MILES DAVIS

For whatever reasons escape me, I can't get into the groove of MILES IN THE SKY. This album represents the precursor of Miles Davis experimenting with more rock styles to spice up his own jazz style, so MILES IN THE SKY can be retconned as a transitional album of sorts. ''Stuff'' is the track that best represents the future of Davis's body of work (particularly to fans of IN A SILENT WAY), as this cut sounds more psychedelic that the other works on the album, plus the presence of an electric piano helps progress the sound. I would point ''Stuff'' out as the best track as it handles the ''service-to-the-song'' method more so than anything else on the album.

The rest of the album is locked into more traditional jazz territory, complete with walking bass lines, fast, swinging tempos (that swing is best on ''Black Comedy''), irregular chords and fastbreak horn soloing. From a technical perspective, these tracks are impressive, and I'll highlight the start-stop feel of ''Paraphernalia'' and Tony Williams's drumming overall as memorable. Yet, the last three tracks sound a bit cold. Some of the best jazz I've heard had a warmth to it that (excuse the hyperbole) could melt your soul. Albums from a decade prior to this like KIND OF BLUE or TIME OUT could nail that emotional sweet spot to the point of mesmerization. MILES IN THE SKY often makes me nod my head in indifference. Coming from Miles Davis, a man whom I respect for making jazz inviting and fun, this album is a head-scratcher.

When you mine four studio albums out of the same set of sessions, you'd expect to start scraping the bottom of the barrel by the time you got to the third or fourth one, but actually the Miles Davis Quintet are still going strong on Workin'. It isn't quite the eye-opener that Cookin' was, but it's still a brisk set of pleasant bop numbers that certainly doesn't embarrass any of the participants. The consistency of the four Quintet albums is even more impressive when you consider that they had been knocked off in one session as part of a contractural get-out clause with Prestige Records; whilst lesser artists would have simply "phoned it in", Miles Davis showed himself to be a true professional, crafting a tight Hard Bop album.

Josef Zawinul wrote the melody 'In a silent way' after visiting his Austrian family for Christmas. The tune became the title for a 1969 album that indicated perhaps the most far-reaching change of direction for that most restless of musicians, Miles Davis. Here we find not one but three fecund keyboard players (Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, Jo Zawinul), the introduction of guitarist John McLaughlin, a bright young percussion star in drummer Tony Williams and probably the most daring use of studio editing on a jazz album ever. Much has been written about the successor to this LP - the sprawling double album Bitches Brew which was released a mere seven months later - but that will not concern us here. We will only note that the brouhaha around that album often overshadows the brilliance of vision embodied in 'In a silent way'. The playing is exemplary throughout. According to Chick Corea, the fact that tapes were running constantly relaxed the musicians and 'made' the quiet atmosphere that pervades the music. The music itself is warm, spacious and indeed 'Peaceful'; lovers of electric piano will have much to savour here. The way Teo Macero edits the sections together was startling to some listeners at the time, one critic complaining that he had erroneously re-used one section. But it is this editing which gives 'In a silent way' its magic and power. With its two side-long pieces, its repetition, its relentless soothing groove, its spacey keyboards and floating trumpet and reed solos, this is a profoundly important and influential album. Don't worry if 'Bitches Brew' horrifies you and 'Kind of Blue' is just too jazz, if you are a lover of progressive music, this is the Miles album you need (other than Jack Johnson, but that's another story). www.vinylconnection.com.au

The first of the "....in' with the Miles Davis Quintet" albums to emerge from a very successful brace of 1956 sessions, Cookin' enjoys a deservedly high reputation in Miles' early discography. Of course, with John Coltrane involved in the session you have not one but two masters of brass in the mix, which is a big help, plus Red Garland chips in with some truly charming piano solos here and there which offer a solid justification for his place in the Quintet. It's not one of Miles' more radically experimental works, existing solidly within the tradition of hard bop as it existed at the time, but it's damn good bop for all that.

The late appearance of this historic document after more than three decades in bootleg limbo is proof that good things come to those who wait. Beyond that, the twin-CD offers a rare opportunity to hear the legendary Lost Quintet, so called because they never made a studio recording, hardly surprising during such an intense period of creative activity for the suddenly galvanized trumpeter.

We've seen lots of archival recordings of live electric Miles Davis over the years, but this one claims special significance. According to the CD booklet it marked the first time the erstwhile Jazz pioneer played in a rock arena, in this case opening a triple bill that included Steve Miller and Neil Young. The material here bears little relation to the likewise-titled "Live at the Fillmore East" double-disc, recorded three months later with a different line-up and heavily edited in post-production (to the dismay of many fans). Instead, this package includes a complete and unexpurgated performance, with one full set per disc, in total adding up to a somewhat paltry 89-minutes but preserving the integrity of a full evening's concert.

