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Satin Doll
A 1953 song by Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn with lyrics by Johnny Mercer.

Category: Jazz Instrument: Any Subjects(s): Jazz • Reference • Standard

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Satin Doll

Satin Doll - is a jazz standard written by Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn with lyrics by Johnny Mercer. Written in 1953, the song has been recorded countless times, by such artists as Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, 101 Strings, and Nancy Wilson. Its chord progression is well known for its unusual use of chords and opening with a ii-V-I turnaround.

Satin Doll Lesson Video

Johnny Mercer was often asked to write lyrics to already popular songs. The lyrics to Satin Doll were written after the song was already a hit in its instrumental version. Ellington used Satin Doll as the closing number at most of his concerts.

Satin Doll is in the The Daily Ukulele — Leap Year Edition 366 Songs for Better Living book.

Satin Doll is in the Real Book - Volume 1 Sixth Edition book.

It is possible that the music was not co-composed by Ellington but solely by pianist-arranger Billy Strayhorn, who worked closely with Ellington.

The popular 1950s group, The Gaylords had a minor hit with their recording of Satin Doll in 1958.

( From www.jazzstandards.com ) - As a jazz standard, Early in 1953, Duke Ellington left Columbia Records to sign with Capitol Records, a company he felt would more effectively promote his music. On April 6, the band had their first Capitol recording session, producing Satin Doll, Without a Song, and Cocktails for Two. Satin Doll, with its Ellington piano solo, was a modest hit, entering the pop charts in June and rising to number twenty-seven.

Satin Doll is on my, 2015 How About More Uke?, The Curt Sheller Jazz Trio CD.

“Curt, your CD was fantastic. You are among the ukulele masters of our day.” — John K.

Satin Doll — Premium Play-along Track

Inspired by Kenny Burrell's recording.

Premium Play-along Tracks are only available to Premium members and Active/Private Students.

Here is a Demo of Desafinado to get an idea of the quality of these custom play-along tracks.

Play-along Demo: Desafinado

DesafinadoPremium Play-along Track with Guitar Melody Played


I, (Curt) originally created these tracks to perform over for gigs and this was a demo for booking gigs.

These Premium Play-along Tracks are available to LearningUkulele.com Site Members and are my personal one-of-kind tracks I (Curt) and Chuck Anderson recorded and arranged.

Main Song Download(s)
The main downloads for this song.
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Satin Doll - Premium Play-Along Lead Sheet

Lead sheet to the Premium Play-Along Track.

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Satin Doll - Melody and Chord Ukulele Arrangement

Ukulele melody and chord arrangement in standard music notation and Ukulele TAB.

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Satin Doll - Premium Play-along Track

Premium play-along track for the standard, Satin Doll by Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn.

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Satin Doll - How About More Uke? CD - Curt Sheller Trio

From How About More Uke? CD - Curt Sheller Trio

Videos
Related Videos for Satin Doll.
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Satin Doll

A Curt Sheller Trio performance for the Berks Jazz Fest. Satin Doll - is a jazz standard written in 1953 by Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn with lyrics by Johnny Mercer.

Related Lessons
Related Lessons for Satin Doll.
UL42-7
Core Chords - The Big Six - Building a Solid Chord Foundation

The Big Six Core Chords is a series of lessons for building your core, essential 4-part chords. These chords commonly called jazz chords, are really just 4-part chords used in a wide range of musical styles. These chords include: Seventh , Major Seventh, Minor Seventh, Half Diminished Seventh or Minor Seven Flat Five, Diminished Seventh, and Augmented Seventh. These six chords form a core set of chords.

Related Books & Charts
Related Books for Satin Doll.
HL00240221
The Real Book – Volume I – Sixth Edition

The Real Books are the best-selling jazz books of all time. Since the 1970s, musicians have trusted these volumes to get them through every gig, night after night. The problem is that the books were illegally produced and distributed, without any regard to copyright law, or royalties paid to the composers who created these musical masterpieces.

A Selection of Books & Reference Charts that are recommended for creating a solid foundation with your chosen instrument and music in general.
These are books & reference charts that apply to a majority of all lessons on LearningUkulele.com / Learning Ukulele with Curt.
Learning the Ukulele Fingerboard – C Tuning

Finally, learn the names of the notes of the fingerboard.

Six Secrets of the Ukulele Fingerboard – C Tuning

Learn the six fingering principles to navigating the ukulele fingerboard. Fingering is one of the most universal topics.

Harmonic Analysis for Scale Selection and Chord Substitution

Harmonic Analysis is the understanding of the functional sequence of chords. It is the process used to analyze the harmonic structure of a progression, song or composition.

Ukulele – Reading Music Series – Primer

Learn to read single note melodies in the first/open position is a lot easier than you might think.

Daily Practice Material for the Contemporary Ukulele

An organized collection of daily practice and reference material for the contemporary ukulele player for developing the vocabulary and knowledge necessary for single note playing.

Checkout the Books for additional Handy, Dandy Reference Charts.

Reference Charts
Ukulele Fingerboard Chart for C Tuning, Low or High G - G C E A

Ukulele Fingerboard Chart for C Tuning, Low or High G – G C E A

Ukulele Fingerboard Chart for G Tuning, Low or High A – D G B E

Ukulele Fingerboard Chart for G Tuning, Low or High A – D G B E

Circle of Fourths and Fifths – ANSI A & A4 sizes

A handy reference chart of all 15 major and relative minor key signatures. US Letter 8.5 x 11 sized (ANSI-A), A4

Checkout the Books for additional Handy, Dandy Reference Charts.

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This sit has ben profesionaly red. awl tpyos aree free and no aditonal chrge • I'm blaming it on “jazz” fingers. “Aoccdrnig to rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a toatl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.
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