cafe67 Posted September 5, 2019 Share Posted September 5, 2019 I did a search here ( and also on the net) and could not find an answer, tho perhaps I may be answering my own question here. If i wanted to get a MD album to broaden my musical tastes , where to start? Kind of Blue seems to be very popular as does around midnight. From What I can gather his style/music changed a lot , so perhaps it hard to pin down and exact album? Miles Davis for dummies ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hydrology Posted September 5, 2019 Share Posted September 5, 2019 Im not a huge jazz fan, and am not a huge Davis fan either (although I appreciate the talent of the man), but I think Kind of Blue was the album that got me "into" him. I think the two you mention are probably the correct approach to being seduced by the man. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cafe67 Posted September 5, 2019 Author Share Posted September 5, 2019 No I must admit I don't know much about jazz other than what I learnt from La La Land. Tho I have the 2 cd done but that Perth jazz composer , name escapes me right now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
two fold Posted September 5, 2019 Share Posted September 5, 2019 Panthalassa: The Music of Miles Davis 1969–1974 This is remix by Bill Laswell, not a bad intro to Miles"s 70's fusion. Kind of Blue is great, best selling jazz record has converted many into jazz fans 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allthumbs Posted September 5, 2019 Share Posted September 5, 2019 You could almost start anywhere in Davis' career and end up in the same place going backward and forward in time from which ever album you initially buy. For many ******* Brew may have been their introduction leading them back in time to Kind of Blue, or others starting with Birth of the Cool and ending up with we We Want Miles with all the stops on the way. Because he recorded on different labels a "best of" may not encompass all of his different styles, but a couple of best of albums may be a good start. I dig Miles for his groove and how he remained contemporary to his times and for catching and creating waves of style and for his identifying so many talented apprentices as a bandleader along the way but I was never a great fan of his trumpet sound, weird huh? You don't have to like Davis it's not a crime, but you can appreciate him, plenty of other roads in Jazz to travel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Decky Posted September 5, 2019 Share Posted September 5, 2019 You can start from some easy listening compilations like https://www.discogs.com/Miles-Davis-Miles-Davis-Plays-Ballads/release/9195556 Then definitely move into classical bebop era - Kind of Blue and similar. However, do not avoid some free jazz stuff from 70s - some great stuff there too. If you are into ambient music you should check this out as well: https://www.discogs.com/Miles-Davis-Ascenseur-Pour-LÉchafaud-Lift-To-The-Scaffold/master/64650 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
givita_burl Posted September 5, 2019 Share Posted September 5, 2019 I agree that you could start just about anywhere. If I had to pick a launch point, I might suggest the single CD, 'The Best of Miles Davis Quintet, 1965-68'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buddyev Posted September 5, 2019 Share Posted September 5, 2019 (edited) I agree about Kind of Blue - it might be the only album most people ever know about Miles. It is essential listening and an accessible and easy place to start. It also pays you back over years of repeated listening. If you like this then maybe try Sketches of Spain. Davis had an amazing range and kept developing and playing with new people throughout his life. Some of it you might find unlistenable and some of it will knock your socks off. So, maybe where you start might depend on where you are. I assume if you’re asking this question then jazz isn’t your thing so I wouldn’t start with anything much earlier than Kind of Blue. If, for example, your main diet is rock/prog etc it might be a good idea to check out his late 60s - 70s albums : B1tches Brew is the obvious place to go with John McLaughlin on guitar. Also, if you’re into Jimi Hendrix it might be interesting to have a listen to Miles’ nod to him in Filles de Kilimanjaro as a way I to his music. Nefertiti is another a great album from this period. Tutu is definitely worth a listen. Edited September 5, 2019 by buddyev 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrews_melb Posted September 5, 2019 Share Posted September 5, 2019 Yep i also think Kind of Blue for sure. i started with Bi*** Brew, but its not always the easiest listen. Miles runs the voodoo down is still one of my favs Tribute to Jack Johnson is very good if you like something with guitar in it, easy to go from blues to that album. