Miles Davis - Workin' With The Miles Davis Quintet (1959/2016) [Official Digital Download 24-bit/192kHz]

Trumpeter Miles Davis led several sessions for Prestige Records between November 1955 and October 1956 with his legendary "first" quintet, featuring tenor saxophonist John Coltrane, pianist Red Garland, bassist Paul Chambers, and drummer Philly Joe Jones. The sessions represent an incomparable musical legacy. Impeccably engineered by Rudy Van Gelder, the music was released on five albums that provide a unique glimpse at how five brilliant instrumentalists coalesced into one of the most extraordinary ensembles in modern jazz. Workin' presents an easygoing program that balances ballads with the blues and includes quintet performances of originals by Davis ("Four"), Coltrane ("Trane's Blues"), and Dave Brubeck ("In Your Own Sweet Way"); an interpretation of the standard "It Never Entered My Mind" without saxophone; and a piano-trio version of Ahmad Jamal's "Ahmad's Blues." Coltrane's melancholy solo on Brubeck's tune and Garland's spry excursion on Coltrane's are two of this classic's many highlights.

Workin' is the third in a series of four featuring the classic Miles Davis Quintet: Davis (trumpet), John Coltrane (tenor sax), Red Garland (piano), and Philly Joe Jones (drums). Like its predecessors Cookin' and Relaxin', Workin' is the product of not one – as mythology would claim – but two massively productive recording sessions in May and October of 1956, respectively. Contradicting the standard methodology of preparing fresh material for upcoming albums, Davis and company used their far more intimate knowledge of the tunes the quintet was performing live to inform their studio recordings. As was often the case with Davis, the antithesis of the norm is the rule. Armed with some staggering original compositions, pop standards, show tunes, and the occasional jazz cover, Workin' is the quintessence of group participation. Davis, as well as Coltrane, actually contributes compositions as well as mesmerizing performances to the album. The band's interaction on "Four" extends the assertion that suggests this quintet plays with the consistency of a single, albeit ten-armed, musician. One needs listen no further than the stream of solos from Davis, Coltrane, Garland, and Jones, with Paul Chambers chasing along with his rhythmic metronome. Beneath the smouldering bop of "Trane's Blues" are some challenging chord progressions that are tossed from musician to musician with deceptive ease. Chambers' solo stands as one of his defining contributions to this band. In sly acknowledgement to the live shows from which these studio recording sessions were inspired, Davis concludes both sets (read: album sides) with "The Theme" – a brief and mostly improvised tune – indicating to patrons that the tab must be settled. In this case, settling the tab might include checking out Steamin', the final Miles Davis Quintet recording to have been culled from these historic sessions.

Tracklist:

01 - It Never Entered My Mind
02 - Four
03 - In Your Own Sweet Way
04 - The Theme
05 - Trane's Blues
06 - Ahmad's Blues
07 - Half Nelson
08 - The Theme (Take 2)

Produced by Bob Weinstock. Engineered by Rudy Van Gelder.
Recorded on May 11 and October 26, 1956 at Van Gelder Studio, Hackensack, NJ.
All tracks recorded on May 11, 1956, except "Half Nelson", recorded on October 26.

Musicians:
Miles Davis - trumpet
John Coltrane - tenor saxophone
Red Garland - piano
Paul Chambers - bass, cello
Philly Joe Jones - drums


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