The music itself is the purest sort of Fusion, melding the freedom of Jazz to the F^ck You attitude of Rock, at times even approaching the scorched-earth intensity of "Agharta" or "Dark Magus" (minus only the electric guitars).There is, of course, some overlap in content between the two discs. But because the music was largely improvised, there are enough differences to make them each unique.

The concert opens with all guns blazing, and no shortage of ammo. Besides the angry scythe of Davis' trumpet, the primary weapon is Chick Corea's distorted electric piano, ring modulators and echoplex set to maximum overdrive. "Directions" fades in like rush hour in mid-town Manhattan, with Corea's Fender Rhodes sounding like an angry cab driver stabbing his horn to warn sleepwalking pedestrians off the pavement. The restless ostinato of Dave Holland's bass guitar might have been hypnotic if it wasn't so tense, and Airto's quacking percussion adds a typically weird flourish (his presence turns The Lost Quintet into a sextet, but never mind).

Sometimes the onslaught of sound devolves into utter chaos (as in "The Theme"). Elsewhere it almost resembles something from classic MAGMA, circa "Mëkanïk Dëstruktïẁ Kömmandö": all rhythm and mayhem and precious little melody. The music shares obvious DNA with the seminal "Bitches Brew" album, already recorded but not yet unleashed upon an unsuspecting public. But in concert the same material was even more raw and uncompromising.

Compare the urgent, almost angry momentum of "Spanish Key" on Disc One to its more upbeat studio cousin. Later in the same set, "It's About That Time" borrows the soothing fusions of the "In a Silent Way" album and injects them with enough steroids to embarrass Jose Canseco, transforming a gentle melody into an almost unrecognizable fury of free-form noise. And when someone (Airto again, I'm guessing) blows a whistle during the reprise of "Directions" on Disc Two, he's like a frustrated cop trying to flag down a runaway lorry.

Ironically, it's "Bitches Brew" itself in the second set that fails to ignite. The abbreviated live version misses the production values and deft editing of Teo Macero's epic studio hybrid, plus the depth of the performance roster. Set two in general is a little more fatigued than the explosive opening performance, but the shift in musical energy pulls it at times in an interesting direction.

Miles Davis was 44-years old at the time of this gig: a geriatric by rock 'n' roll standards (Neil Young, by comparison, was twenty years his junior). And yet he proceeded to incinerate the stage and stun the hippies in the Fillmore East audience. A generation later, you can still smell the smoke.

I've had My Funny Valentine: Miles Davis in Concert for several years, and I consider it to be the live cousin to the monumental jazz masterpiece that is Kind of Blue, even if only one original piece appears in the set. While I prefer Bill Evans behind the ivories, a young Herbie Hancock provides a dynamic element to each piece, whether he's popping in with light bursts of chords or offering his own stunning contributions on lead. "All Blues" gets faster and more carefree makeover. My copy of the album has some interesting reflections from the players, particularly Ron Carter, the bass player, who almost didn't perform due to issues regarding pay. For those who cannot get enough of Kind of Blue and albums similar to it, this is a must have.

This live document covers two rare live performances from 1969 and 1970 respectively with two different lineups. It's called "Bitches Brew Live" because the bulk of the material is from that legendary album. The first show includes the first three tracks here and was recorded live at the Newport Jazz Festival in July of 1969. This would be the first and last time that the organizer brought in "Rock" bands. He did so because of declining ticket sales for the festival. It was successful because of the addition of LED ZEPPELIN, JETHRO TULL and others but he felt it wasn't worth the headache. He was really worried that there might be a riot and the whole weekend was very hectic for him.

The Miles Davis band played on the Saturday the same day as Zappa And The Mothers Of Invention and others. Wayne Shorter got stuck in traffic and missed this gig making this recording of a Miles Davis four piece a real rarity. Besides Davis we get DeJohnette on drums, Holland on bass and Corea on electric piano. The "Bitches Brew" sessions didn't take place until 6 weeks after this meaning that Miles was playing some of these songs before he recorded them, something he rarely did after 1963. "Miles Runs The Voodoo Down" is the first professionally recorded version of this track. "Sanctuary" is more laid back while "It's About That Time" from "In A Silent Way" is more intense with aggressive drumming and trumpet work. The crowd, much of whom had never heard electric Miles until then gives a huge ovation when the set is done.

