Duke Ellington, Fargo, North Dakota, 7 November 1940 (Complete) Disc Two

The complete recording of Duke Ellington Orchestra’s 7 November 1940 concert at the Crystal Ballroom in Fargo, North Dakota continues on disc two. The music was recorded to acetate by two forward-thinking jazz fans, Jack Towers and Dick Buriss. Exactly 30 days later Japan attacked Pearl Harbor and the U.S. entered WW2. Duke helped sell war bonds and recorded Black, Brown, and Beige. Almost 24 years later Charles Mingus released Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus, produced by Bob Thiele. Gulf Of Tonkin escalated U.S. involement in Vietnam. Charlie put out Liberation Music Orchestra, also produced by Bob Thiele, six years after that. U.S. continued to bomb Vietnam and Cambodia. Disc one is here. Solid, Jackson.In this Substack podcast I listen to albums and cassettes from the collection of my father, the late jazz bassist Charlie Haden. If you like what you hear, please consider subscribing. Josh Haden’s Memoire is about life, death, jazz, slowcore, and survival. The address is joshhaden.substack.com.Check out Charlie’s record collection.Check out my eBay store.Duke Ellington at Fargo, Live 1940 (complete)Crystal Ballroom, Fargo, North Dakota7 November 1940Recorded by Jack Towers and Dick BurnsWallace Jones & Rex Stewart, trumpetsRay Nance, trumpet, violin, vocalTricky Sam Nanton, Juan Tizol, Lawrence Brown, trombonesBarney Bigard, clarinet, tenor saxJohnny Hodges, alto saxOtto Hardwick, alto sax, clarinetBen Webster, tenor saxHarry Carney, baritone sax, clarinetDuke Ellington, pianoFred Guy, guitar, whistleJimmy Blanton, bassSonny Greer, drumsIvie Anderson & Herb Jeffries, vocalDisc two track listing:* Slap Happy (E. Ellington)* Sepia Panorama (E. Ellington)* Boy Meets Horn (E. Ellington, I. Mills, R Stewart)* Way Down Yonder In New Orleans (H. Creamer, T. Layton)* Oh, Babe! Maybe Someday (E. Ellington)* The Five O’Clock Whistle (K. Gannon, W. Irwin, J. Myrow)* Fanfare (E. Ellington)* Rockin’ In Rhythm (E. Ellington, T. Mills, H. Carney)* Sophisticated Lady (E. Ellington, T. Mills, H. Parish)* Cotton Tail (incomplete) (E. Ellington)* Whispering Grass (D. & F. Fisher)* Conga Brava (E. Ellington, J. Tizol)* I Never Felt This Way Before (A Dubin, E. Ellington)* (chaser)* Across The Track Blues (E. Ellington)* Honeysuckle Rose (A. Razaf, T. Waller)* Wham! (E. Durham, J.T. Miller)* Star Dust (H. Carmichael, M. Parish)* Rose Of The Rio Grande (E. Leslie, H. Warren)* St. Louis Blues (W.C. Handy)* Warm Valley (E. Ellington)* God Bless America (I. Berlin)* Herb Jeffries attempts The Call Of The Canyon (W.J. Hill); chaser; All This And Heaven Too (E.D. Lange, J.V. Heusen)All words & images © 2025 Josh Haden, except where noted. All rights reserved.Josh Haden's Mémoire is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit joshhaden.substack.com/subscribe