Duke Elegant

Rolling Stone (3/16/00, p.76) - 3.5 stars out of 5 - "...the band impart their own subtly sassy N'Awlins-style hoodoo to the work of Duke Ellington....[with] out-there reinvention [and] smoldering arrangements..."
Q Magazine (4/00, p.92) - 3 stars out of 5 - "...A classy, at times almost loungey affair....[covering] a dozen if the great man's best known tunes....Elegant? Yes..."
Mojo (2/00, p.100) - "...the Doctor applies his own take on the material, his awesomely accomplished live combo...brings a crisp, buttoned-down funk feel to the tracks..."
Jazz Times (5/00, pp.120-2) - "...Never has the Ellington legacy been fonkified to the degree that Dr. John does it up on this earthy...debut which puts the ooh-poo-pah-doo in Duke..."
NME (2/14/00, p.43) - 7 out of 10 - "...Dr. John has more rock'n'roll gusto in his missing digit than most of your schmindie nu-skool upstarts have in their whole bodies. He's lived the life and this is his tribute to a pre-pop, pre-rock genius..."
Entertainment Weekly (2/18/00, p.87) - "...Engaged and focused, John hasn't sounded so good in years. For that matter, neither has Ellington." - Rating: A-
CMJ (1/24/00, p.32) - "...gives us a mellow and utterly groovy album that takes the Ellington songbook and makes it current, without succumbing to the smooth maliaise....yet another highlight for Dr. John."