Duke DreamsDuke Dreams (subtitled The Legacy of Strayhorn-Ellington is an album of solo piano performances of material written by or associated with Duke Ellington

Duke Ellington

Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington was an American composer, pianist, and big band leader. Ellington wrote over 1,000 compositions...

 by the American jazz pianist Ran Blake

Ran Blake

Ran Blake is an American pianist and composer from Springfield, Massachusetts. In a career that spans five decades, Blake has created a unique niche in improvised music as an artist and educator...

 recorded in 1981 and released on the Italian Soul Note

Black Saint/Soul Note

Black Saint and Soul Note are two affiliated Italian jazz independent record labels. Since their conception in the 1970s, they have released albums from a variety of influential jazz musicians, particularly in the genre of free jazz.-History:...

 label.

Reception

The Allmusic review by Scott Yanow

Scott Yanow

Scott Yanow is an American jazz commentator, known for many contributions to the Allmusic website, for writing ten books on jazz and for reviewing jazz recordings for over 30 years.-Biography:...

 awarded the album 4½ stars stating "While hinting at Duke's piano style, Ran Blake often reharmonizes and greatly reinvents his music... Highly recommended".

Track listing

All compositions by Duke Ellington except as indicated

1. "Duke Dreams" (Ran Blake) - 2:58
2. "Something to Live For
   Something to Live For (song)
   "Something to Live For" is a 1939 jazz composition by Billy Strayhorn. It was the first collaboration between Strayhorn and Duke Ellington and became the first of many Strayhorn compositions to be recorded by Ellington's orchestra. The song was based on a poem Strayhorn had written as a teenager...
   
   " (Ellington, Billy Strayhorn
   Billy Strayhorn
   William Thomas "Billy" Strayhorn was an American composer, pianist and arranger, best known for his successful collaboration with bandleader and composer Duke Ellington lasting nearly three decades. His compositions include "Chelsea Bridge", "Take the "A" Train" and "Lush Life".-Early...
   
   ) - 5:42
3. "Me and You" [Take 1] - 2:20
4. "Drop Me Off in Harlem
   Drop Me Off in Harlem
   "Drop Me Off in Harlem" is a 1933 song composed by Duke Ellington, with lyrics written by Nick Kenny.A.H. Lawrence writes that the song originated from an off the cuff remark from Ellington. Nick Kenny had hailed a taxi, and offered to share it with Ellington. Kenny asked "Where to, Duke?", and...
   
   " - 2:04
5. "Duke" (Dave Brubeck
   Dave Brubeck
   David Warren "Dave" Brubeck is an American jazz pianist. He has written a number of jazz standards, including "In Your Own Sweet Way" and "The Duke". Brubeck's style ranges from refined to bombastic, reflecting his mother's attempts at classical training and his improvisational skills...
   
   ) - 3:45
6. "Blue Rose" - 2:49
7. "It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)
   It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)
   "It Don't Mean a Thing " is a 1931 composition by Duke Ellington, with lyrics by Irving Mills, now accepted as a jazz standard. The music was written and arranged by Ellington in August 1931 during intermissions at Chicago's Lincoln Tavern and was first recorded by Ellington and his orchestra for...
   
   " - 2:52
8. "Black and Tan Fantasy
   Black and Tan Fantasy
   Black and Tan is a musical short film written by Dudley Murphy that exhibits the ideas and thoughts of The Harlem Renaissance Movement. Duke Ellington's musical talents along with Fredi Washington's extraordinary acting potential make this movie a good example of the emergence of artistic culture...
   
   " (Ellington, Bubber Miley) - 5:15
9. "Animal Crackers" (Sam Coslow
   Sam Coslow
   Sam Coslow was an American songwriter, singer, film producer, publisher, and market analyst. Coslow was born in New York City. He began writing songs as a teenager...
   
   , Harry Link
   Harry Link
   Harry Link, born Harry Linkey was an American songwriter. He wrote or co-wrote several well-known jazz standards....
   
   , Fred Rich
   Fred Rich
   Frederic Efrem "Fred" Rich was a Polish-born American bandleader and composer who was active from the 1920s to the 1950s. Among the famous musicians in his band included the Dorsey Brothers, Joe Venuti, Bunny Berigan and Benny Goodman. In the early 1930s, Elmer Feldkamp was one of his...
   
   ) - 1:26
10. "Me and You" [Take 2] - 1:58
11. "Sophisticated Lady
    Sophisticated Lady
    "Sophisticated Lady" is a jazz standard, composed as an instrumental in 1932 by Duke Ellington and Irving Mills, to which words were added by Mitchell Parish. The words met with approval from Ellington, who described them as "wonderful—but not entirely fitted to my original conception".That...
    
    " (Ellington, Mills) - 2:27
12. "Take the "A" Train" (Strayhorn) - 5:38
    • Recorded at Barigozzi Studio in Milano, Italy on May 27 and June 2, 1981