TV Reviews : More Ellington in KCET’s ‘Reminiscing’

Yet another Duke Ellington documentary? Improbable though it seems, this evening’s special on KCET Channel 28 at 9:35 p.m., “Reminiscing in Tempo,” manages to find aspects of the maestro’s career that were not covered in the memorable two-hour show called “A Duke Named Ellington” a couple of seasons ago.

Produced and directed by Robert S. Levi, this was evidently a long time in the making, since two of the subjects interviewed--Duke’s drummer, Sonny Greer, and his manager, Irving Mills--died in 1982 and 1985, respectively. There are valid comments on the Ellington mystique by composer Gunther Schuller, former jazz critic Barry Ulanov and, remarkably, Marian Logan, widow of Duke’s doctor, Arthur Logan, who was also his closest friend. Her recollection of the night she told Ellington about her husband’s death is a poignant moment.

Interspersed throughout the 90 minutes are segments by the band at various stages, wry and evasive comments by Ellington, and even a glimpse of Billy Strayhorn at the piano. One major error in the narration by Julian Bond is the claim that Ellington had a lifelong battle with the jazz critics; on the contrary, with rare exceptions, it was they who established him as major artist, first in France and England, later at home.

“Reminiscing in Tempo” to some extent duplicates previous programs on the same topic; however, it also supplements and complements them, and for this it is ipso facto a valuable document. (A companion CD, with the same title, has been released by Columbia Records, featuring 20 tunes.)