On the evening of April 29th, 1969, President Richard Nixon and Duke Ellington stood together in the Easter Room in the White House. Nixon, along with an all-star cast of jazz legends including Dave Brubeck, Paul Desmond, Dizzy Gillespie, and Gerry Mulligan spent a night honoring Ellington for his 70th birthday.
Honoring the Duke for defining an American music genre in a career that spanned over 50 years, President Nixon awarded him a grand birthday gift: the Presidential Medal of Freedom. It was the Nixon administration’s first presentation of the Medal of Freedom–perhaps personifying the 37th president’s love for music and, on this night, his appreciation of jazz.
The Duke used the occasion to share some wisdom passed on from his late friend and composer Billy Strayhorn. “We speak of freedom of expression and we speak of freedom generally as being something very sweet and fat and things like that. In the end when we get down to the payoff, what we actually say is that we would like very much to mention the four major freedoms that my friend and writing-and-arranging composer, Billy Strayhorn, lived by and enjoyed. That was freedom from hate, unconditionally; freedom from self-pity; freedom from fear of possibly doing something that may help someone else more than it would him; and freedom from the kind of pride that could make a man feel that he is better than his brother.”
After the presentation, President Nixon asked all of his guests in the East Room to join him in singing “Happy Birthday” to the Duke. The President, taking his position at the piano, led the crowd through the score and was later joined on the piano bench by the legend Ellington himself.
Amidst of the turbulent times of the 1960s, it was a surreal scene, almost a fantasy, to have an Administration who exploited the culture wars and racial divides all the way to the White House host such an evening. Duke Ellington is the closest thing we have to jazz royalty. Ellington carried himself with honor, grace, and and unshakeable dignity— a man who was larger than life; who transformed music with a driving swing and unmistakable melodies.
Jazz musician Billy Taylor stated, “Nixon really perceived the arts as non-political. He saw the arts as something that should be encouraged and nurtured, and in which the government should play only a supporting role. He was extremely supportive of jazz and made me feel most comfortable—and I’m a registered Democrat!”
Nixon cherished the Ellington event at the White House for the rest of his life. Upon the death of the jazz great in 1974, Nixon asked singer Pearl Bailey to be his personal representative at the Duke’s funeral and released a statement that “the wit, taste, intelligence, and elegance that Duke Ellington brought to his music have made him, in the eyes of millions of people both here and abroad, America’s foremost composer. We are all poorer because the Duke is no longer with us.”
Music – From his 70th Birthday concert, Duke Ellington and his orchestra with Billy Strayhorn’s “Take the ‘A’ Train.”