Complete Miles Davis - 70CD + DVD

[king ubu]

yes of course!

[brownie]

I would not rate 'Star People' among Miles' best albums from the '80s!

Much better records from that era are available!

[king ubu]

Which ones? Aura and We Want Miles are my favourites, I think, but there are fine things on Amandla and Tutu as well. Decoy is mostly boring, the ugly leather jacket gun album is totally boring, the first comeback album is marred by the two tracks with the bad band (Vince Wilburn already, I think?), and the hip hop (Doo Wop), well.... There's the live music of course (the Warner single disc and the huge Montreux box) that's generally better, I think.

[sidewinder]

The first tack of 'Decoy' is good. And the track on side 2 of the LP arranged by Gil Evans (the slow blues) is very good too. 'Decoy' is a very up and down album.

[brownie]

The '80s was not the best decade for Miles. 'Aura' sounds to me as one of the most challenging of his albums from the decade.

But the concerts were the best way to listen to his music by then. The Montreux box for instance includes several mighty fine concerts!

[king ubu]

The first tack of 'Decoy' is good. And the track on side 2 of the LP arranged by Gil Evans (the slow blues) is very good too. 'Decoy' is a very up and down album.

agreed! and the rest is boring...

The '80s was not the best decade for Miles. 'Aura' sounds to me as one of the most challenging of his albums from the decade.

But the concerts were the best way to listen to his music by then. The Montreux box for instance includes several mighty fine concerts!

agreed again!

[neveronfriday]

It pays off to be one of the "good" guys once in a while.

Today I went through a rather large order in the office of my favorite music shop with the owner. Whenever possible, I try to leave my money there instead of ordering online (if, which is usually the case, the owner can make a competitive offer without me pushing him over the brink).

When we were done, he said he would throw the new Miles box in for Euro 60.- if I'm interested. He just asked me not to run over to eBay to get rid of it, which I won't, but to pass it on to someone else for the same amount if I decided not to keep it.

So, Euro 60 I paid and I can pick it up on Monday with the rest of my (back)order.

I wasn't sure if I should go for it because I have most of the Miles Davis I like already, but then again, I also know some very good people I could simply give those editions to (or the box), people who simply don't have the cash to buy what they would perhaps like to have.

So, what goes around comes around, and all of that.

Good day, today.

Edited November 19, 2009 by neveronfriday

[jeffcrom]

It pays off to be one of the "good" guys once in a while.

Today I went through a rather large order in the office of my favorite music shop with the owner. Whenever possible, I try to leave my money there instead of ordering online (if, which is usually the case, the owner can make a competitive offer without me pushing him over the brink).

When we were done, he said he would throw the new Miles box in for Euro 60.- if I'm interested. He just asked me not to run over to eBay to get rid of it, which I won't, but to pass it on to someone else for the same amount if I decided not to keep it.

So, Euro 60 I paid and I can pick it up on Monday with the rest of my (back)order.

I wasn't sure if I should go for it because I have most of the Miles Davis I like already, but then again, I also know some very good people I could simply give those editions to (or the box), people who simply don't have the cash to buy what they would perhaps like to have.

So, what goes around comes around, and all of that.

Good day, today.

Cool!

[neveronfriday]

Cool!

Yep.

The owner of the shop is a real survivor. He keeps his customers happy (he has one of the best classical selections for about 300 miles around) and they keep him happy. It's really a last recluse for us freaks and geeks, with knowledgeable staff and coffee (or cognac) while sifting through endless rows of CDs and a pretty healthy supply of LPs.

Because I only had to work for an hour today (the other 20% of what made this day great) I could go reasonably early today and - I also told him that - I was completely surprised about the number of customers in there (I would say about 40 people in a comparatively small shop). Because he's got such a good reputation, the people in there are also not your regular walk-in customers. These were mostly regulars who also looked like they had the cash for some serious shopping.

The whole place is almost surreal when compared to the ground zero atmosphere in other cities I frequent. There is only one more shop like that that (albeit 10 times the size) I can think of (in Munich, Germany) and it would take me about 4 hours to get there.

Edited November 19, 2009 by neveronfriday

[fasstrack]

What the hell is this?

The Complete Miles Davis

A complete set of all his Columbia releases?

