When the Duke Ellington Orchestra visited London in 1958, it performed concerts in the Royal Festival Hall, perhaps England’s most prestigious venue for serious music. This privilege was in stark contrast to its first visit to London 25 years earlier in 1933, when the orchestra undertook a two-week engagement as part of a variety bill at the London Palladium. Ellington’s music for this gig was promoted as “voodoo harmonies” and “jungle rhythm.” (Spike Hughes, Daily Herald, June, 1933) On the bill with the Ellington Orchestra in 1933 were twelve other acts. They included Max Miller, a stand-up comedian famous for his risqué jokes; contortionists De Wolf, Metcalf & Ford; dancers Bailey and Derby; Bessie Dudley, a dancer known as the Snake-Hips Girl; and a group called 7 Hindustanis. Of course, the Ellington Orchestra changed a lot in those 25 years, especially with the contributions of arranger and composer Billy Strayhorn that started in 1938. The Ellington Orchestra of 1933 was nevertheless creating some innovative and proficient music that thrilled British audiences and that, seen in retrospect, was moving towards the brilliant 1938-1942 music.