Side By Side (Remastered) Duke Ellington & Johnny Hodges

• 1 Stompy Jones 06:37
• 2 Squeeze Me 04:35
• 3 Big Shoe 05:33
• 4 Going Up 04:50
• 5 Just A Memory 05:52
• 6 Let's Fall In Love 06:46
• 7 Ruint 02:32
• 8 Bend One 02:58
• 9 You Need To Rock 05:51
• Total Runtime 45:34

Info for Side By Side (Remastered)

When Norman Granz signed Johnny Hodges to a recording contract in 1951, it was a prelude to Hodges's leaving the Duke Ellington orchestra to lead his own small band. Four years later Hodges was back in the Ellington fold, but he continued to record for Granz under his own name. Side by Side, recorded in 1958 and 1959, is a throwback to the small-group sessions Ellington recorded with Hodges and other members of his orchestra in the Thirties, but with a couple of important differences: the absence of Ellington himself on several cuts (with Billy Strayhorn taking over at the piano), and the presence of such notable non-Ellingtonians as drummer Jo Jones and trumpeters Roy Eldridge and Harry "Sweets" Edison.



The most awesome, the most swinging rhythm group of all times! Fantastic winds! There’s only one guy who can make an alto saxophone sound like this – somewhere between melancholy and aggressiveness! Superlative after superlative come to mind when you listen to these nine numbers, which were recorded at the end of the Fifties.


The idea of scaling down Ellington’s band for jam-session-like numbers is absolutely genial because it offers soloists great opportunities to display their artistry. And these wind musicians are the best of the best, masters of their instruments. We have Roy Eldridge, who influenced the transition from swing to be-bop and a modern style of trumpet playing; Harry Edison, whose light and airy Basie-swing style cannot be denied; and Ben Webster, who amalgamates both the Count’s and the Duke’s style of swing. And then there is Johnny “The Rabbit” Hodges, whose natural feeling for rhythm and gentle tone is brought to optimal expression within this concept.
Squeeze Me and Stompy Jones both stem from the Forties and are often performed, but in this session they have been rejuvenated in a masterly fashion. The standard Let’s Fall In Love demonstrates Lawrence Brown’s highly personal sound on the trombone and then goes on to spotlight Roy Eldridge and Johnny Hodges, both of whom prove that they are at the very zenith of their artistic prowess. Ruint and Going Up provide a showcase for Johnny Hodges, while Just A Memory focuses on the gentle, sometimes rather sentimental sound of Ben Webster.

Duke Ellington, Piano
Johnny Hodges, Alto Saxophone
Ben Webster, Tenor Saxophone
Roy Eldridge, Trumpet
Harry "Sweets" Edison, Trumpet
Lawrence Brown, Trombone
Les Spann, Flute & Guitar
Billy Strayhorn, Piano
Al Hall, Bass
Wendell Marshall, Bass
Jo Jones, Drums

Original sessions produced by Norman Granz.
Tacks 1, 2, and 4 recorded February 20, 1959, Columbia Studios, New York City.
Tracks 3 and 5-9 recorded August 14, 1958 at Nola Studios, New York City.

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