[2] It was one of the earliest 12-inch LPs to take advantage of the extended time available and consisted of four tracks, three of them "concert arrangements" of Ellington standards and one, "The Tattooed Bride," a recent tone poem.

The album features full-length versions of Ellington's classics "Mood Indigo" (1930), "Sophisticated Lady" (1933), and "Solitude" (1934).

The first two feature vocals by Eve Duke, recording under the name Yvonne Lanauze,[3] and the third includes a climactic solo by trombonist Lawrence Brown.

"[5] He noted that "Ellington eschewed the suite format in favor of continuous long-form works that reflected a liberation made possible by the LP.

[6] Ellington biographer John Edward Hasse notes that "Mood Indigo" in this updated version "goes through several meters (one section is in waltz time), three keys, and effective contrasts in sonorities, densities, and timbres.