DetailinformationenLabel: Columbia

Bestellnummer: 8969977

Tracklisting

1 Paris Festival Int. de Jazz May, 1949

2 Round about midnight (1955-1956)

3 Circle in the round (1955-70)

4 Miles ahead (1957)

5 Milestones (1958)

6 1958 Miles

7 At Newport 1958

8 Porgy And Bess (1958)

9 Jazz at the Plaza (1958)

10 Kind of blue (1959)

11 Sketches of Spain (195960)

12 Directions (1960-70)

13 Someday my prince will come (1961)

14 In Person: Friday Night at the Blackhawk, San Francisco (1961)

15 In Person: Saturday Night at the Blackhawk, San Francisco Complete (1961)

16 At Carnegie Hall / The Complete Concert (1961)

17 Quiet nights / Blue Xmas / Devil may care (1962)

18 Seven steps to heaven (1963)

19 In Europe (1963)

20 My funny valentine (1964)

21 Four & More (1964)

22 Miles in Tokyo (1964)

23 Miles in Berlin (1964)

24 E. S. P. (1965)

25 Live at the plugged Nickel (1965)

26 Miles smiles (1966)

27 Sorcerer (1967) 28 Nefertiti (1967)

29 Water Babies (1967-68)

30 Miles in the sky (1968)

31 Filles de Kilimanjaro (1968)

32 In a silent way (1969)

33 Bitches brew (1969)

34 Big fun (1969-72)

35 A tribute to Jack Johnson (1970)

36 Live at the Fillmore East / It´s about that time (1970)

37 Black Beauty: Miles Davis at Fillmore East (1970)

38 At Fillmore: Live at the Fillmore East (1970)

39 Isle of Wight (1970)

40 Live / Evil (1970)

41 On the corner (1972)

42 In Concert (1972)

43 Dark Magus (1974)

44 Get up with it (1972-74)

45 Agharta (1975)

46 Pangaea (1975)

47 The man with the horn (1981-81)

48 We want Miles + 3 bonus tracks (1981)

49 Star people (1982-83)

50 Decoy (1983)

51 You´re under arrest (1984-85)

52 Aura (1985)

53 + DVD: Miles Davis in Schweden 1967

I wonder... would that mean that the Paris set (#1) and Agartha/Pangaea will be reissued? And the the comeback albums?

What are the bonus tracks on We Want Miles? That will be a 2CD set, then... (and it's mighty fine, in my opinion!)

Also, #39 (Isle of Wight) and #53 look tasty... but why not add a DVD of "Isle of Wight" as well (I have the DVD "Electric Miles" though, but no audio-only of that).

Release date is given as October 26, 2009.

Screw that. I'm waiting for Chris Botti

[sidewinder]

Good day, today.

No kidding !

Especially as it looks as if Blair is not going to be El-Presidente too

[neveronfriday]

Good day, today.

No kidding !

Especially as it looks as if Blair is not going to be El-Presidente too

Hm.

Have you looked at who they actually pulled out of the bargain bin?

Not sure if that was any improvement.

[sidewinder]

Good day, today.

No kidding !

Especially as it looks as if Blair is not going to be El-Presidente too

Hm.

Have you looked at who they actually pulled out of the bargain bin?

Not sure if that was any improvement.

Yeah, they may as well have picked one of us. LOL !

[neveronfriday]

Just posted this over on the Steve Hoffman forums (along with a large number of others complaining about identical problems):

"Got mine at Euro 60.- (long story). Am still returning it for replacement. Box ripped, most single cover reproductions are coming apart at the seam (about 1 cm of each has already split), up to 12 CDs have glue residue or scratches. What an absolutely shoddy job by Sony/Columbia. This was an original shrink-wrapped copy, so all the mistakes were made by whoever printed/packaged/etc. this set. Yes, the box is cheap, but not really with all of these faults. I'll give one more box a go, then I'll return it for good." :/

Edited November 24, 2009 by neveronfriday

[Chuck Nessa]

Sorry. After buying the lps as issued/reissued and many remasters of cds, I think this is silly, especially since it takes money away from purchases of music you don't have, better versions with extra material, or going out to hear some live band.

[B. Clugston]

I'll pass. Curious if Pangaea and Aghartha contain the full concerts which appeared on Japanese CDs or just the edited versions on the original releases.

[GA Russell]

Sirius XM's Real Jazz channel is wrapping up today a long weekend in which nothing but music from this set was played.

It reminded me that I prefer Miles's Prestige recordings.

[neveronfriday]

[...] it takes money away from purchases of music you don't have, better versions with extra material, or going out to hear some live band.

Not really. Not at 80 cents per CD.

Still, I've decided to return the box altogether and go out for a nice dinner, adding an excellent bottle of French white wine, to boot.

[AllenLowe]

actually, this is not complete - it doesn't include the threesome with Cicely Tyson and Betty Davis -

[Ken Dryden]

I wonder if any media outlet is paying a reviewer a fair amount, given the time and effort required to hear everything? The usual flat rate and 300 words is about what I'd expect from a lot of them.

[djcavanagh]

There is a very brief interview in the latest edition of Jazzwise with Richard Seidel, who seems to be the co-producer. He says that Mark Wilder and he reviewed the various masterings of the albums (both US and Japanese) and selected the one that they felt was best. They have used the longer Mastersounds version on Pangaea but not Agharta, with the latter decision based on choosing the best sound source available.

He also says that they are still looking to do "extensive issuing of unreleased material that, wherever possible will also be accompanied by a DVD". Wide range of material from the 60s, apparently, with announcements to come in 2010.

[A Lark Ascending]

Box sets that put together a bunch of albums can be great if you are late to the party. They'll never replace the thrill of exploring the individual albums one by one as they were released (not an option anymore!!!) or even piecing them together as individual records in retrospect. Sometimes (as with Mosaics) it's the only way to acquire the music.