The final six tracks are from the Isle Of Wight festival in the UK. Wayne Shorter had left by this time so we get the same foursome from the Newport Jazz Festival plus Keith Jarrett on organ, Gary Bartz on sax and Airto Moreira on percussion. It should be noted that they were the only Jazz band at this festival. It was a hot weekeknd in August of 1970 and they began to play as the sun was going down. This is a much heavier and more intense set than the one at Newport. Davis put Corea and Jarrett on opposite sides of the stage so they couldn't hear each other. Remember there was estimated to be 600,000 people here and in part Miles is here because of the success of "Bitches Brew" released some four months earlier. It was one of the best selling albums in Jazz history so gone were the days of Miles and his band playing in small clubs. This was as the liner notes state a "revolutionary moment" for Miles and the band to play in front of such a large audience.

For me the final six tracks surpass the recordings of the first three but it's cool to hear Miles as a four piece regardless. And i'll still take the "Bitches Brew" studio album over this recording but if your a "Bitches Brew" fan then you should really check this out.

This is a compilation double album of previously unreleased material or alternate takes of songs spanning from 1955 to 1970. Although this one gets a lot of praise I really hesitated getting this because i'm just not into acoustic Jazz. As i've said before it's like watching a black and white TV compared to the electric Jazz when the colour was added. Just my tastes of course. The songs are placed in chronological order for the most part.

Maybe i'm getting old but after many listens i'm actually somewhat enjoying these early acoustic tracks. First up is "Two Bass Hit" a cover of the Dizzy Gilespie / John Lewis penned composition. This is an uptempo romp with John Coltrane on sax. "Love For Sale" is a Cole Porter cover and it's excellent with Bill Evans on piano as John Coltrane and Cannonball Adderly take care of the saxes. This was recorded in 1958 and it was Evans first recording with Miles. "Blues No.2" from 1961 has a different lineup and is a mid paced jaunt. "Circle In The Round" is a track that makes this double album worth getting all by itself. I can't believe this was recorded in 1967. Check out the lineup with Shorter on sax, Williams on drums, Hancock on celeste, Carter on bass and Beck on guitar. And yes Miles of course on trumpet. I adore this track and it sounds nothing like a Miles Davis tune. In the liner notes it says this track links three luminous spheres in the galaxy of Miles Davis- "Sketches Of Spain", "Nefertiti" and "In A Silent Way". Melancholic is the word as this song seems to churn over and over. A lot of repetition but I can't praise this song enough. It certainly is a miraculous performance as the liner notes suggest.

On disc two we start with "Teo's Bag" which was recorded about a month after "Circle In The Round" in January of 1968. It's the same lineup as the previous song but without Joe Beck on guitar. This is more traditional sounding to my ears. "Side Car I" and "Side Car II" are both from 1968 as well with the same lineups but we get George Benson on guitar for the second part. "Splash" from late 1968 has Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock and Joe Zawinul all playing piano as Williams and Shorter help out along with Dave Holland on bass. Again it's fairly traditional sounding but Corea and Hancock are playing electric pianos. "Sanctuary" is from 1968 as well and is pretty laid back and relaxed. The second disc ends like the first one with an amazing tune. This one is called "Guinnevere" and was actually a David Crosby composition and is a cover of that Crosby, Stills & Nash recorded tune. This is from 1970 and is laid back with some sitar ! Yes I wasn't expecting that from a Miles Davis song. Love the atmosphere and Bennie Maupin helps out on bass clarinet along with Shorter, Corea, Zawinul, Holland, Brooks, DeJohnette and Cobham. Oh and Balakrishna on sitar.

Well I honestly could burn the closing tracks from each disc and be very happy with just that 44 minutes of music. But it's interesting hearing all of these tunes even if I only get excited about the two long ones. A must for Miles fans.

