Miles Davis – Bitches Brew (2 CD + DVD)
Recorded at the end of a tumultuous decade (August 1969), Bitches Brew reflected the chaos and beauty of a society stretched and stressed to its breaking point. This genre-bending, barrier-smashing double LP of boldly new music with dense textures and lengthy performances broke every rule of commerciality. These 40th Anniversary Editions are a tribute to both the man who changed the course of jazz (“four or five times,” as he himself once quipped), and the album that virtually single-handedly brought jazz into the commercial rock era, becoming no.94 on Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 Greatest Albums Of All Time. Originally released in April 1970, Bitches Brew was informed by the music that Miles heard being produced in the era by Jimi Hendrix, Sly Stone, James Brown, Santana and Marvin Gaye, as well as the Beatles’ editing pyrotechnics.
The original double-LP’s six tracks –“Bitches Brew,” “John McLaughlin,” “Sanctuary,” “Miles Runs the VooDoo Down”, “Pharaoh’s Dance,” and “Spanish Key” – as formulated in the studio by Miles and his long-time producer Teo Macero, presented a seismic breakthrough in jazz/rock/funk/R&B. Session personnel included Miles on trumpet, Wayne Shorter (soprano saxophone), Bennie Maupin (bass clarinet), Joe Zawinul (electric piano), Chick Corea (electric piano), John McLaughlin (guitar), Dave Holland (acoustic bass), Harvey Brooks (electric bass), Lenny White (drums), Jack DeJohnette (drums), Don Alias (congas), and Jumma Santos (aka Jim Riley - shaker).
The Anniversary Editions present the music recorded at the principal Bitches Brew August 1969 recording sessions as well as live performances of some of the same music recorded later, showing further development of the material in the hands of master improvisers.
This Three-disc package comprises the two album CDs and Copenhagen DVD, plus a 24-page color booklet with Greg Tate’s original essay, Producers’ notes by the set’s Co-Producers Michael Cuscuna and Richard Seidel, along with dozens of photographs and rare record label memos.
Label: Columbia – 88697 75150 2
Country: Europe
Media Condition: Near Mint (NM or M-)
Sleeve Condition: Near Mint (NM or M-)
DVD:
Recorded live at the Tivoli Konsertsal, Copenhagen, Denmark, November 4, 1969