Mine's 'A Tribute to Jack Johnson'. I think it's sort of 'Bitch's Brew' disk 3. It makes 'Brew' make sense. All the chaotic overlong soup of the 'Brew' refined into a funky bar room jam. Tho 'Get Up With It' is growing on me.

And possibly the best of all (even tho not Miles-authorised) - Panthalassa, remixed by Bill Laswell. As one reviewer said, 'It makes the music sound more like itself.' Especially the 'On the Corner' era stuff, where Laswell brings up the bass and finds a fantastic John McLaughlin guitar solo on track 2. Laswell's edit of 'He Loved Him Madly' is beautiful and cuts a lot of the excess noodling that bedevils the beginning of the original.

What y'all think?

Miles said:

My favorite Davis area, and I agree, followed by On the Corner, followed by Bitch's Brew. I've been meaning to pick up that 3 or 4 disc re-release of Jack Johnson, but I'm broke

"In A Silent Way" by far.

I haven't heard Tribute to Jack Johnson or Panthalassa, but a few nights ago I was having an intimate moment with a chicas, and as I was frantically rummaging for some mood music, I came across "doo-bop". It's got a nice feel for that kinda stuff...doesn't make you think, but his accentuation of the dance beats gives you moral support when going for the marathon.

Not his best playing no, but I now have a fond affection for that disc...trouble is it's too short, I couldn't put it on repeat and had to restart it like 4 or 5 times

Pick up the complete Bitches Brew 4cd set, this is an excellent record of that era...

Serveitupfrankie*

I"m a Bitches Brew fan myself but In A Silent Way is a "silent sneak up on you" classic.

i'd have to go with a tribute to jack johnson. in a silent way is a very close second.

Miles said:

I agree on that compilation Panthalassa Laswell put 2gether.
That is great.Otherwise In a silent way is the album I like the
best when I want 2 B taken 2 another place.
/peace Manki

I have to go with the general consensus here and say "In A Silent Way". It's by far the most accessible from his electric period. "Bitches Brew" runs it a very close second, however, as does "Live Evil".

In A Silent Way. It's just mesmerizing and ethereal. When it comes to the keyboard playing you can hear where Radiohead got some of their ideas, and in turn where the coda from Prince's title track of TRC comes from. I think it's sort of hard to compare it to his other electric albums, because in terms of structure and feel it's very different than things like Jack Johnson and Bitches Brew, etc. Maybe Jack Johnson is second for me, but IASW just grabs my gut. God bless crazy ass Miles.

`
[Edited 9/5/04 23:42pm]

Supernova said:

The box set has the original longer trax that "Shhh/Peaceful..." & "In A Silent Way" were cut from.

I like "Filles de Kilimanjaro",too.
[Edited 9/6/04 0:38am]

For me, both In A Silent Way and Jack Johnson are my favorites from that period.

Bitches Brew and Live Evil both top the list in my opinion...

but Agharta & Pangaea are also very beautiful....

I have to pick "Bitches Brew"

Hmmm... Live-evil!

It's a bit more mature take on the Bitches Brew sound. Jack Johnson is basically too straight forward for me, and I am a snobby art student, see? Otherwise I would pick Panthalassa or Dark Magus, but they really don't classify as proper albums.

Supernova said:

MrTation said:

I just recently got the Jack Johnson box set. VERY cool. And I have yet to get the In A Silent Way box.....I also need to revisit Filles de Kilimanjaro.

Supernova said:

Your in for a treat then.It's really fascinating to hear the original jams that were edited down to create the two collages they came up with.It seems like whole melodies were cut completely , while bits you will recognize pop up again & again...Most of "Kilimanjaro" also appears in this set .It is split between this box and the "Quintet 65-68" Box.

Great thread.

I love every release in this period from In A Silent Way through Get Up With It.
Maybe a sentmental nod going to In A Silent Way for introducing it all.

Because of the dates that actual cuts were recorded, the album release
chronology is very misleading as sessions overlap quite a bit.

To me, this whole period makes more sense if In A Silent Way is viewed as giant intro to this whole Miles era.
Fabulously lush tone poem setups that lull you into a false sense of security which Bitches Brew, Live-Evil & Jack Johnson interrupt like gangbusters to kick that aural-ass from pillar to post.

All hail the Prince of Darkness for being fearless enough to say FU to the jazz establishment on numerous occasions and creating this sensitive/searching/scary/sophisticated music.

Might sound like a cop-out for not picking a single album, but it's the truth. From the ethereal to the raucous.
Shhh / Peaceful, Great Expectations, Bitches Brew, Sivad, Right Off, Black Satin, Maiysha are like one really Long Playing record to me.

tA

Tribal Disorder

http://www.soundclick.com...rmusic.htm

Supernova said:

IASW definitely, the way Tony Williams builds up on the cymbals to the climax is like a big sexual rush!

I really love In A Silent Way. Gorgeous.

I love this era

My Favorite is Live evil

But anything from that period is a must have!

Bitches Brew and definately Jack Johnson.

Supernova said:

Truer words were never spoken. In A Silent Way is arguably my favorite Miles Davis album, followed closely by Bitches Brew. IASW's Shh/Peaceful is unbelievable, we need a moment of silence for Joe Zawinul's keyboard work on this album. Speaking of ethereal, check out Early Minor on the Complete In A Silent Way Sessions. Zawinul's Fender Rhodes work is beyond compare.