Miles Davis - Round About Midnight
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Free Music Notes for Round About Midnight
Free Music Review: This is Jazz
Hit: 5 Stars
It just sings. You get it or you dont. This I get!Free Music Review: SKRONK
Hit: 4 Stars
If there's ever been a jazz tune that embodies that classic sultry late-night feel like no other, I say it's the aptly-titled "Round Midnight." And if there's one musician whose cool playing fits that mood perfectly, it's Miles Davis. So what could be more natural than Miles starting off his brilliant career at Columbia records with that classic standard? I'm probably not the only one that prefers this sweet horn-driven version even over Thelonious Monk's original. He kicks things off nice and easy with a smooth into on the trumpet, the others jump in with a suddenness that almost makes you think they're going to crank up the tempo, then everyone drifts right back into four more minutes of sublime nocturnal bliss.Through his whole career Miles always had an uncanny talent for picking top-notch sidemen for his groups, and the working band he assembled here still stands as one of the most impressive quintets in jazz history. If you think I'm exaggerating, just listen to the way they smoke through the kicking "Ah-Leu-Cha," or the way they play off each other to breathe new life into the then-standards "All of You" and "Bye Bye Blackbird." I don't even like 50s showtunes or pop hits of that era, but this crew adopts them and makes it sound all their own with their particular kind of swing. (And that's considering that this was essentially an album of covers. Miles's only writing contribution was as co-writer on the lively "Budo," which wasn't even on the original LP.) Everything was looking up for him at this point. He'd just bounced back brighter than ever from a bad addiction, and this quintet was breaking new ground in the hard-bop style that would be adopted all over within a couple years. And all that is still a far cry from the way-out-there innovations he'd be fearlessly leading 15 years down the road.
While there isn't a single low point here, I leave off one star because of the sound mix. Whoever gave this disc its 20-bit remastering treatment, along with all the other Davis reissues I've heard, apparently decided that the horns & saxophones should be twice as loud as everything else. The whole thing sounds fine if I turn the treble setting as far down as it'll go on my stereo; if everything's left at an even level, then I barely have time to get adjusted to the piano and drums before Miles or Trane comes screeching into the picture with an ear-splitting SKRONK. It's a nuisance easily compensated for, but a nuisance all the same.
If you're looking for more of the lovely smooth, easy jazz that Miles and crew displayed on the universal Kind of Blue, you can't really go wrong with anything by this quintet. Round About Midnight shows the group just when their popularity was beginning to break out all over, kicking off a stream of Davis albums that would change the music world over the next three decades. It's not entirely as timeless as Kind of Blue, but undeniably classic all the same.
Free Music Review: Well worth owning, though on the mellow side...
Hit: 4 Stars
A bunch of folks have already reviewed this 1956 debut of Miles on Columbia, and they love it even more than me, although I like it just fine. Right now I am more attracted to the uptempo numbers of Miles' early career, and this is quieter than one might expect given that Coltrane also plays on it. However, I do have "The Best of Miles' Capitol/Blue Note" which precedes this, and "Kind of Blue" which came along three years later, so it is interesting to chart his development between those landmarks. My favorite here is "Bye Bye Blackbird" although in 1961 he was to do an even better version on the "Friday Night at the Blackhawk" record. (Or was it "Saturday Night"? Both are available, recorded on consecutive nights live, and both are good. I owned the one with "Blackbird" on it on vinyl back in high school.) This CD rates one less star in my book than "Kind of Blue" and one more star than his compilation CD "Love Songs" which is a little too bland.Free Music Review: embrionic Miles
Hit: 4 Stars
This album captures the magic and lyricism of Miles and his quintet at their beginning of what for Miles will be a iconic jazz career. Even at this early stage of his development it is a serious blend of laconic sounds and melodies with an undertone of nervous energy and exploration. The track 'Round midnight' demonstrates that it was always meant for a Miles interpretation. He and his group place their own credentials on this jazz classic and in many ways expand the genius of Thelonius Monks' composition. Miles is ably supported by the other members of the group. John Coltrane applies his talents to expand on Miles' leads and successfully complements his playing. Red Garland on piano provides a counterpoint to the two brass players and rounds and finishes the broad spectrum of the music. Philly Joe Jones and Paul Chambers on drums and bass keep the performances tight and disciplined without dampening the improvisation and exploration of the melodies. A great introduction to all artists.Free Music Review: The Beginning and the End
Hit: 4 Stars
Miles' debut album for Columbia Records - and the last LP by his original quintet - is very much in the same vein as the trumpeter's final Prestige sessions, which were in fact recorded almost simultaneously. There's nothing really new here - even the title track had already appeared on a Prestige LP in a nearly identical version - but the Maestro and his sidemen (John Coltrane on tenor sax, Red Garland on piano, Paul Chambers on bass and Philly Joe Jones on drums) play with verve and conviction, stamping their collective personality on the last all-covers program in Davis' catalogue. While subsequent releases such as MILESTONES and KIND OF BLUE are undoubtedly superior on all levels, 'ROUND ABOUT MIDNIGHT still deserves a place on any Miles Davis fan's shelf - even if the only thing distinguishing it from its predecessors is the record label.