Mercer Ellington and Carmen McRae

One of the most fascinating people I've encountered in the collecting world is Mark Cantor, one of the leading collectors of and experts on jazz on film. Mark has a rewarding website, Celluloid Improvisations, where he shares and comments on filmed performances by jazz and other artists.

Mark's latest effort focuses on the 1946 film Sepia Cinderella and a rare appearance by a band led by Mercer Ellington, the trumpeter son of Duke. The link above takes you to Mark's exploration of the film and its production, notes on the plot and the stars, and other material of absorbing interest. The leads in the movie were Billy Daniels (less histrionic here than he would later become) and Sheila Guyse, a hard-luck singer whose sole LP has appeared on my other blog.

Mercer Ellington

For some reason the Mercer Ellington band appears under the name of arranger Gil Fuller. A clip from the film (featuring a tenor sax solo from Budd Johnson) can be found via Mark's home page under “2nd Chorus: Watch.” It's a song titled "Ring Around My Rosie"  - look for a thumbnail image located at the bottom of the list, the last item on the page.

In connection with this, I thought I might share Mercer Ellington's only Musicraft single, which is worthy in its own right. It couples "Metronome All-Out," a simple riff that Mercer's father concocted for a Metronome All-Stars date earlier in 1946, with Mercer's own tune, "Pass Me By," with a vocal by the great Carmen McRae, making her first appearance on record. At the time, McRae was married to drummer Kenny Clarke, and so is billed on the label as Carmen Clarke.

McRae is already an assured and soulful singer, portending the great things she was to accomplish in her career. Fittingly, the song opens with an alto sax solo heavily reminiscent of Johnny Hodges of Duke Ellington's band.

As a bonus, I've also included another early McRae single, this one on the Sunrise label and dating from circa 1953. The singer contributes a effortless version of "A Foggy Day" backed with the less-often heard Romberg-Hammerstein song, "Wanting You." The backing is by the wonderful accordionist Mat Mathews and his combo, featuring flutist Herbie Mann, who contributes an unexpected tenor sax solo (in a Stan Getz mode) on the Gershwin song.

These singles are very much worth hearing, with vivid sound from the vintage 78s.

Carmen McRae