For 42 years (with a four-year interruption), altoist
Johnny Hodges was the top soloist in the
Duke Ellington Orchestra. This excellent CD reissue has the eight selections (plus an alternate take) from
Hodges's two Bluebird sessions from 1940-41; among the sidemen on such classics as "Day Dream," "Good Queen Bess," "Passion Flower," and "Things Ain't What They Used to Be" are either
Cootie Williams or
Ray Nance on trumpet, trombonist
Lawrence Brown, and
Ellington himself. In addition there are 13 selections by the
Duke Ellington Orchestra from 1940-46 that feature
Hodges including "Don't Get Around Anymore," "In a Mellotone," "Warm Valley," "I Got It Bad," and "Come Sunday." This is classic music that has been intelligently repackaged. ~ Scott Yanow