We all know that Miles Davis is one of the great figures in Jazz, but for progressive rock fans it is his 1969 - 1975 'electric' period that really holds sway. After Tony Williams Lifetime kick-started the jazz-rock boom in 1967 Davis quickly took control of the movement, producing the elegant classic 'In A Silent Way' and the extraordinarily-innovative and epoch-defining 1969 masterpiece 'Bitches Brew' before the decade was out. The next five years would see the release of a series of groundbreaking albums that twinned the trumpeters jazz origins with elements of rock, soul and funk - both in the shape of studio sets and live concert recordings - and a clutch of jazz-rock outfits from both Britain and the USA following Davis' lead(the likes of John McLaughlin's Mahavishnu Orchestra, Return To Forever featuring Chick Corea and Ian Carr's Nucleus to name but a few). Of Davis' electric period albums 'Bitches Brew' remains his defining statement, yet the likes of 'Jack Johnson', 'Big Fun', 'Get Up With It' and 'On The Corner' also showcased the great man's seemingly neverending quest into the realms of sonic experimentation. This quest would also find Davis and his hugely-talented ensembles taking their musical findings into the live arena, and between 1970 and 1975 no less than seven double-albums, all of remarkable quality, were produced. 'Live Evil', which alongside 1974's incendiary 'Dark Magus', is often counted amongst the finest of these concert recordings, and it's easy to see(and hear) why. Thanks to the album's hypnotic melange of funk, avant-psych jazz and rumbling rock ingredients, 'Live Evil' captivates immediately, drawing the listener into the dark, mystical and occasionally dissonant world of Davis' genre-blending explorations. Featuring - of course - a stellar jazz line-up which includes amongst many others the likes of Keith Jarrett(keyboards), John McLaughlin(guitar), Chick Corea(keyboards), Dave Holland(bass), Herbie Hancocl(keyboards) and Jack DeJohnette(drums) 'Live Evil' continuously pulsates with an impassioned yet controlled fury that proves utterly engrossing. From the swirling lysergic intensity of 'Sivad' to the muscular funk-drenched strut of 'Funky Tonk', the shrieking soundwaves of 'What I Say' and the deep, brooding, neon-flecked glow of 'Inamorata', this is Miles Davis and company performing at their free-form apex. Just as essential as any of Davis' great records, 'Live Evil' captures this band of jazz explorers in searing midnight mode, fusing Hendrix-whipped acid rock, hot-toned fuzz jazz, slick- dipped soul tinges and Family Stone-styled funk excess in a way no-one thought truly possible. The jazz traditionalists hated it; history has proved them horribly wrong. STEFAN TURNER, STOKE NEWINGTON, 2012

Ten years after Miles Davis shows the world what Cool Jazz is about, he releases this album and shows the world what his vision of what a fusion of jazz and rock music could be. On his 1968 album Miles In The Sky he introduced electric piano; with his next album he adds electric bass. This album adds electric guitar and with it comes elements of rock'n'roll music. This was a controversial album when it was released. Like Bob Dylan before him, Miles got labelled a "sell out" for going electric. Both jazz and rock critics were confused; generally the former hated In A Silent Way and the latter liked it a little more. This album links Miles' first flirtations with electric jazz (the last two albums) with the avant-jazz-rock of Bitches Brew, an album that would be even more controversial than In A Silent Way. Despite being controversial, or maybe because of it, In A Silent Way sold better than the last few Miles releases.

A major difference from before is the way producer Teo Macero uses editing and tape-splicing to rearrange what has already been recorded. If including electric piano/guitar and rock rhythms into the music was not enough, having the final product be a studio creation was more than jazz purists could handle. Macero used the classical sonata form to rearrange the music already recorded into what the album ended up sounding like. English bassist Dave Holland returns from the last album where Ron Carter played electric bass; Holland only plays acoustic double bass here. Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, Wayne Shorter and Tony Williams are all back again but it's the two new guys in town who make this album a who's who of future jazz fusion.

English guitarist John McLaughlin and Austrian keyboardist Josef Zawinul would both make important contributions to this album, yet the involvement of both came almost by accident. Davis met McLaughlin for the first time the day before In A Silent Way was recorded; he was so impressed with him he invited him to the recording session. The rest, as they say, is history. Having two electric piano players already was apparently not enough and Miles wanted an organist as well. Originally he wanted Larry Young but Zawinul ended up taking the position. Zawinul brought with him a little folky ditty called "In A Silent Way." The group recorded it the way it was written by Josef; Macero then proceeded to rape it, butcher it and basically just have his way with it. The end result sounds nothing like the original.

That part bookends the title track while the "It's About That Time" part was written by Davis and is the rockiest the album gets. Much closer to jazz-rock than the first side-long piece "Shhh/Peaceful." Both McLaughlin and Williams are more subdued here, with Williams basically only using his hi-hat for repeated patterns. No beats or drum fills. This track draws you in with its hypnotic repetition. This has a vibe similar to some of the space rock and Krautrock coming out at the time. You can see(hear) how this track had an influence on some ambient music. An important album but it's not my fav from Miles' fusion period. In the next five years his music would just get louder, weirder, funkier and more raw. I give this 4 stars.