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Miles Davis - Bitches Brew


Fionn
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[quote name='Dingus' timestamp='1380734197' post='2229760']
I listened to this album last night for thr first time in ages. It's bloody brilliant ! Tonight I may well dig out my copy of Jack Johnson .
[/quote]


Yeah, this thread had me digging out my copy of BB for the first time in a while.

"Jack Johnson" is another great one that does not get a mention very often.

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[quote name='toneknob' timestamp='1380658795' post='2228677']
Didn't really get it on the first couple of listens. Much prefer In A Silent Way, which blew my mind when I first heard it.
[/quote]

For me it was like this: I needed "Bitches Brew", which blew me away on first listen, to get into "In a Silent Way".
My last composition teacher OTOH, assumedly not an unmusical guy, needed "In a Silent Way", which blew him away on first listen, to get into "Bitches Brew".

I conclude we're all different, and all unmusical. :)

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This thread has prompted me to dig out BB after not really getting on with it many years ago just to see.

To me now it sounds rather like melodic and instrumental fragments from In A Silent Way trying to fight for their place within a fox hunt. To a shuffle beat.

Some of it I like, some of it makes my teeth sweat to be honest.

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[quote name='Fionn' timestamp='1380881161' post='2231808']
Some of your replies have made me very interested in hearing "A Silent Way".

I just downloaded it. The afternoons listening at "work" is assured.

Gracias :)
[/quote]
One of the things I like about In a Silent way is the minimalism of the drums. I mean, they've got Tony Williams sat behind a kit, one of the all-time great drummers and he plays hi-hat only for the whole of side one and mostly snare rim for much of side two, only using the whole kit for a few minutes of the album. It strikes me you'd need some real confidence to do something as sparse as that!

Edited by Beer of the Bass
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[quote name='Beer of the Bass' timestamp='1380881517' post='2231815']

One of the things I like about In a Silent way is the minimalism of the drums. I mean, they've got Tony Williams sat behind a kit, one of the all-time great drummers and he plays hi-hat only for the whole of side one and mostly snare rim for much of side two, only using the whole kit for a few minutes of the album. It strikes me you'd need some real confidence to do something as sparse as that!
[/quote]
From start to finish it's an ensemble masterclass in economy and beautiful understatement.
The out-takes (as well as Filles) point to this. Like i said above, it wasn't all about grabbing on the coat-tails of funk during this period; Miles was concerned with far more than that.

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[quote name='miles'tone' timestamp='1380869428' post='2231627']
Some of it I like, some of it makes my teeth sweat to be honest.
[/quote]

Yep !! There is no doubt that BB leaves an impression on everyone who listens to
it.......what type of impression, is another thing. ;)


I'd see a dentist if I were you !!! :P

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[quote name='Bilbo' timestamp='1380886232' post='2231893']
Just listening to it again to see whether it has any merits I previously missed. Sadly, I still don't get any real sense of why. Lot's of stuff but no context. A jam on nothing in particular.
[/quote]
For me, the merit in Bitches Brew is that it has a sort of intensity which literally makes the hairs on my arms stand on end. That's not something I can analyse, I'm just moved by it.
OTOH there is a lot of music raved about on Basschat which absolutely leaves me cold, so it has to be a personal thing...

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[quote name='tinyd' timestamp='1380891327' post='2231991']
I like the album a lot, but I have to say that I much prefer Miles' last acoustic stuff that preceded it - the "second great quintet" albums like Miles Smiles have never been bettered by anyone IMO.
[/quote]

Yes, his early acoustic material was great too, but BB is obviously a completely different animal altogether.

Miles' electric period divided his fans and critics alike, but he was never one to stay in the same place for
very long...always had to be experimenting.

I always used to look forward to a new Miles album coming out, because you'd never really know what to expect.

Sometimes you'd be disappointed (maybe one or two albums in my case), but most times not.

Edited by Coilte
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Although it's the first MD album I bought - as it's the you-gotta-hear-this one - I only came to appreciate it after exploring some of the surrounding releases: In a Silent Way, and possibly my favourite (and as far as I know nobody else's!), On the Corner.

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[quote name='Coilte' timestamp='1380892000' post='2232007']
Miles' electric period divided his fans and critics alike, but he was never one to stay in the same place for
very long...always had to be experimenting.
[/quote]
That's a good point - the "Plugged Nickel" live CDs are a great example of this. He took the standards that he'd had such success with, tore them apart, turned them into something new and then drew a line under them and moved on.

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[quote name='Bilbo' timestamp='1380893246' post='2232034']
Miles Ahead is my fave MD.
[/quote]
Miles Ahead is wonderful and one of may favourites but once it was done it's done. There would have been little point in keep churning out the same stuff in my opinion and that's one of the things i liked about Miles. He never never stood still.

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Can people stop recommending albums to listen to. :D This is starting to take over my life. Every time someone suggests one I give it a listen and before you know it a day has past. I'm supposed to be listening to calypso type music for this months composition competition. God knows what I'll come up with at this rate.

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[quote name='the boy' timestamp='1380902080' post='2232233']
Can people stop recommending albums to listen to. :D This is starting to take over my life. Every time someone suggests one I give it a listen and before you know it a day has past. I'm supposed to be listening to calypso type music for this months composition competition. God knows what I'll come up with at this rate.
[/quote]
I know what you mean so you must not on any account listen to this..............

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D0UZGAOV1rA

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Well, I listened to "In a silent way" today, for the first time (and the second time).

Magical stuff! Aye, such economy and restraint, especially when compared to "Bitches Brew". What a beautiful moment, half an hour in, when the full drum-kit kicks in, and then retracts, back to the space. I love that. It's imposible to focus on anything else when listening to these albums. I've lost a few hours of work on Miles Davis this week, but it was very worth it.

Och, in my current mood I'm prefering the edgy nature of BB though. Those buried grooves are dirtier ... Nasty, yeahhhhhh!!!!

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