Jazz Articles about Miles Davis

Miles Davis: In Person At The Blackhawk

by Nic Jones
June 25, 2003

Note: this four disc reissue includes two original 1961 Columbia releases: Friday Night At The Blackhawk, Complete (Volume 1) AC2K 8709 Saturday Night At The Blackhawk, Complete (Volume 2) AC2K 87100

Here's a transitional band at the height of its powers. Such was the longevity and variety of Davis's career that this music isn't generally considered to be amongst his seminal work, and there's a reason for this: the recorded music that chronologically surrounds these 1961 ...

Miles Davis: In Person Saturday Night At The Blackhawk, Complete, Volume II

by Jim Santella
May 6, 2003

The four sets that grace this 2-CD volume were recorded on April 22, 1961 in San Francisco. Miles Davis was in his prime, and his rhythm section knew the tunes well. Each of the sets appears here in its original performance order. Since nine of the tracks have never been issued before, this 24-bit Super Bit Mapping reissue carries a special significance.

The Miles Davis quintet was in such fine form that night that it makes you pause ...

Miles Davis: In Person Friday Night At The Blackhawk, Complete, Volume I

by Jim Santella
May 6, 2003

The three sets that grace this two-CD volume were recorded April 21, 1961 in San Francisco. Miles Davis was in his prime. His rhythm section was tight. And since this was a nightclub appearance, the quintet’s improvisation continues for extended periods. The tracks vary in length, but most run for ten minutes or more, giving the artists plenty of room to stretch out.

New technology continues to bring us better sound quality with every release, 24-bit Super ...

Miles Davis: Porgy and Bess

by Robert Gilbert
February 1, 2003

In jazz, only a handful of albums never lose their lustre. Each listening is a magical experience, no matter how familiar the material has become. The second collaboration between Miles Davis and Gil Evans, Porgy and Bess, is one such distinctive recording.

Davis and Evans’ recasting of the George Gershwin opera was their followup to the magnificent Miles Ahead. Many of that album’s characteristics are also present on Porgy and Bess : lush orchestrations, a wide-range of material ...

Miles Davis: Love Songs

by AAJ Staff
January 20, 2003

Throughout his long, varied and storied career, Miles Davis was known for many things. As the father/godfather/originator/pioneer of bop, hard bop, fusion and other styles, Miles’s 40+ albums revealed a diverse array of styles and sounds. Through it all, however, Miles maintained his trademark poise and lyricism, often best expressed through his ballads. On this collection, that element of Davis’s playing is exposed and explored, revealing a diversity even in the broad unity of the love song. These tunes range ...

Miles Davis: Steamin' With the Miles Davis Quintet (Remastered)

by C. Michael Bailey
October 2, 2002

Was this the greatest small jazz group ever?

What can be said for a classic that has not already been said? Damn Little, I think. But perhaps a little history is in order. Steamin' was part of two marathon recording sessions (May 11, 1956 and October 26, 1956) undertaken by the first great Miles Davis Quintet to complete their contractual obligation to Prestige records before the group moved to Columbia records. Rather than present new material in these sessions, Davis ...

Miles Davis: The Last Word - The Warner Bros. Years

by Jim Santella
August 3, 2002

Change isn't always welcome. As long as things are going okay, folks would just as soon leave things the way they are. But what's okay for one person or group may not be the same for others. So, when Miles Davis hit the 1970s and 1980s with a fusion of hip, electronic, synthesized and mainstream sounds in one tight package, some folks resisted. Some even complained. Even today, many feel that everything Davis did after 1969 isn't worth collecting.