Miles Davis is one of my favorite Jazz musicians. When I first started listening to his music I did not realize that This journey would last forever. I also did not know that the journey of his music would make me travel to so many live performances I would be blabbering like a fool for eternity. As much as you know Ornette Coleman is my main Jazz dude. He changed the scope of Jazz and music. Miles, on the other hand really did not like his brash approach and did some condemning on Ornette's music. Miles too did some transforming of his own, to Cool Jazz to Model to Fusion. He wanted to stay relevant. In Plugged Nickel he grabbed the audience by the throat and did not let go.
Miles did not know the future, but he did predict that his music was more important then anyone else. He stuck to his principal and while Jazz was diving into Avant-Garde, and Experimental music he kept on doing his thing. His Plugged Nickel performances told us that Miles was on his own path, yet still doing some great work. This music saw the light in 1982 and then the all the performances in 1995. I'm thankful I get to hear this music and wish I was transported back to see this live in 1965. I would be talking about this for the rest of my life.
At first listen I was not sure what to think. I was stuck between his two eras of music. The cool sound of Kind Of Blue and the brash sound of Bitches Brew. I loved them both equally and wanted to hear more from each ensemble. At the time I knew each band member in Plugged Nickel well enough to explore their musical avenues. Herbie was always a favorite so I kinda knew what paths he was taking and followed them as well. Tony Williams did more Jazz Fusion exploring and I loved what I heard. Ron Carter I knew little but knew enough that he was in this group as long as it existed and he was playing on an album called Stolen Moments: Red Hot and Cool. This album also featured Herbie Hancock. By the way it's a damn fine compilation and mix of Jazz and Rap. Lastly Wayne Shorter is nothing short of a genius. His compositions are just mind blowing and should be explored further.
All this greatness harnessed into eight compact disc is nothing short of amazing. It is one of my favorite box set in my collection. I'm glad a friend found it and thought of me when it came to making it available for me to enjoy. At the time I only had the sampler of this to listen to and eager to hear it all. In hearing it all some chunks were missing because they had to change reels while recording these performances. Oh Well! Can't be perfect. Once acquired this box, I listened and listened and listened.
If there is such thing as a perfect music box set then this one of the very few. Ones that come to mind (I'm partial)
Beauty is a Rare Thing: The Complete Atlantic Recordings of Ornette Coleman and
Star Time The James Brown Box Set. All three of these are pretty close to perfect for me. The Miles Davis wins because it is a time capsule of live music. You can hear the buzz between sets on some of this recording. The club is electric in so many ways. Hearing the Quintet know they are part of this special thing to the ESP of the band members knowing it all is working out just the way they rehearsed. Even their solos are a thing of beauty. Miles got it right and enjoyed it as well. I will have to say since this box recently went back in print it sure is a must own for any music collector. I'm happy to listen to it allover again and not get tired of one song or one note. Perfect starts here or hear depending on how you take it on. Enjoy, this will be talked about for years and years to come.
Comments
Post a Comment