Back to Back: Duke Ellington and Johnny Hodges Play the Blues explained

Back to Back
Type:	studio
Artist:	Duke Ellington and Johnny Hodges
Cover:	backtobackduke.jpg
Released:	1959
Recorded:	February 20, 1959 - Columbia Studios, New York
Genre:	Jazz
Length:	40:02
Label:	Verve
Producer:	Norman Granz

Back to Back is a 1959 studio album by Johnny Hodges and Duke Ellington. It was followed by Side by Side (1959), which combines three tracks recorded at one of the same sessions with six tracks recorded in August 1958 by a different, Hodges-led group that did not include Ellington.^[1]

Track listing

1. "Wabash Blues" (Fred Meinken, Dave Ringle) – 6:22
2. "Basin Street Blues" (Spencer Williams) – 8:05
3. "Beale Street Blues" (W. C. Handy) – 7:40
4. "Weary Blues" (Artie Matthews) – 6:50
5. "St. Louis Blues" (Handy) – 5:45
6. "Loveless Love" (Handy) – 6:05
7. "Royal Garden Blues" (Clarence Williams, Spencer Williams) – 5:20

Personnel

• Duke Ellington – piano
• Johnny Hodges – alto saxophone
• Harry "Sweets" Edison – trumpet
• Les Spann – guitar
• Al Hall – bass (tracks 1 and 4)
• Sam Jones – bass (tracks 2, 3, 5, 6, 7)
• Jo Jones – drums

The tracks with Sam Jones were recorded February 20, 1959, while those with Al Hall were recorded 6 days later. A Fresh Sound CD adds the 3 tracks from Side by Side with this same group.

Notes and References

1. https://www.jazzdisco.org/verve-records/catalog-8300-series/ Verve Records Catalog: 8300 series