Duke Ellington, music · Lee Gaines, lyrics · From the instrumental Subtle Slough, 1941
Just Squeeze Me
Duke Ellington wrote it in 1941 as an instrumental called Subtle Slough, and Lee Gaines later added words. The main part comes three times, with one contrasting middle part. Hear it from Rex Stewart's 1941 band, Miles Davis, Louis Armstrong with Ellington, and Milt Jackson.
Listen in this order
The path starts with the 1941 instrumental from Rex Stewart's small group. It follows the tune through two piano trios, Miles Davis's quintet and Cannonball Adderley's group with strings, then Red Garland's live trio, Louis Armstrong singing with Duke Ellington, Oscar Peterson's trio in 1971 and Milt Jackson's quartet live in London in 1982.
1960sLouis Armstrong & Duke Ellington1961 · Big band
1970sOscar Peterson Trio1971 · Bebop
1980sMilt Jackson Quartet1982 · Bebop
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Hear the original instrumental
Rex Stewart and His Orchestra · 1941
“Subtle Slough”, The Great Ellington Units
Rex Stewart's small group, with Duke Ellington at the piano, recorded the instrumental Subtle Slough in Hollywood on July 3, 1941. According to JazzStandards.com, Ellington played it on stage in Jump for Joy, and it became Just Squeeze Me when Lee Gaines added words.
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Listen for
This is the instrumental that came before the words. Seven players share the tune, from Ellington's piano to Jimmy Blanton's bass, and the track runs 3:18.
Try it on your instrument
Play the first four of the with a steady beat: , , Fmaj7 , Am7 . Smaller version: play only the first of each bar: Fmaj7, Am7, Fmaj7, Am7.
“Just Squeeze Me (But Don't Tease Me)”, This Is Hampton Hawes, Vol. 2: The Trio
Hampton Hawes' trio recorded it at the Los Angeles Police Academy on June 28, 1955. Contemporary issued it in 1956 on This Is Hampton Hawes, Vol. 2: The Trio.
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Piano, bass and drums play for 6:32. Hampton Hawes plays piano, Red Mitchell bass and Chuck Thompson drums.
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Play the , 17 to 24, one per bar: , F7, , B♭6, , G7, , . Smaller version: play only the roots, F, F, B♭, B♭, G, G, G, C.
Miles Davis's new quintet, with John Coltrane on tenor saxophone, recorded it at Van Gelder Studio in Hackensack, New Jersey, on November 16, 1955. Prestige issued it in 1956 on Miles.
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Miles Davis plays muted trumpet, and John Coltrane gets a short tenor saxophone spot. The track runs about seven and a half minutes.
Try it on your instrument
Play the twice, once as and once as the bass notes only: , , Fmaj7 , Am7 , Gm7, C7, Fmaj7 D7, Gm7 C7. Smaller version: play only bars 5 to 8.
“Just Squeeze Me (But Don't Tease Me)”, Red Garland at the Prelude
Red Garland's trio played it live at the Prelude Club in New York on October 2, 1959, in the third set of the night. Prestige issued it on Red Garland at the Prelude.
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This is a live recording by piano, bass and drums that runs 5:43. Red Garland plays piano, with Jimmy Rowser on bass and Specs Wright on drums.
Try it on your instrument
Play the twice through with a steady beat: , , Fmaj7 , Am7 , Gm7, C7, Fmaj7 D7, Gm7 C7. Smaller version: play only bars 5 to 8.
Louis Armstrong & Duke Ellington · 1961 · Big band
“Just Squeeze Me (But Don't Tease Me)”, The Great Summit: The Master Takes
Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington recorded together in New York on April 3 and 4, 1961, at RCA Victor Studio One, with Bob Thiele producing. On this track Armstrong sings and plays trumpet with Ellington at the piano.
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Louis Armstrong sings it, with Ellington on piano. Barney Bigard plays clarinet and Trummy Young plays trombone, and the track runs 3:58.
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Hum along while you play all 32 , A, A, B, A. In the play , F7, , B♭6, , G7, , . Smaller version: hum along over the only.
Oscar Peterson's trio recorded it in October 1971 at Hans Georg Brunner-Schwer's private studio in Villingen, West Germany. MPS issued it in 1974 on Great Connection.
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Oscar Peterson plays piano with Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen on bass and Louis Hayes on drums. The track runs 7:27.
Try it on your instrument
Walk a bass line under the with one note on each beat, using the roots: F G, A C, F B♭, A D, G, C, F D, G C. Smaller version: play one root per .
“Just Squeeze Me (But Don't Tease Me)”, Mostly Duke
Milt Jackson's quartet played it live at Ronnie Scott's club in London during two nights, April 23 and 24, 1982. Pablo issued it in 1991 on Mostly Duke.
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This is a live recording, 4:35 long, led by Milt Jackson on vibraphone. Monty Alexander plays piano, Ray Brown bass and Mickey Roker drums.
Try it on your instrument
Play the full form once through on any instrument, A, A, B, A, and count the out loud. Smaller version: play the once and stop.
Duke Ellington's song starts as the instrumental Subtle Slough, which Rex Stewart's small group records in Hollywood in July 1941. Ellington's orchestra records it with a vocal by trumpeter Ray Nance in 1946.
1950s
Hampton Hawes's trio and Miles Davis's quintet record it in 1955, and Ella Fitzgerald sings it on her 1957 Ellington Song Book. Cannonball Adderley adds strings in 1958, and Red Garland's trio plays it live in 1959.
1960s
Louis Armstrong sings it with Duke Ellington at the piano in April 1961. Slide Hampton's octet puts it on Sister Salvation in 1960.
1970s
Oscar Peterson's trio records it in October 1971 at a private studio in Villingen, West Germany. MPS issues it in 1974 on Great Connection.
1980s
Milt Jackson's quartet plays it live at Ronnie Scott's club in London in April 1982, with Monty Alexander on piano. Pablo issues the recording in 1991 on Mostly Duke.
1990s
Ellis Marsalis plays it on Duke in Blue, released by Columbia in October 1999 and produced by Delfeayo Marsalis.
2000s
Dave Brubeck plays it alone at the piano on One Alone, released by Telarc in August 2000.
More great versions
3 more, from 1960 to 2000. Tap a cover to play it here.
The tune's layout, its keys and the chord chart, for anyone who wants to play along.
Show the form and chords
How the tune works
F majorusual key
32 barsA · A · B · A form
F major → B♭ major → F majorkey centers
A8 bars
A8 bars
B8 bars · bridge
A8 bars
F
B♭
F
The tune stays in , with one short turn toward B♭ at the start of the . Each runs , , Fmaj7 , Am7 in 1 to 4, then Gm7, C7, Fmaj7 D7, Gm7 C7 in bars 5 to 8. The B section, bars 17 to 24, holds for two bars and for two bars, then plays for two bars before Gm7 and C7 lead back to the last A. iReal Pro's chart ends the final on two bars of Fmaj7. These follow iReal Pro's chart; other lead sheets may spell some differently.