Joe Jackson - The Duke FLAC

he Duke finds Joe Jackson interpreting 15 Ellington classics over the course of ten tracks, interspersing melodic and rhythmic elements of various compositions in a manner that's consistent with Ellington's own freewheeling approach. Rather than emulating the songs' original big-band settings, Jackson filters the material through his own musical imagination while exploring an assortment of unexpected grooves and textures. The resulting album is a seamless fusion of sounds and styles, whose abundant sense of playfulness is consistent with Ellington's boundary-breaking attitude.

Jackson’s distinctive voice is featured on I’m Beginning To See The Light, Mood Indigo, and I Got It Bad (And That Ain’t Good), while It Don’t Mean A Thing (If It Ain’t Got That Swing) finds him trading vocals with punk icon Iggy Pop. R&B diva Sharon Jones, meanwhile, shines with a soulful I Ain’t Got Nothin’ But The Blues. In keeping with Ellington’s multiculturalism, Jackson also encouraged Iranian singer Sussan Deyhim to perform a soaring Caravan in Farsi, and Lilian Vieira, of the Brazilian/Dutch collective Zuco 103, to create a sunny, sexy Portuguese version of Perdido.

The album’s striking mix of electronic and organic textures is especially evident on instrumentals like Isfahan featuring Steve Vai and Berlin electronic musician Kris Ingram Lanzaro, Rockin’ In Rhythm, The Mooche, and Black and Tan Fantasy. The musicians include two contemporary jazz stars, violinist Regina Carter and bassist Christian McBride; rock guitar hero Steve Vai; drummer Ahmir 'Questlove’ Thompson and other members of The Roots; and two of Jackson’s old associates, guitarist Vinnie Zummo and percussionist Sue Hadjopoulos. Two album tracks (PERDIDO and IT DON'T MEAN A THING) were recorded in collaboration with Zuco 103 at their studio in Amsterdam. The remaining tracks were recorded, and the whole album mixed, in New York by legendary producer/engineer Elliot Scheiner.

Though The Duke is a tribute album, it’s also very much a Joe Jackson album, consistent with his long-standing sense of musical adventure.