We remember Duke Ellington who was born in Washington DC on this day in 1899. He died in 1974.
Duke was a jazz giant. However, I first heard of him many years ago when my father used to listen to The Voice of America in Cuba.
Duke’s “Take the A train” was the intro-music for Willis Conover’s jazz show broadcast to the world on short wave. Conover broke the Iron Curtain, The Berlin Wall and came into Communist Cuba, too.
It was a very catchy tune and millions around the world came to know Duke that way:
Duke Ellington: Take the “A” Train………. https://t.co/xP7U0L3Qda via @amazon
— Silvio Canto, Jr. (@SCantojr) April 29, 2018