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Review 1
Down Beat Magazine Review 5 Star!!
REVIEW
This is a remarkable album. Using very simple but effective devices, Miles has constructed an album of extreme beauty and sensitivity. This is not to say that this LP is a simple one -- far from it. What is remarkable is that the men have done so much with the stark, skeletal material.
All the compositions bear the mark of the Impressionists and touches of Bela Bartok. For example, So What? Is built on two scales, which sound somewhat like the Hungarian minor, giving the performance a Middle Eastern flavor; Flamenco and Freeloader are both blues, but each is of a different mood and conception: Sketches is in 6/8, which achieves a rolling, highly charged effect, while Freeloader may account partly for the difference between the two.
Miles' playing throughout the album is poignant, sensitive, and, at times, almost morose; his linear concept never falters. Coltrane has some interesting solos; his angry solo on Freeloader is in marked contrast to his lyrical romanticism on All Blues. Cannonball seems to be under wraps on all the tracks except Freeloader when his irrepressible joie de vivre bubbles forth. Chambers, Evans, and Cobb provide a solid, sympathetic backdrop for the horns.
This is the soul of Miles Davis, and it's a beautiful soul.
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Review 2
Personnel: Davis, trumpet; Julian Adderley, alto; John Coltrane, tenor; Bill Evans, piano (all tracks except Freeloader); Wynton Kelly, piano ( Track 2); Paul Chambers, bass; James Cobb, drums.
This recording is the number one all time best seller for jazz! Period. Averaging 5,000 copies a week world wide. |
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