Rodney Whitaker Pays Tribute to Ellington with “All Too Soon”

Jazz bassist Rodney Whitaker has released a new album called All Too Soon, which marks the second installment of a five-CD project to observe his fiftieth birthday. The new record pays homage to Duke Ellington with his own takes on standards like “Cotton Tail,” “Take the A Train,” “It Don’t Mean a Thing,” and more.

“It’s a subject that Whitaker came to know intimately during his 9-year tenure with the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra, regarding it as his Ph.D. in Ellingtonia through performance, deep study, and spirited conversation with Wynton Marsalis and bandmates through those years,” the liner notes read.

Get a taste of the album with “Take The A Train,” which kicks off with a chorus of bass solo:

All Too Soon is available now on CD and as a digital download (iTunes and Amazon MP3).

All Too Soon Track List:

1. Cotton Tail
2. All To Soon
3. Take the A Train
4. Just Squeeze Me
5. Mood Indigo
6. It Don’t Mean a Thing
7. Harlem Air Shaft
8. Do Nothing Till You Hear From Me
9. Perdido
10. Azure
11. Come Sunday
12. Caravan