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zenikoy Posted September 6, 2019 Share Posted September 6, 2019 Re-stating the obvious. Kind of Blue There is a reason for these common quotes: "Greatest ever jazz album" "Highest selling jazz album" "If you only own one jazz album....." Enter the gateway, then down the rabbit hole, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian McP Posted September 6, 2019 Share Posted September 6, 2019 https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/mar/20/dingo-rewatched-rolf-de-heer-curio-featuring-a-magnetic-miles-davis < Future appreciators of prolific Australian filmmaker Rolf de Heer will sort through a rich and varied body of work full of odd gems. The director of classics such as Bad Boy Bubby and Dance Me to My Song rarely returns to similar storylines; his superb trilogy of films about Indigenous Australians (The Tracker, Ten Canoes and Charlie’s Country) arguably the closest he has to a recurring vision and context. A title that came about early in De Heer’s oeuvre, 1991’s Dingo, is one of his standout curios. This mellow but affecting drama has been enshrined in music history as a must-see, not because it follows a small-town-bloke-goes-to-big-city trumpet player (played by Colin Friels) but because it co-stars Miles Davis in his only feature film role. The jazz legend plays a version of himself named Billy Cross. In 1969 he is flying on a plane diverted to an Australian outback town where he and his band land and give an impromptu runway concert, on red dirt in front of the town’s populace. > 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anandpkumar Posted September 6, 2019 Share Posted September 6, 2019 Though I listen to a lot of Jazz, Miles Davis is not one of my favorites. 'Kind of Blue' is definitely his most popular work and the only album that I have of Miles. If you like Jazz - trumpet, do check out Wynton Marsalis 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjs Posted September 6, 2019 Share Posted September 6, 2019 I was fortunate to hear Miles play a couple of times, once in London, once in Melbourne. Both excellent concerts I must say. KOB is the mainstream choice for Miles, but there is plenty of other stuff in all forms from relentless arhythmic material that is not so accessible (maybe the live album Pangaea recorded in Japan in 1975) back to stuff in the 50’s Walkin’ and Workin’) to fusion (Bit**** Brew) to later stuff that including covers of Cyndi Lauper material. Dunno how many Miles albums I have, but it’s quite a few, something for everyone I think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allthumbs Posted September 6, 2019 Share Posted September 6, 2019 8 hours ago, Andrews_melb said: Tribute to Jack Johnson is very good if you like something with guitar in it, easy to go from blues to that album. That was the first Davis album I ever heard and I kinda got it straight away and I don't think I have listened to it since. This will prompt me to get hold of it and give it another listen. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cafe67 Posted September 6, 2019 Author Share Posted September 6, 2019 Thanks guys most informative and appreciated Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phill451 Posted September 6, 2019 Share Posted September 6, 2019 For accessibility I’d go for kind of blue, working with the miles Davis quartet, seven steps to heaven. Then take the journey from there. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rup Posted September 14, 2019 Share Posted September 14, 2019 On 06/09/2019 at 7:17 AM, Ian McP said: https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/mar/20/dingo-rewatched-rolf-de-heer-curio-featuring-a-magnetic-miles-davis < Future appreciators of prolific Australian filmmaker Rolf de Heer will sort through a rich and varied body of work full of odd gems. The director of classics such as Bad Boy Bubby and Dance Me to My Song rarely returns to similar storylines; his superb trilogy of films about Indigenous Australians (The Tracker, Ten Canoes and Charlie’s Country) arguably the closest he has to a recurring vision and context. A title that came about early in De Heer’s oeuvre, 1991’s Dingo, is one of his standout curios. This mellow but affecting drama has been enshrined in music history as a must-see, not because it follows a small-town-bloke-goes-to-big-city trumpet player (played by Colin Friels) but because it co-stars Miles Davis in his only feature film role. The jazz legend plays a version of himself named Billy Cross. In 1969 he is flying on a plane diverted to an Australian outback town where he and his band land and give an impromptu runway concert, on red dirt in front of the town’s populace. > How did I not know about this one!? And it's Miles playing on a So What type tune , acoustic, in 1991. Wow! Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cafe67 Posted October 7, 2019 Author Share Posted October 7, 2019 https://www.psaudio.com/article/miles-davis-eight-great-tracks/ 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rup Posted October 31, 2019 Share Posted October 31, 2019 Nice idea for a thread; My favorite 8 Miles tracks. Those mentioned above would not all make it to my list. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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