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The Kid Should See This

VIP Boogie / Jam With Sam – Duke Ellington and his Orchestra (1962)

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Recorded in New York City on January 9, 1962, this is VIP Boogie and Jam With Sam from a short film documenting Duke Ellington and his Orchestra. Featured performers include Harry Carney, Jimmy Hamilton, Harold Baker, Paul Gonslaves, Lawrence Brown, Russell Procope, Bill Berry, Ray Nance and Cat Anderson.

The performance is from one of five short jazz films sponsored by the Goodyear Tire Company in the early 1960s. The films faded and turned pink over the years, but were remastered by Storyville Records, “a Scandinavian outfit that’s been in the restoration business for decades.”

Here’s another performance from the film: the classic hit Take the A Train. Cornetist Ray Nance is featured throughout.

Next: Ella Fitzgerald with Duke Ellington perform It Don’t Mean A Thing.

Plus: Glenn Miller, the Nicholas Brothers, and Dorothy Dandridge in 1941, and in 1939: Viola Smith Drums with Frances Carroll & Her Coquettes.

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