| Review by JW May 27, 2003 (1 of 1 found this review helpful)
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Performance: Sonics: |
This 1963 album is another one in Miles' classical jazz tradition. Swapping out Wynton Kelly for Herbie Hancock meant a slight change in character as compared to the "Someday My Prince Will Come" release from 2 years earlier. Miles Davis was in the process of forming a new band and that's why you see both Victor Feldman and Herbie Hancock featured on this disc (Later on Victor declined the invitation to be Miles' piano man). But overall this album continues in much of the same tradition as the work mentioned above but Herbie Hancock introduced a somewhat more adventurous style in my view. His piano work, especially on 'Seven Steps To Heaven' is more modern and at times improvisational when he uses almost counterpoints and sometimes even slightly dissonant notes (track 6).
There are three ballads here (track 1,3 and 5); the others are more uptempo tunes. The emotion that Miles communicated through his slower playing never ceases to grab me. It's more 'gritty' than Chet Baker who tends to be more melodious. ON this album I could hear a certain sadness come through - I have no knowledge about his state of mind at the time :-). I sense it when he starts the slow, hesitant and brittle intro to 'Basin Street Blues'. A similar mood I detect in 'Baby Won't You Please Come Home'.
The sound quality on this JSACD is pretty good though not on the same level the other JSACD's I also reviewed here. I hear a slightly recessed character to the sound that the others don't seem to have.
Jw
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| Review by DeSelby February 13, 2005 (1 of 3 found this review helpful)
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Sonics: |
| stereo sonics: the bass is slightly dull, but in all it is a very good sound
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| Review by tentimestwenty November 5, 2006 (2 of 3 found this review helpful)
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Performance: Sonics: |
| For my money, the best Miles JSACD. Betters the CD by a good margin, especially in background blackness.
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