‘Fleurette Africaine’, by Duke Ellington, Charlie Mingus and Max Roach
Today’s track is another tune from one of my musical heroes, Mr Edward Kennedy Ellington (1899-1974), being the fragile, somewhat haunting ballad ‘Fleurette Africaine’.
This fantastic album ‘Money Jungle’ was recorded in one day (!), on September 17th, 1962. In that year, Ellington’s period with Columbia Records was at an end and this allowed him to work with musicians on a multitude of labels, which included great sessions with John Coltrane and Coleman Hawkins.
Each of the three performers are at the top of their game: Ellington’s composing and musicianship is marvelous as usual, Mingus was only a year away from releasing his historic album ‘The Black Saint And The Sinner Lady’ and Roach had just recently released his magnum opus ’We Insist! – Freedom Now Suite’, an artifact both of jazz and the Civil Rights Movement, which was very big at that time.
The fact that they were referencing something African as beautiful, and equating that with black people, was symbolic. The title ‘Fleurette Africaine’ refers to Algeria, that got its independence from France in 1962, and the other African nations who were coming out of the colonial grip. The musicians were very conscious of that, and were using their music to convey a kinship to those people who were struggling for their independence, because people were doing the same thing in the United States at that time.
Duke Ellington - Piano
Charlie Mingus - Bass
Max Roach - Drums
