Duke Ellington or Count Basie?

[Bossy Monkey]

Poll question: Duke Ellington or Count Basie?

[MiddleFingerMom]

1. Cab Calloway

.
Cab Calloway's "Reefer Man":
.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D44pyeEvhcQ
.

[Bossy Monkey]

4. Yeah, him too. n/t

[Gidney N Cloyd]

2. Prince.

[Bossy Monkey]

10. Also worthy. I should have put him on the poll. n/t

[Dr Morbius]

3. Apples and oranges

Duke Ellington: jazz
Count Basie: swing

jazz =/= swing

One bandleader is not necessarily anything like another. The difference between the Duke and Chick Webb is a lot smaller than the difference between Ellington and Basie; Count Basie was a lot closer to Nelson Riddle than Duke Ellingtob.

Are apples better than oranges?

[tigereye]

5. Ellington was a compositional and arranging genius, so that's my vote

[grasswire]

8. word

And did you know that a descendant of the genius Fletcher Henderson is a DUer?

[Brother Buzz]

6. BOTH! Battle Royal 1961

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lK86vpOYmr8

[Bucky]

7. If we're going by British peerage, aren't they both outranked by Nat King Cole?

[Bossy Monkey]

9. Or Joe King Carrasco, for that matter n/t