It's the sheer scale of this behemoth that puzzles me. A very inexpensive way for someone new to Miles to get a great chunk of his most significant music in one go. But I'm not convinced it's the best way to do it. I liked the way Columbia put out those themed boxes - Silent Way, Bitches Brew etc. Would have suited me to have kept them in circulation and maybe tidied up the missing recordings in a few similar smaller boxes. Just when I got curious about the complete 'On the Corner' it vanished!

This strikes me as something of an exercise in packaging; from the comments above, not a very successful one.

Personally, I'd be happier to just see it all available to download (the 'complete' boxes + the other material, that is).

Edited November 29, 2009 by Bev Stapleton

[Claude]

This strikes me as something of an exercise in packaging; from the comments above, not a very successful one.

The main advantage of this box is to get all the albums for a great price, so it's ideal for someone who doesn't own a lot of Miles CDs yet and knows he will want a lot more. I would have loved to see such a box in the early 90's

IMHO they should have split this box up among the acoustic and electric bands. There are still a lot of Miles fans who don't like his 70's and later stuff, or who don't want all of it.

[A Lark Ascending]

I would have loved to see such a box in the early 90's

I'm sure I would have liked that too at the time. And I certainly don't begrudge the set to those who are getting this music for the first time now.

But I'm actually glad I was able to pick up the various records the way I did (in isolated purchases from 1976 through to 2009, in a completely bizarre order!). There's always a certain thrill at going out (or online!) to purchase a specific album. With this you get that thrill once!

Irrelevant to the music, of course. But there are all sorts of extraneous factors that affect our enjoyment of music.

[i've just downloaded a few Sun Ra albums to supplement the dozen or so I already have. Would I bite on a 'Complete Evidence' Sun Ra with glossy box and packaging? I don't think I would. I prefer the slower route. I'm much the same with these gargantuan classical boxes - the complete Bach cantatas for example. Pick them off slowly is my preference. I'm guilty of buying more recordings than I can realistically process (like most of us here, I suspect) - but the megalopabox just seems a step too far for me].

Edited November 29, 2009 by Bev Stapleton

[awkss]

What the hell is this?

The Complete Miles Davis

A complete set of all his Columbia releases?

DetailinformationenLabel: Columbia

Bestellnummer: 8969977

Tracklisting

1 Paris Festival Int. de Jazz May, 1949

2 Round about midnight (1955-1956)

3 Circle in the round (1955-70)

4 Miles ahead (1957)

5 Milestones (1958)

6 1958 Miles

7 At Newport 1958

8 Porgy And Bess (1958)

9 Jazz at the Plaza (1958)

10 Kind of blue (1959)

11 Sketches of Spain (195960)

12 Directions (1960-70)

13 Someday my prince will come (1961)

14 In Person: Friday Night at the Blackhawk, San Francisco (1961)

15 In Person: Saturday Night at the Blackhawk, San Francisco Complete (1961)

16 At Carnegie Hall / The Complete Concert (1961)

17 Quiet nights / Blue Xmas / Devil may care (1962)

18 Seven steps to heaven (1963)

19 In Europe (1963)

20 My funny valentine (1964)

21 Four & More (1964)

22 Miles in Tokyo (1964)

23 Miles in Berlin (1964)

24 E. S. P. (1965)

25 Live at the plugged Nickel (1965)

26 Miles smiles (1966)

27 Sorcerer (1967) 28 Nefertiti (1967)

29 Water Babies (1967-68)

30 Miles in the sky (1968)

31 Filles de Kilimanjaro (1968)

32 In a silent way (1969)

33 Bitches brew (1969)

34 Big fun (1969-72)

35 A tribute to Jack Johnson (1970)

36 Live at the Fillmore East / It´s about that time (1970)

37 Black Beauty: Miles Davis at Fillmore East (1970)

38 At Fillmore: Live at the Fillmore East (1970)

39 Isle of Wight (1970)

40 Live / Evil (1970)

41 On the corner (1972)

42 In Concert (1972)

43 Dark Magus (1974)

44 Get up with it (1972-74)

45 Agharta (1975)

46 Pangaea (1975)

47 The man with the horn (1981-81)

48 We want Miles + 3 bonus tracks (1981)

49 Star people (1982-83)

50 Decoy (1983)

51 You´re under arrest (1984-85)

52 Aura (1985)

53 + DVD: Miles Davis in Schweden 1967

I wonder... would that mean that the Paris set (#1) and Agartha/Pangaea will be reissued? And the the comeback albums?

What are the bonus tracks on We Want Miles? That will be a 2CD set, then... (and it's mighty fine, in my opinion!)

Also, #39 (Isle of Wight) and #53 look tasty... but why not add a DVD of "Isle of Wight" as well (I have the DVD "Electric Miles" though, but no audio-only of that).

Release date is given as October 26, 2009.

What I regret not seeing re-issued is some concerts Columbia didn't get round to recording at the time, some of the amazing gigs Miles did in 1969 with that band including Shorter, Corea, Holland & Dejohnette. Anything seemed possible. A few CDs & DVDs of varying on labels that may be questionable are all that survive to document music that is probably almost as remarkable in its way as the Plugged nickel sessions of 1965.

Edited November 29, 2009 by SMALLS'PURGATORY