did but they never forget the date.
With both of their careers firmly established, Ellington as a big band leader and Hawkins as the first great tenor saxophonist, they took a brief moment from their busy schedules to sit down at Rudy Van Gelder’s studio on August 18, 1962.
Yes, they only had one day and it was an afternoon session. There would be no need for practice. Ellington brought his regulars and Hawkins would only need to a couple songs under his belt to get to speed.
True to his word Ellington wrote a song for Hawkins called “Self Portrait of the Bean”, which is Hawkins' nickname. But my favorite song on the album is “Limbo Jazz”, a spry calypso number conceived midway through the session, like Ellington threw on an apron and put together a little number with his bassist and drummer, adding a few horns here and there and asking his guest to add the finishing touches.
Hawkins returned the favor by improvising a wonderful ending solo, his expressive sound as natural as breathing and as beautiful as a warm ocean breeze.
When you listen, take note of the drummer, Sam Woodyard, singing along, completely unaware that not only was their improv being recorded it would also end up as the first song on the album.
- Dave
