Ray Nance
Ray Nance was a multi-talented individual. He was a fine trumpeter who not only replaced Cootie Williams with Duke Ellington's Orchestra, but gave the "plunger" position in Duke's band his own personality. In addition, Nance was one of the finest jazz violinists of the 1940s, an excellent jazz singer, and even a dancer. He studied piano, took lessons on violin, and was self-taught on trumpet. After leading a small group in Chicago (1932-1937), spending periods with the orchestras of Earl Hines (1937-1938) and Horace Henderson (1939-1940), and a few months as a solo act, Nance joined Duke Ellington's orchestra. His very first night on the job was fully documented as the band's legendary Fargo concert. A very valuable sideman, Nance played a famous trumpet solo on the original version of "Take the 'A' Train" and proved to be a fine wa-wa player; his violin added color to the suite "Black, Brown and Beige" (in addition to being showcased on numerous songs), and his singing on numbers such as "A Slip of a Lip Will Sink a Ship" and "Tulip or Turnip" was an added feature. Nance was with Ellington with few interruptions until 1963; by then the returning Cootie Williams had taken some of his glory. The remainder of Nance's career was relatively insignificant, with occasional small-group dates, gigs with Brooks Kerr and Chris Barber (touring England in 1974), and a few surprisingly advanced sideman recordings with Jaki Byard and Chico Hamilton.
© Scott Yanow /TiVo
Discography
7 album(s) • Sorted by Bestseller
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Body and Soul
Contemporary Jazz - Released by Stardust Records on Aug. 1, 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Black, Brown and Beige (Mono Version)
Duke Ellington and His Orchestra, Mahalia Jackson, Ray Nance
Jazz - Released by BNF Collection on Jan. 1, 1959
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
A Flower Is a Lovesome Thing
Jazz - Released by Charlie Parker Records on Oct. 28, 1959
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
All that Jazz, Vol.3, Duke Ellington Meets Louis Armstrong: Black, Brown and Beige – Satchmo at Duke’s Place
Mahalia Jackson, Louis Armstrong, Ray Nance, Duke Ellington and His Orchestra, Duke Ellington
Jazz - Released by Jube Pops on Mar. 4, 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
A Flower Is A Lonesome Thing
Jazz - Released by CoolNote on Apr. 30, 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Black, Brown And Beige
Duke Ellington, Mahalia Jackson, Ray Nance
Vocal Music (Secular and Sacred) - Released by PnR on Jan. 1, 1958
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Ray Ellington Quartet with Ray Nance - EP
The Ray Ellington Quartet, Ray Nance
Jazz - Released by SINETONE AMR on Jun. 30, 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo