Dearest Duke is a studio album by American singer Carol Sloane. It also features Ken Peplowski (playing clarinet and saxophone) and Brad Hatfield (playing piano). The album was released on June 12, 2007 by Arbors Records and featured 12 tracks paying tribute to Duke Ellington. The collection received critical acclaim following its release from publications like The Washington Post and the Jazz Times.
Background, recording and content Carol Sloane first had success in jazz during the 1960s when she recorded for Columbia Records. However, her career stalled after two albums despite a continued output of material recorded for the Japanese market (where jazz had a larger fan base). In the late 1980s, her carer was reignited when she recorded critically-acclaimed albums for the Contemporary and Concord Jazz labels. She continued recording into the new millennium, which included Dearest Duke. The project was recorded in January 2007 at the Peter Contrimas Studio in Westwood, Massachusetts. Serving as co-producers were Sloane herself, along with Ken Peploswki, Mat Domber and Rachel Domber. Dearest Duke consisted of 12 tracks all recorded as a tribute to jazz musician, Duke Ellington. A majority of the album's tracks are ballads in collaboration with pianist Brad Hatfield and clarinet-saxophonist Brad Peplowski.
Release and critical reception Dearest Duke was released by Arbors Records on June 12, 2007 and was offered as a compact disc (CD) upon its original release. It was also offered digitally. The album generated a positive critical reception. Christopher Loudon of the Jazz Times praised Sloane's interpretation of Ellington's tracks and her ability to blend with the instrumentalists: "Her ability to shape 11 duskily majestic tracks supported by just piano (courtesy of Brad Hatfield) plus touches of woodwind and brass (with Ken Peplowski alternating on clarinet and sax) simply heightens their magnificence." Matt Schudel of The Washington Post praised Sloane and the album, writing, "This is the finest vocal album I've heard all year, and if Carol Sloane isn't America's greatest living jazz singer, then no one deserves the title." Ronnie D. Lankford, Jr. of AllMusic rated it three and a half stars, also praising Sloane's ability to make Ellington's songs her own and concluding, "There's something to be said for bringing all musical elements to bear on the singer and the song, and this approach works just fine on Dearest Duke."
Track listing
Personnel All credits are adapted from the liner notes of Dearest Duke.
Musical and technical personnel Jim Czak – Mastering, mixing Mat Domber – Producer Rachel Domber – Producer Brad Hatfield – Piano Ben Kontrinas – Engineer Ken Peploswki – Clarinet, tenor saxophone, vocals (track 12), producer Carol Sloane – Vocals, producer, audio production Eric Stephen Jacobs – Cover design, cover photo
Release history + Release history and formats for Dearest Duke Region Date Format Label Ref. Various June 12, 2007 Arbors Records
References