Musings of Miles: Flugelhorn?

[medjuck]

Heard Hugh Masakella (sp) on NPR this morning saying that he'd been turned on to the flugelhorn by hearing Miles play it on one cut of Musings of Miles.

He's misremembering isn't he?

[BFrank]

I heard that, too. Not sure what to make of it. I can't find any discographic info that says Miles played flugelhorn on that date.

[JSngry]

Miles Ahead was a flugel date, iirc.

[DukeCity]

  JSngry said:

Miles Ahead was a flugel date, iirc.

Yes, Miles Ahead from 1957.

Also played flugel on The Brass Ensembles Of The Jazz And Classical Music Society - Music For Brass (Columbia CL 941, PC 37012) in 1956.

"Musings" is from '55, but jazzdisco lists that date on trumpet only.

[Gheorghe]

Somewhere in my archives I have a video of Miles with Gil Evans, where Miles plays fluegel on "The Duke". That video was done around 1960, so it´s 3 years later than "Miles Ahead". But I don´t think Miles had appearances on fluegel after that.

The only thing is, I think I remember during the end of his live, Miles was planning to pick up the fluegelhorn again.

I heard it´s easier to play if a trumpet player starts to have problems with his chops.

On "Musings", Miles doesn´t play fluegel, on most of the tunes (especially those from the Ahmad Jamal repertoire) he plays harmon mute, but sometimes seems to be a bit out of tune. I like the album, though it´s not perfect. Somehow it´s not very good recorded, the piano sounds somewhat tinny, and even the great Oscar Pettiford sounds somehow unsteady. It´s interesting that Miles on his autobiography says he likes that album. I mean that´s interesting for a man who never looked back and said about his work with Bird and Gil Evans "shit I´ve already forgotten".....

[Rosco]

  Gheorghe said:

Somewhere in my archives I have a video of Miles with Gil Evans, where Miles plays fluegel on "The Duke". That video was done around 1960, so it´s 3 years later than "Miles Ahead". But I don´t think Miles had appearances on fluegel after that.

The only thing is, I think I remember during the end of his live, Miles was planning to pick up the fluegelhorn again.

I heard it´s easier to play if a trumpet player starts to have problems with his chops.

On "Musings", Miles doesn´t play fluegel, on most of the tunes (especially those from the Ahmad Jamal repertoire) he plays harmon mute, but sometimes seems to be a bit out of tune. I like the album, though it´s not perfect. Somehow it´s not very good recorded, the piano sounds somewhat tinny, and even the great Oscar Pettiford sounds somehow unsteady. It´s interesting that Miles on his autobiography says he likes that album. I mean that´s interesting for a man who never looked back and said about his work with Bird and Gil Evans "shit I´ve already forgotten".....

The Sound of Jazz video is from April 2, 1959, between the two sessions for Kind of Blue. Miles had also played flugel on some of the tracks from Porgy & Bess and I heard it suggested that he plays it on Milestones (the tune), although that's debateable.

I think I read somewhere that Pettiford was drunk on the Musings session.

[sidewinder]

  Rosco said:

I think I read somewhere that Pettiford was drunk on the Musings session.

Yep, the 70's Prestige twofer 'Green Haze' mentions this in the sleeve notes, I think.

Edited April 27, 2009 by sidewinder

[J.A.W.]

  sidewinder said:

  Rosco said:

I think I read somewhere that Pettiford was drunk on the Musings session.

Yep, the 70's Prestige twofer 'Green Haze' mentions this in the sleeve notes, I think.

Drunk or not, the Musings date sounds very lacklustre to me.