Many of this three-CD set's tracks are available elsewhere, excepting three previously unreleased performances from the 1968 Newport Jazz Festival announcement party, long-unavailable recordings made specifically for Reader's Digest (plus some unreleased alternate takes), as well as unissued rehearsals for the bandleader's guest appearance with Arthur Fiedler & the Boston Pops. The press party is a noisy affair and the recording quality is hardly polished, as the crowd can't seem to shut up during Ellington's rollicking "Sweet Fat and That," "Satin Doll," and "Carolina Shout" (erroneously credited to Ellington instead of James P. Johnson), which is suddenly broken off by the pianist, who seems to be a tad rusty. The Eastbourne tracks represent the band in its decline; although veterans Harry Carney and Russell Procope were still around, the lack of many other star soloists is noticeable, and although there are some excellent musicians present (Johnny Coles, Harold Ashby, and Harold Minerve, to name a few), the band is clearly running out of steam. The music from the 1965 Pittsburgh Jazz Festival, featuring Ellington in a duet with Earl Hines, a solo performance, and one song with a rhythm section, has been reissued more than once. The Reader's Digest sessions are rather conservative, trying not to overwhelm the neophyte jazz fans the magazine was likely targeting; the music is pleasant with some good solos, but rather bland compared to typical Ellington dates. The Tanglewood concert with Fiedler is enjoyable, though the decision to intersperse excerpts of Ellington's prerecorded responses to a promotional interview between songs is a bit odd, with the bandleader actually digressing into talking about his weight problem. Put it all together and you have a set that may appeal to the die-hard Ellington collector, though it is hardly essential for most jazz fans.
CD1 {01:11:02}
01. The Piano Player (2:57)
02. Creole Love Call (4:29)
03. Don't You Know I Care? (4:28)
04. I Can't Get Started (5:55)
05. New York, New York (3:02)
06. Pitter Panther Patter (2:28)
07. How High the Moon (2:18)
08. Basin Street Blues (3:14)
09. Tiger Rag (3:35)
10. Soso (3:43)
11. Meditation (3:25)
12. Mecuria, the Lion (4:12)
13. Take the "A" Train (3:47)
14. Ellington's Father's Day Greeting (1:57)
15. House of Lords (6:36)
16. The Second Portrait of the Lion (5:48)
17. Sweet Fat and That (2:44)
18. Satin Doll (3:55)
19. Carolina Shout (2:29)
CD2 {01:19:49}
01. Ellington speaks (3:06)
02. Caravan (4:32)
03. Ellington speaks (3:48)
04. Mood Indigo (2:51)
05. Ellington speaks (2:55)
06. The Mooche (3:18)
07. Ellington speaks (2:31)
08. I Let a Song Go Out of My Heart (2:44)
09. Ellington speaks (2:31)
10. I'm Beginning to See the Light (2:37)
11. Ellington speaks (1:33)
12. Do Nothin' Till You Hear from Me (2:39)
13. Ellington speaks (2:57)
14. Sophisticated Lady (3:20)
15. Timon of Athens March (3:09)
16. Solitude (3:00)
17. I Got It Bad (And That Ain't Good) (4:12)
18. Satin Doll (2:34)
19. Love Scene (2:26)
20. Single Petal of a Rose (2:46)
21. The Mooche (rehearsal take) (3:30)
22. The Mooche (rehearsal take) (3:25)
23. Love Scene (rehearsal take) (2:18)
24. Love Scene (rehearsal take) (2:16)
25. I'm Beginning to See the Light (rehearsal take) (2:37)
26. Do Nothin' Till You Hear from Me (rehearsal take) (2:27)
27. Satin Doll (breakdown and rehearsal take) (3:47)
CD3 {01:18:10}
01. La Dolce Vita (3:59)
02. Alfie (3:30)
03. Spanish Flea (2:28)
04. Manha de Carnaval (A Day in the Life of a Fool) (2:26)
05. A Taste of Honey (2:38)
06. Summer Samba (3:35)
07. Misty (3:28)
08. One Note Samba (3:54)
09. Soon It's Gonna Rain (3:39)
10. Mr. Lucky (2:14)
11. Walking Happy (3:10)
12. Moon Maiden (instrumental) (3:11)
13. La Dolce Vita (alternate take) (5:34)
14. Alfie (alternate take) (3:11)
15. A Taste of Honey (alternate take) (2:40)
16. Summer Samba (alternate take) (3:41)
17. One Note Samba (alternate take) (3:50)
18. Soon It's Gonna Rain (alternate take) (3:49)
19. Soon It's Gonna Rain (alternate take) (3:42)
20. Soon It's Gonna Rain (alternate take) (3:34)
21. Moon Maiden (vocal version) (3:07)
22. Walking Happy (breakdown takes) (2:36)
23. Walking Happy (excerpt only) (0:31)
24. Walking Happy (alternate take) (3:43)
