Duke Ellington Ellington & Coltrane

Personnel: Duke Ellington (piano); John Coltrane (tenor & soprano saxophones); Jimmy Garrison, Aaron Bell (bass); Elvin Jones, Sam Woodyard (drums). Recorded at The Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey on September 26, 1962.The classic 1962 album Duke Ellington & John Coltrane showcased the rising jazz saxophone innovator performing alongside the long-established piano institution. While the pairing might have portended a dynamic clash of the musical generations, instead we got a casual, respectful, and musically generous meeting of like-minded souls. Similarly, while one might have assumed that Ellington would use his sidemen, instead producer Bob Thiele (who also produced similar albums for Ellington including pairings with Louis Armstrong and Coleman Hawkins) chose to bring in Coltrane's own outfit for the proceedings. Consequently, the duo is backed here at various times by bassist Jimmy Garrison and drummer Elvin Jones, as well as alternates bassist Aaron Bell a