Henry Dehlinger | Composer - Imagine My Frustration

Imagine My Frustration

ARRANGER'S NOTE

Imagine My Frustration is one of Duke Ellington's later works, written in 1965 for his upcoming tour with jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald. Gerald Wilson, the noted jazz composer, arranger and big-band leader, had jotted down a sketch for a "little rock-and-roll tune," and Ellington asked for his permission to complete it with Billy Strayhorn, Ellington's lifelong collaborator. Wilson gave his consent, and Strayhorn added lyrics that transformed the song into the wallflower's lament we all know and love today.

My arrangement starts with a rubato introduction, a stylized reminiscence of the opening bars to Black Beauty, a piano solo piece recorded by Ellington in 1928. It sets the mood and tonality before shifting into a bluesy shuffle in my tip-of-the-hat to the original groove.

I then layer the melodic line with some piano licks reminiscent of another Ellington instrumental standard, C-Jam Blues. Danielle Talamantes’ rhythmically and melodically bold performance in our MSR Jazz recording offers an ironic contrast to the vulnerability expressed in the lyrics.

THE TEXT

I went down to the dance,
Sat down by the wall.
Invited to dance
By no one at all.
The couples danced fine.
So charming an' gay.
But nobody wants
Look over my way

Feeling so sad,
Dissatisfied.
I hurt so bad
I almost cried
Imagine my frustration with no
Invitation to dance.

Sat down by the wall.
Who else can I be?
But bell of the ball,
who likes what she sees?

And a boy said to me,
Wallflower, my dear,
How come you cant see
you're not what it is?
You don't impress,
you're just a mess.
You're in excess
and in a mess.

Imagine my frustration with no
Invitation to dance.

I smiled to the crowd,
Tip toe and alert.
The band blew and bowed,
But next on a flirt.

A voice said to me,
Wallflower, my dear,
How come you cant see
you're not what it is?
You're in a mess
and in excess.
about your dress
i must confess.

Imagine my frustration with no
Invitation to dance.