Jazz Compilation 4: Early Miles, part 1

I must deal with Miles in small bits, because otherwise I’d be writing a post of Proustian scope. I’ll start with early Miles—meaning before the first great quintet. We might call this his “open-horn period” since on these recordings he rarely, if ever, uses the Harmon mute, which would become his signature sound from the late fifties on.

Miles’s first session as a leader was unconventional: a nonet (including a French horn!). It also marked the first collaboration in his long, fruitful association with the great arranger Gil Evans. Evans, along with Gerry Mulligan and John Lewis, wrote most of the charts for the recordings that would later be named The Birth of the Cool, and the results are unique in Miles’s voluminous catalogue: tightly arranged numbers rich in harmonic color with relatively short, melodic solos. His later records with Evans (particularly Miles Ahead, Porgy and Bess, and Sketches of Spain) would create a similar aesthetic with a larger ensemble with only one featured soloist. It’s a cast of all-stars: in addition to the aforementioned, the credits include Lee Konitz (alto), J. J. Johnson (trombone), and the great Max Roach (drums). I nominate two tracks from this beautiful record:

• Jeru (1949): This Gerry Mulligan composition is a perfect example of the nonet’s sound, with its beautifully arranged horns on the opening theme. Miles and Mulligan (baritone sax) provide solos, both of which are succinct and relaxed but melodically inventive.
• Boplicity (1949): This was the first Miles Davis track that I really fell in love with. The statement of the theme, with its flowing triplet in the opening bars, is gorgeous, as is Mulligan’s solo, which comes before Miles’s. On his own solo, Miles demonstrates the lyrical economy that he would deploy for the next forty years.

More early Miles to come . . .