Piano in the Foreground


Piano in the Foreground is an album by American pianist, composer and bandleader Duke Ellington recorded and released on the Columbia label in 1961. It features Ellington in a piano trio setting, emphasising his own keyboard prowess rather than the big band arrangements more typical of his recordings.

Reception

The Allmusic review by Scott Yanow awarded the album 4 stars and stated "This rare trio session by Duke Ellington was the first of several in the early '60s that featured his piano in a variety of settings. It is particularly interesting hearing Ellington, along with three standards and a blues, performing some of his rarer compositions... One wishes that today's revivalists when playing "the Duke Ellington Songbook" would bring back some of his true obscurities such as the ones on this somewhat forgotten session".

Track listing

:All compositions by Duke Ellington except as indicated
  1. "I Can't Get Started" - 4:23
  2. "Cong-Go" - 4:16
  3. "Body and Soul" - 4:49
  4. "Blues for Jerry" - 4:38
  5. "Fontainebleau Forest" - 2:53
  6. "Summertime" - 3:52
  7. "It's Bad to Be Forgotten" - 3:22
  8. "A Hundred Dreams Ago" - 2:26
  9. "So" - 4:33
  10. "Searching " - 1:49
  11. "Springtime in Africa" - 3:46
  12. "Lotus Blossom" - 3:18
  13. "All the Things You Are" - 4:00 Bonus track on CD reissue
  14. "All the Things You Are" - 3:51 Bonus track on CD reissue
  15. "Piano Improvisation No. 2" - 3:25 Bonus track on CD reissue
  16. "Piano Improvisation No. 3" - 2:48 Bonus track on CD reissue
  17. "Piano Improvisation No. 4" - 1:53 Bonus track on CD reissue
  18. "Piano Improvisation No. 1" - 9:45 Bonus track on CD reissue