Miles Davis Last Word: The Warner Bros. Years

[JCR1992]

http://www.amazon.com/Last-Word-Warner-Bros-Years/dp/B016E29ZIK/ref=sr_1_7?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1444924196&sr=1-7&keywords=miles+davis&refinements=p_n_date%3A1249114011

Does anybody know about this? I see it's 8 discs. 

I know a few years ago Warner Bros. UK released a 5 disc box set with material mostly from his albums on it. Is this more unreleased stuff or is extra live material that never made it on to the live around the wolrd concert?

Any guesses? 

[king ubu]

this was supposed to come out years ago ... earlier thread:

also, this thread here about another, not quite complete/smaller in scope box that did come out:

 

more info on that older version:

http://www.miles-beyond.com/lastwordintro.htm

 

[erwbol]

I'm of the opinion that practically all of Miles' eighties stuff is shit.

Just felt like sharing this.

[king ubu]

we're so glad you did .... anyone else please, every opinion is welcome, we will not laugh at you either

[erwbol]

I just resent having taken it seriously on multiple occasions. Turns out, it wasn't me after all. 

[king ubu]

Hey, you're good in voicing extreme opinions in curt phrases, so I'd expect you to be able to deal with a remark in return.

Furthermore, albums like "Tutu" or "Amandla" aren't shit, keep trying

Anyways, I wonder, as does JCR, what the additional material might be, the originally planned box was supposed to contain six discs only, it seems, so either there's more or it's been re-grouped or whatever. Of course I feel dumb now, having that five disc set.

[erwbol]

Those two new discs are the 'Stolen Albums', dig?

[sidewinder]

Wonder if it's some additional live material? Count me in as a Miles fan of those years - fond memories of catching the concerts during that period and as Ubu says, the likes of 'Tutu' and 'Amandla' are not to be sniffed at. 

I will be interested in getting hold of this one.

Edited October 15, 2015 by sidewinder

[jazzbo]

http://www.rise-music.co.uk/browse/campaign/PRES/item/269131/Miles-Davis-The-Last-Word---The-Warner-Brother-Years.html

 

Seems to have all the studio albums, the Quincy Jones festival appearance, the "Live Around the World" disc, and a concert that only appeared before on the "Tutu" deluxe edition.

Edited October 15, 2015 by jazzbo

[king ubu]

Thanks! Guess I'll skip then, having both the Tutu deluxe edition (that live set isn't particularly great, they could have done better, but it was probably the one that fit best, setlist wise) and that earlier Warner set (which adds plenty of Miles' cameo tracks but omits the live recordings and only includes excerpts from "Dingo", not sure if it's the same with "Siesta" but that one is among the albums I've also got on single discs).

[B. Clugston]

I'm of the opinion that practically all of Miles' eighties stuff is shit.

Just felt like sharing this.

I used to feel that way, but that band with John Scofield and Al Foster was smokin'. Mileage varies after that.

[Gheorghe]

I wouldn´t put down Miles´performances from the 80´s but I got a critical point about it.

Well, Miles went through differnt styles and surroundings, and when he stuck for a style for some years, his live shows had similar tunes, like "Walkin´" and "Autumn Leaves" during the 60´s , the Bitches Brew stuff from 1969 on, and the dense electric stuff from ´73 - 75.

Even if the tunes are the same, you can improvise on that stuff and can change it a bit, but it´s hard to make musical surprises when you have to play "Human Nature" and "Time after Time" each night for several years.

That´s when Miles´ concerts became "Shows", you knew what you might expect.

 

[Ken Dryden]

I've never found Miles Davis' Warner Bros. recordings to be of any interest to me. Boring vamps and uninspired improvisations over them. 

 

[mjzee]

I'm listening tonight to Live Around The World (not entirely voluntarily - it's next on my list of titles to re-rip to iTunes).  It never held my interest, and it doesn't tonight either.  I was pondering why - I mean, Miles's chops sound just fine.  I think it might be the generational shift to younger band members.  It's the same feeling I had when hearing Captain Beefheart's late-70's band.  The band musicians sound more callow.  They don't have it in them to play the deep rhythms, and their personalities either don't shine through or they are just more ordinary people.  They know what to play, but they don't know enough to make it interesting.  The drummer, Ricky Wellman, is especially deficient; give me Al Foster any day.

[JSngry]

Chuck Brown had a different opinion of Ricky Wellman, for whatever that's worth.

 

 

[Robert Middleton]

I got this set this week. I remember when I first got these albums when they came out in the 80s and early 90's. I went apeshit over Tutu. And I Iiked the rest enough to give every album several listens. I noticed that the sound was markedly superior on the new Master of Tutu. The other albums sound about the same but haven't listed quite as closely. The live Nice album is the only new material and it's as good or better than any of his live performances of the time - comparable to Live at Montreux. No, I don't like this era of Miles as much as most of his earlier stuff, just like everyone else, but I don't disdain it by any means.

My first jazz album ever was Bitches Brew when it came out in 1970 and I was 18. And it's still probably my favorite piece of music ever. So I have no problem overall with electrified Miles. My favorite of the 80's era is We Want Miles which I've listened to a whole lot over the years but nothing after that quite blew my socks off.

On the other hand, if you compare MIles stuff to the rest of jazz that came out at the time, Miles definitely holds his own. What other killer jazz albums do you own from the 80's? I have about 340 albums from the 80's and only one comes to mind that really killed it - Bass Desires by Marc Johnson with John Scofield and Bill Frisell. Remember, this is when Marsalis was coming into his own. Jazz was going back to basics and lot of stuff was old and stodgy. The Keith Jarret Standards Trio had just launched. Carla Bely had some good stuff. Herbie Hancock was rehashing 60's MIles.

Jazz really started getting more adventurous in the mid 90's. Think Masada (18 albums), Medeski Martin and Wood (9 albums), Bill Frisell (16 albums) and Thomas Chapin (23 albums). Would they have existed without 80's MIles? (I dunno!)

I also saw Miles live 6 or 7 times in the 80's and I've never seen a live show that held a candle to Miles. Not even close. He was a master showman that held the audience in the palm of his hand. I think for maximum impact you need to listen to these albums at quite a high volume to grasp the real impact.  He delivers the goods. It's just different. 

[jcam_44]

I recently got the OTC Complete Session and that led me to listening to The Man With The Horn and You're Under Arrest, both of which I had on cassette and enjoyed them for what they are. But it got me wondering what I was missing post Columbia since the only album I had heard was Tutu, Doo-Bop (haven't heard it in 20 years, am curious how I will feel now once I get to it) and the Quincy collab. I was able to purchase this set at a very reasonable price and have been working through it this weekend. I have been pleasantly surprised with how much I enjoy this era of Miles, though the Marcus Miller imprint is very evident it works extremely well.