BLACK BEAUTY: LIVE AT THE FILLMORE WEST

I believe this album was first and foremost a Japan-only release in 77, as still today the booklet of the international remastered version has some Japanese-only text. Originally only called Black Beauty, the early version only claimed two tracks over the two discs, but the remastered version has corrected that flaw as the engineers dissected the music and installed track implementation to separate movements. In this line-up, we get Corea and Moreira (both heading soon to Return To Forever), and future permanent fixture Steve Grossman on sax, while Holland and Dejohnette hold the rhythm section, probably waiting for Jarrett to arrive in June of that year.

Recorded soon after the BB release, Miles' group already had more or less turned that page and was moving to more dissonant improvs than the studio album had let us on, but we are still far away from the lengthy improvs of the other Fillmore release in June of that year. The renditions of the BB studio tracks are definitely harder -edged, especially in "MD Runs The Voodoo Down", where the improvs are coming close to Sanders level. Returning to more faithfully-rendered, Willie Nelson and a splendid rendition of It's About That Time (from Silent Way), while Sanctuary is a welcome rest from the madness.

A bit weird, but for once Shorter is not around (replaced by Steve Grossman, the only non-BB session player of this line-up), they play two of his tunes, the first being a short version of BB's Sanctuary track and on the second disc, Masqualero with its Mexhipspanic feel, which lead right into Spanish Key. Of BB (the album) four of the six tracks are played, and one of the more dramatic sounding is BB (the track), but overall the double live album is rather pleasant and not too hard on the eardrums.

The main negative point I have with this release is that all of the tracks would've fit easily on a single disc, which makes it a real scam to sell it as a double. For the rest, I find the Fillmore West performance much better and more easily accessible than its Fillmore East equivalent two months later.