What's So Special About Bitches Brew or Cody Wants Me Dead, I Am Certain Of It .....
-
Artist:
-
Album:
-
Track:
Listen and read. Enjoy Jazz on Saturday.
It may or may not be common knowledge that Cody B. and I are pretty good friends. We met on MOG and have seen each other a few times, we even call each other on a semi regular basis and talk about whatever (MOG politics and happenings mostly and of course music). Well one of our conversations turned to ideas for posts. It was Cody's idea for me to do a anti band post. So here it goes and hopefully my Jazz cred will see me through.Late in the year of 1969 Miles Davis started to record what many people consider a turning point in Jazz. Maybe many isn't strong enough of a word, most if not all people consider it a turning point, including myself, to an extent.Yet, I can't help but think "Brew" was inevitable. That's right, he has been given credit for something that was going to happen anyway and Bitches Brew was more of a jazz Super Group created to kick ass. *What is so flipping great about this record?*I got 4 words for you:*Ornette Coleman and free jazz*Davis' influence since his collab. with Gil Evans from '49 to '50 and the release of "Birth of the Cool" is undeniable. Fronting bands that include players from "heaven's jazz ensemble" and still breathing players. I'd list just the greatest, but I would be still typing it tomorrow morning, safe to say he played with the best of the best. The talent pool was there. Another aspect of this jazz singularity was the advent of the long play record. Back in the late 40's and early 50's Columbia (whom Davis was contracted to at the time) produced an LP format conducive to epic flights of fancy in the music biz. Cashing into the fact musicians could cram 26 minutes of music on one album side was liberating. Imagine having the ability to record a 15 minute jam, with enough time to record 2 standards and still have another side to do the same thing on. 6 tracks for 2 bucks. The record companies saw dollar signs. Ornette Coleman is really to blame. As the, and I mean the pioneer of free jazz, Coleman took off the "shackles of great communication" between the player and the listener. His brand of jazz is hard to listen to. It grates on your nerves most of the time. Sure Coleman did some standards and almost straight bop, but when he flew, man did he fly, like right out the door man, ... dig.John Coltrane was deeply influenced by Coleman. During his early years as a solo player and band leader Coltrane dipped in the free jazz well, and yet somehow kept it all together to the end. With Coleman, you were lucky if he slowed down enough to drop you off before he spun it up, all over again. Would I be way off the mark if I said, "Davis copped Coltrane and that is *Bitches Brew*"?
This Coltrane track comes to you courtesy of "Lester Jonze":http://mog.com/Lester_Jonze/blog_post/116865
Comment as you must. Maybe we could hash this one out together.
It may or may not be common knowledge that Cody B. and I are pretty good friends. We met on MOG and have seen each other a few times, we even call each other on a semi regular basis and talk about whatever (MOG politics and happenings mostly and of course music). Well one of our conversations turned to ideas for posts. It was Cody's idea for me to do a anti band post. So here it goes and hopefully my Jazz cred will see me through.Late in the year of 1969 Miles Davis started to record what many people consider a turning point in Jazz. Maybe many isn't strong enough of a word, most if not all people consider it a turning point, including myself, to an extent.Yet, I can't help but think "Brew" was inevitable. That's right, he has been given credit for something that was going to happen anyway and Bitches Brew was more of a jazz Super Group created to kick ass. *What is so flipping great about this record?*I got 4 words for you:*Ornette Coleman and free jazz*Davis' influence since his collab. with Gil Evans from '49 to '50 and the release of "Birth of the Cool" is undeniable. Fronting bands that include players from "heaven's jazz ensemble" and still breathing players. I'd list just the greatest, but I would be still typing it tomorrow morning, safe to say he played with the best of the best. The talent pool was there. Another aspect of this jazz singularity was the advent of the long play record. Back in the late 40's and early 50's Columbia (whom Davis was contracted to at the time) produced an LP format conducive to epic flights of fancy in the music biz. Cashing into the fact musicians could cram 26 minutes of music on one album side was liberating. Imagine having the ability to record a 15 minute jam, with enough time to record 2 standards and still have another side to do the same thing on. 6 tracks for 2 bucks. The record companies saw dollar signs. Ornette Coleman is really to blame. As the, and I mean the pioneer of free jazz, Coleman took off the "shackles of great communication" between the player and the listener. His brand of jazz is hard to listen to. It grates on your nerves most of the time. Sure Coleman did some standards and almost straight bop, but when he flew, man did he fly, like right out the door man, ... dig.John Coltrane was deeply influenced by Coleman. During his early years as a solo player and band leader Coltrane dipped in the free jazz well, and yet somehow kept it all together to the end. With Coleman, you were lucky if he slowed down enough to drop you off before he spun it up, all over again. Would I be way off the mark if I said, "Davis copped Coltrane and that is *Bitches Brew*"?
This Coltrane track comes to you courtesy of "Lester Jonze":http://mog.com/Lester_Jonze/blog_post/116865
Comment as you must. Maybe we could hash this one out together.
Comments (35)
* Miles Davis - trumpet
* Wayne Shorter - soprano saxophone
* Bennie Maupin - bass clarinet
* Chick Corea - electric piano (solo on "Miles Runs The Voodoo Down")
* Larry Young - electric piano
* Joe Zawinul - electric piano
* John McLaughlin - guitar
* Dave Holland - bass
* Harvey Brooks - electric bass
* Lenny White - drum set
* Billy Cobham - drum set
* Jack DeJohnette - drum set
* Don Alias - congas, drum set only on "Miles Runs The Voodoo Down"
* Juma Santos - shaker, congas
I'll give Lester the gold on this one. See how he waited in the cut til we were out of ideas, came in and won the day. WORD!
Oh yeah. Totally shanked us.
I wonder what other innocent anti-some great album posts you could do to make people leap onto their puters..Bartleby also was moved to jump in on this. My fave of all time was wdog's 2 anti-Joy Division posts.
Anti posts used to come up a lot. Another thing missing from the yay-mog0sphere of today.