Four CD set containing 88 tracks that covers the two year period when Ellington was signed to Capitol Records. The period between 1953 and 1955, was a hard time for the Duke, a moment of low popularity which would last until the tremendous success at the 1956 Newport Jazz Festival, when Paul Gonsalves" extended solos would drive the public into a frenzy. The Capitol recordings give evidence to the Duke"s urgency to find new forms of expression during this difficult stage of his career. This large body of recordings contains many elements outside of Ellington"s familiar repertoire. For instance, instead of playing his old and new compositions, he devoted many sessions to arrangements of jazz standards and popular songs commonly associated with other bands. The most obvious gems here were generated during the duo/trio sessions of 1953, in which the Duke was backed by Wendell Marshall on bass and Butch Pollard on drums. The last Capitol session, recorded on May 19, 1955, is another curiosity. Here Ellington again called upon a smaller unit, playing with a septet and on electric piano!!! Recorded in Los Angeles, Chicago and New York between April 6, 1953 and May 19, 1955. Definitive. 2006.