ELLINGTON, Duke.

Inquire · Offered by Peter Harrington

Three Cent Stomp - autograph lead sheet, signed. A manuscript lead or fake sheet, setting out the melody and chords for this early 1940s Ellington Orchestra crowd-pleaser; fully written in his own hand, and signed by him. A highly evocative and rare survival from this incomparably influential organization.The American Federation of Musicians wartime recording ban, the Petrillo Ban (1942-44), threw Ellington back on broadcast shows, and reined in his symphonic tendencies. Three Cent Stomp was written with the constituency that would vote for his band in the "Swing" category in the Downbeat polls - and with their feet on the dance floor - clearly in mind. The piece was first recorded in 1943 for World Transcriptions, one of the companies that sprang up to record and syndicate music to radio stations, and which in that year became part of Decca Records - a smart way to top up its revenue streams with cash from attractively fresh product.In 1948 Alex Wilder, eminent American composer and critic, and author of American Popular Song: The Great Innovators, 1900-1950, reviewed the tune's eventual release on disc, inevitably rather sniffily, but with credit for striving to be hip: "Three Cent Stomp, has great drive, is cleanly played, and in the realm of rhythmic pieces satisfying" (Tucker, p.259). Scott Yanow, in his liner notes for the 2006 release of a compilation of transcriptions from the period, is more in tune with the intent of the piece when he remarks that it provides "brief

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