Kind of Blue

Kind of Blue

by Miles Davis
Kind of Blue

Kind of Blue

by Miles Davis

CD(Digi-Pak)

$19.99 
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Overview

Notes From Your Bookseller

Amazingly recorded in just nine hours of studio time in 1959, Kind of Blue has gone on to be the bestselling album in jazz history and a truly timeless work. Its impact on music, including jazz, rock, and classical genres, has led many to deem it one of the most influential albums ever made. A great introduction to jazz for any music fan, Kind of Blue is extremely beautiful and listenable, while still embracing the principles of experimental free jazz. This visionary album has stood the test of time and is a must-have for music fans of ANY genre.

Kind of Blue isn't merely an artistic highlight for Miles Davis, it's an album that towers above its peers, a record generally considered the definitive jazz album (and the best-selling title in jazz history), a universally acknowledged standard of excellence. Why does Kind of Blue posses such a mystique? Perhaps because this music never flaunts its genius. It lures listeners in with the slow, luxurious bassline and gentle piano chords of "So What." From that moment on, the record never really changes pace -- each tune has a similar relaxed feel, and the music flows easily. Yet Kind of Blue is more than easy listening. It's the pinnacle of modal jazz -- tonality and solos build from the overall key, not chord changes, giving the music a subtly shifting quality. All of this doesn't quite explain why seasoned jazz fans return to this record even after they've memorized every nuance. They return because this is an exceptional band -- Miles, John Coltrane, Bill Evans (with Wynton Kelly subbing on "Freddie Freeloader"), Cannonball Adderley, Paul Chambers, Jimmy Cobb -- one of the greatest bands in history, playing at the peak of its power. As Evans said in the original liner notes for the record, the band did not play through any of these pieces prior to recording. Davis laid out the themes before the tape rolled, and then the band improvised. The end results were wondrous and still crackle with vitality. Kind of Blue works on many different levels. It can be played as background music, yet it amply rewards close listening. It is advanced music that is extraordinarily enjoyable. It may be a stretch to say that if you don't like Kind of Blue, you don't like jazz -- but it's hard to imagine it as anything other than a cornerstone of any jazz collection. The 50th Anniversary Legacy Edition of Kind of Blue is a pared down version of the Kind of Blue 50th Anniversary Collector's Edition, that was released by Sony in September of 2008. The earlier version contained both of the CDs included here, a deluxe DVD, and an LP in an extravagant -- and limited -- package. For those who've purchased some other edition of Kind of Blue over the last decade, the debate over whether to purchase this one will come down to how big a jazz fan you are. There have been numerous editions of this set issued on CD. This one is definitive -- insofar as we know -- in that it not only contains the album in gloriously warm remastered sound, it also features the complete studio sessions with a total of over two hours of false starts, alternate takes, dialogue, and studio sequences. All of this is on disc one. Disc two contains five tunes recorded in the studio by this sextet ten months earlier (May 26, 1958) that were not featured on Kind of Blue. The other bonus cut is a walloping 17-and-a-half minute live version of "So What," recorded by Miles with Coltrane, Wynton Kelly, Chambers, and Cobb at a gig in Holland in 1960. This track has only appeared on bootlegs in the past and this is its first authorized release. If you are content with simply owning Kind of Blue without all the other documented material, go no further. If you purchased the Collector's Edition this will offer you nothing you don't already have in better form. If, however, you found yourself not rich enough to purchase that edition and would still love to own the complete studio session of a documented jazz classic, this is the way to go. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine and Thom Jurek

Product Details

Release Date: 01/20/2009
Label: Legacy / Columbia/Legacy
UPC: 0886972710525
Rank: 25896

Tracks

Disc 1

  1. So What
  2. Freddie Freeloader
  3. Blue In Green
  4. All Blues
  5. Flamenco Sketches
  6. Flamenco Sketches [Alternate Take]
  7. Freddie Freeloader [Studio Sequence 1]
  8. Freddie Freeloader [False Start]
  9. Freddie Freeloader [Studio Sequence 2]
  10. So What [Studio Sequence 1]
  11. So What [Studio Sequence 2]
  12. Blue In Green [Studio Sequence]
  13. Flamenco Sketches [Studio Sequence 1]
  14. Flamenco Sketches [Studio Sequence 2]
  15. All Blues [Studio Sequence]

Disc 2

  1. On Green Dolphin Street
  2. Fan-Dance
  3. Stella By Starlight
  4. Love For Sale
  5. Fran-Dance [Alternate Take]
  6. So What

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Miles Davis   Primary Artist,Trumpet
Paul Chambers   Double Bass,Bass,Bass (Upright)
John Coltrane   Sax (Tenor)
Jimmy Cobb   Drums
Cannonball Adderley   Sax (Alto)
Wynton Kelly   Piano
Bill Evans   Piano

Technical Credits

Nat Hentoff   Liner Notes
Irving Townsend   Audio Production,Original Recording Producer,Producer
Robert Waller   Audio Engineer
Fred Plaut   Audio Engineer,Engineer
Ned Washington   Composer
Mark Wilder   Engineer,Remixing
Michael Cuscuna   Reissue Producer
Miles Davis   Leader,Composer
Bronislaw Kaper   Composer
Robert Palmer   Liner Notes
Cal Lampley   Producer,Audio Production
Harold Chapman   Engineer,Audio Engineer
Bill Evans   Composer,Liner Notes,Original Liner Notes
Cole Porter   Composer
Larry Keyes   Producer
Steven Berkowitz   Reissue Series
Don Hunstein   Photography
Teo Macero   Producer
Victor Young   Composer
Seth Rothstein   Project Director
Patti Matheny   A&R,Artist Coordination
Rene Arsenault   Assistant Producer,Production Assistant
Kevin Gore   Reissue Series
Cozbi Sanchez-Cabrera   Art Direction,Reissue Art Director
Randall Martin   Design,Reissue Design
Jennifer Ebert   Packaging Manager
Jay Maisel   Cover Photo,Photography
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