This year marks the 45th anniversary of the release of “Kind of Blue" and Gary Guthrie has plied his “what if" curiosity by producing one of the more intriguing jazz records of 2004 - A New Kind of Blue, a fresh version of Miles Davis' classic. Featuring recent Grammy winner Randy Brecker channeling the spirit of Davis, Guthrie's studio group - dubbed “g.org" (pronounced “g - dot - org") - stretches the “New Blue" well past the 45-minute limits of the vinyl LP heyday, brings its production values into the digital realm, plus captures several of the missing ingredients critics have been scratching their head about for years. A New Kind of Blue was recorded at New York's Sony Studios on April 8, 2004 and features Randy Brecker on trumpet, David Finck on bass, Victor Lewis on drums, Chuck Loeb on guitar, Mike Ricchiuti on piano and Andy Snitzer on alto saxophone.
Guthrie's instructions to the band were simple: give the set an authentic, passionate reading with some intense color; solo within the scales; let things stretch out a bit; and give the listener a chance to experience the sonic differences of that 1959 moment if it were to happen today. “It became evident very early on that if I consciously made room for serendipity, there would be more of a chance to take advantage of it. Just like Miles' approach, the first ideas were usually the best ideas."
The CD features the original sequence of “Blue" tracks, plus Evans' “Peace Piece" - the Evans' tune used as a basis for “Flamenco Sketches" - reverently included as the prelude to “Sketches" in a close-your-eyes moment from Mike Ricchiuti. Three other elements that make this project interesting are:
Loeb quoting the original arrangement for Chet Baker's “Alone Together" that Evans used for the structure of “Blue in Green"
An extended, jam-like version (22 minutes) of “All Blues"
Mastering by Mark Wilder, the man who has worked with the original A New Kind of Blue more than any man on the planet through his remastering role at Sony
For more information contact All About Jazz.
