Miles Davis Quintet - Steamin' With The Miles Davis Quintet (CD) - Amoeba Music

Steamin' With The Miles Davis Quintet (CD)

Miles Davis Quintet

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Media Condition: Very Good CD Comments: Original Issue. Of the four albums of material Miles Davis’ first quintet knocked out during their fecund two-day contractual session in 1956, Steamin’ may be just a cut below the others. That’s a qualified contention, of course, given the high bar set by Davis and his compatriots: saxophonist John Coltrane, pianist Red Garland, bassist Paul Chambers and drummer Philly Jo Jones. In other words, this still outshines most jazz recordings, despite a few minor flaws. The opener is not one of those, however, as the band turns the Oklahoma! show tune “Surrey With the Fringe On Top” into a slinky swinger, Davis’ mute contrasting with Coltrane’s long lyrical solo while Garland’s solo emphasizes the tune’s populist Broadway roots. Two jazz standards get tackled here as well, one more effectively than the other. The Dizzy Gillespie staple, “Salt Peanuts,” naturally jolts everybody into a higher gear and Davis, sans mute, rides the upper register and acquits himself well at the opening. The high-octane tempo allows Coltrane to unleash his Sheets of Sound note flurries – but just when you’re settling in for one of his epic explorations, it abruptly leaves you hanging for Jones’ overly long drum solo. Thelonius Monk’s “Well You Needn’t” emphasizes the tune’s swing rather than the composition’s angular nature, Coltrane and Davis playing across each other on the theme and Chambers’ turning in a marvelous bowed solo. Two standards – “Something I Dreamed Last Night” and “When I Fall In Love” – highlight Davis’ sensual balladry (Coltrane sits out both, another disappointment) as well as the young Chambers’ powerful-but-lyrical bass. The bass player’s walking line also ignites the fire under the mid-tempo “Diane,” providing the swing for Davis and Coltrane to take flight over. It’s a record that lacks some of the best moments the other three entries have, but one that still entrances.		Buy $7.99

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