Fifty years ago today, 13 May, 1970, found Duke Ellington and his Orchestra at National Recording Studio, new York to record the four portraits of New Orleans celebrities which would comprise the balance of his latest album.
The day before, Ellington tells us in his autobiography Music Is My Mistress, he was wondering how he could persuade Johnny Hodges to take up the soprano sax again in tribute to his one time mentor Sidney Bechet. But Hodges was gone.
Solo responsibilities in Portrait of Sidney Bechet, then, went to Paul Gonsalves on the tenor saxophone, honouring both Bechet and his friend and colleague Johnny Hodges.
The recordings are presented here in the order in which they were laid down at the session. A reminder, that the full album may be enjoyed here.
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