Customer Reviews

The Ellington Album"All Too Soon"

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Milt Jackson's recording legacy offers many great albums. This is certainly one of them, and if you're only planning to have one album of jazz vibes in your collection, this would be a very good choice. It has the winning combination of classic artists - in addition to Jackson on vibes, there's Joe Pass on guitar and Ray Brown on bass - and classic material from the Ellington songbook.
This 1980 studio session has 11 tracks totaling about 48 minutes. The mood is mostly soft and slow, although a couple of tracks are more lively ("Caravan," "I'm Beginning to See the Light"). The performances are capable of satisfying on a variety of levels: pure jazz listening, soothing background music, or the soundtrack to an evening of romance (in particular, "All Too Soon," "Mood Indigo," "Solitude," "In a Sentimental Mood"). As jazz masters will do, these guys created their own unique interpretation of the Ellington tunes. For example, "Take the `A' Train" is slow and bluesy, and "Solitude" is done in a light Latin style.
Joe Pass fans will love this album too, and Ray Brown makes his mark nicely, especially on "Rocks in My Bed" and "Sophisticated Lady." If there's any drawback to this CD, it's the lack of liner notes to give jazz buffs the inside story. But the musical experience is all that a jazz lover would want it to be.

Okay, let's just check out the names associated with this side: Milt Jackson, Joe Pass, Ray Brown, Mickey Roker, and Duke Ellington. And you are wondering if the album is very good? DUH!!