Jukebox: Original Hits from Swing Era, Never No Lament: The Blanton-Webster Band, The Duke: Edward Kennedy Ellington and His Orchestra, Jazz Shots from the West Coast, Vol. 7-8 (1941-1942), Beyond Category: The Musical Genius of Duke Ellington [Cassette], Duke Ellington and His Great Vocalists [Sony/Legacy]. Hurry, get on, now it's coming. Using the subway directions that Ellington gave him, Strayhorn wrote, "Take the A Train." [1], The use of the Strayhorn composition as the signature tune was made necessary by a ruling in 1940 by the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP). If you miss the A Train, Ellington wrote directions for Strayhorn to get to his house by subway, directions that began, "Take the A Train". To go to Sugar Hill, way up in Harlem. ", Michael McDonald co-wrote the Van Halen song "I'll Wait.". The lyrics used by the Ellington band were added by Joya Sherrill, who was 20 at the time (1944). The first (and most famous) commercial recording was made on February 15, 1941.[3]. You’ll find you’ve missed the quickest way to Harlem. Take the "A" Train Sheet Music, 1957. Hurry, get on board, it's comin' Listen to those rails a-thrumming all aboard Get on the "A" train Soon you will be on Sugar Hill in Harlem. Owing to Joya's remarkable poise and singing ability and her unique take on the song, Ellington hired her as a vocalist and adopted her lyrics. "Take the 'A' Train" was composed in 1939, after Ellington offered Strayhorn a job in his organization and gave him money to travel from Pittsburgh to New York City. Sam DeVincent Collection of American Sheet Music, National Museum of American History Archives Center. If you miss the "A" train. 1, The Ultimate Grammy Box: From the Recording Academy's Collection, Sounds of the Stadium: Great Moments in New York Yankee History, Original Jazz Legends, Vol. The tune is in AABA form, in the key of C, with each section being a lyric couplet. 3 [DVD], Very Best of Duke Ellington [Music Brokers], History of Jazz: From Basin Street to Bebop, Duke Ellington: Collection of the Best Big Bands, Vol. The tune which was taken from Duke Ellington and his famous orchestra's 1941 album "Hollywood" was included in the soundtrack of the 2008 video game release Grand Theft Auto IV from the fictitious in-game jazz music radio station "JNR 108.5 (Jazz Nation Radio)". Johnston recalled putting together "Long Train Runnin' " with Bart Herbison of Nashville Songwriters Association International. "Zoot Suit Riot" isn't just a Cherry Poppin' Daddies song - they were real riots in Los Angeles in 1943 that inspired the lyrics. More songs with methods of transportation in the title. Ruth Ellington Collection, National Museum of American History Archives Center. The lyrics tell of a man phoning the woman he loves, urging her to meet him at a train station in Clarksville before he must leave, possibly forever. You must take the "A" train
To go Sugar Hill 'way up in Harlem
If you miss the "A" train
You'll find you've missed the quickest way to Harlem
Hurry, get on now it's coming
Listen to those rails a thrumming
All 'board get on the "A" train
Soon you will be on Sugar Hill in Harlem A monthly update on our latest interviews, stories and added songs, This song was written by Billy Strayhorn, who played piano and wrote arrangements for Duke Ellington's band. Take the "A" Train Sheet Music, 1960s. Ellington wrote directions for Strayhorn to get to his house by subway, directions that began, "Take the A Train". They picked the title because it sounded tropical. Ruth Ellington Collection, National Museum of American History Archives Center. Michael Jackson's "Human Nature" was written by the keyboard player from Toto, who was working on the Thriller album. This compelling dance number became a hit recording, and Ellington made it his orchestra's signature tune from 1941 until the end of his life. It shows a New York City subway train marked "A." This compelling dance number became a hit recording, and Ellington made it his orchestra's signature tune from 1941 until the end of his life. Introduced in early 1941 by Duke Ellington, the bandleader made it his theme song the following year, and so it remained for the rest of Ellington's life. Michael Jackson's "Human Nature" was written by the keyboard player from Toto, who was working on the Thriller album. When Strayhorn played the song for Ellington after a show in Newark, a partnership that would last the rest of Strayhorn's life had begun. Soon you will be on Sugar Hill in Harlem. There was no explicit reference to war in the song but its last line, "And I don't know if I'm ever coming home", was an indirect reference about a soldier leaving for the Vietnam War . Stands for "Take the loss". The vocalist who most often performed the song with the Ellington band was trumpeter Ray Nance, who enhanced the lyrics with numerous choruses of scat singing. In the time-honored jazz tradition, Strayhorn built "A" Train on the harmonies of an earlier piece, Jimmy McHugh's Exactly Like You (1930), but camouflaged the source well. Nance is also responsible for the trumpet solo on the first recording, which was so well suited for the song that it has often been duplicated note for note by others. It records everything. The Birthday Sessions, Vols. The song was performed by Ellington and the band in the 1943 film Reveille with Beverly with vocalist Betty Roche. For the benefit of musicians and scholars, this edition includes parts for each of the instruments, a conductor's score, and an essay by the noted composer and conductor Gunther Schuller.