Take the A Train is a very popular tune that became the signature tune of the Duke Ellington Orchestra. Composed in 1941 by Billy Strayhorn it is listed by JazzStandards.com as the 23rd most recorded jazz standard. It has an AABA form and much of the harmony is similar to the tunes Exactly Like You from the ‘30s and Girl from Ipanema from the ‘60s. The February 1941 recording by the Duke Ellington Orchestra is the version that most people know. It has a great introduction and some amazing solos that are often played verbatim. The ‘shout chorus’ is very popular and the ending phrase of this ending is widely performed on many other tunes.
 
Famous recordings of Take the A Train include
Duke Ellington – Never No Lament the Blanton-Webster Band (1941)
Oscar Peterson – Oscar Peterson Plays the Duke Ellington Song Book (1952)
Clifford Brown – Study in Brown (1955)
Ella Fitzgerald – Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Duke Ellington Song Book (1957)
Oscar Peterson – Oscar Peterson Plays the Duke Ellington Song Book (1959)
Clark Terry – Duke with a Difference (1959)
Kenny Burrell – Ellington is Forever Vol. 2 (1975)​