Jazz Articles about Miles Davis

Miles Davis: The Essential Miles Davis

by Jim Santella
May 1, 2001

A seminal figure in the growth and development of jazz, Miles Davis helped move the genre from bebop to smooth jazz. Sony Music arranges the phases of Davis' achievements into five major periods:

1955-1961 Miles Davis, John Coltrane, and Kind Of Blue 1957-1968 Miles Davis, Gil Evans: their collaborations 1965-1968 Miles Davis and his second great quintets 1968-1972 Fusion and electronic instruments Later Works

Davis remains the number one hall of fame ...

Miles Davis: Milestones

by Jim Santella
April 1, 2001

The calibre of personnel Miles Davis enlisted for his Sextet was the very best. Davis knew he couldn't keep this unit together for long. It was obvious to him that each was developing into a sensation. This was 1958, and history was being made with the emergence of Davis' modal sound. His sweet, open trumpet tone reflects what Davis stood for and explains why he's still the top vote getter in jazz polls around the world. The way he, Cannonball ...

Miles Davis: Birth Of The Cool

by Jim Santella
February 1, 2001

The improved sound quality of this classic recording is immediately perceptible. Without that clear tuba and baritone saxophone bottom, Miles Davis' open trumpet would seem to be wandering in a different phase of his career. A valuable asset such as the first half of “Moon Dreams," which blends Gunther Schuller's French horn harmony and two distinct saxophone voices with one distant J.J. Johnson thread could have easily become lost without the right balance. This new Rudy Van Gelder edition has ...

Miles Davis: Jazz At The Plaza

by Jim Santella
February 1, 2001

From a live 1958 session at the Persian Room of New York’s swanky Plaza Hotel, this reissue reminds us that Miles Davis’ sextet was one of the greatest in jazz. Originally issued in 1973, the LP contained liner note errors regarding time and place of performance as well as one incorrect song title and one incorrect personnel listing. Those errors have been corrected. The CD repackaging includes both the original liner notes and updated comments from Bob Blumenthal.

Bill Evans, ...

Miles Davis: The Complete Bitches Brew Sessions

by David Beckman
September 1, 2000

No other musician in the 20th Century explored the possibilities of music as fiercely as trumpeter and bandleader Miles Davis. He frustrated critics and fans alike as he opened himself up to unexpected directions in musical thinking while continuously shaping and refining his remarkable skills on trumpet. Critics tried and tried to squeeze his musical journeys into a box called “jazz," but Miles would have none of it. And then, in August of 1969, Miles decided he'd put all of ...

Miles Davis: The Complete Columbia Recordings of Miles Davis With John Coltrane

by C. Andrew Hovan
September 1, 2000

Some nine years after Miles Davis’ untimely death, Columbia Records is still repackaging his recorded legacy. The most recent efforts in this area have been made available both on compact disc and in 180-gram vinyl versions by way of Mosaic Records. It is the latter edition that this review is based on, though it should be noted that basically the only difference between the two sets, besides the presentation medium, is that Mosaic’s package is a 12 x 12 box ...

Miles Davis: On The Corner / Get Up With It

by Todd S. Jenkins
September 1, 2000

Columbia/Legacy is embarking upon a hot fusion reissue program, reshaping many of their classic albums via digital technology to make the roots of today’s music more relevant. Among the first reissues slated for 2000 are two of Miles Davis’ most misunderstood but oddly influential offerings, “On The Corner” and “Get Up With It”. At the “On The Corner” sessions Miles went nuts with electric eclecticism. He hooked a pickup and wah-wah pedal to his trumpet, hired three drummers and three ...