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Among the most controversial recordings in the history of jazz, BITCHES BREW was Miles Davis' shot across the bow of jazz insularity, a bold statement about jazz's ability to draw upon elements of popular culture, without mitigating its spirit of spontaneous invention. Much as Ornette Coleman's THE SHAPE OF JAZZ TO COME set a new standard for harmonic and melodic freedom a decade before, BITCHES BREW signaled a sea change in jazz.
Davis became a lightning rod for jazz's transformation, by mixing the best elements of '60s free jazz with dancing funk rhythms, electric rock textures, blues phrasing and his own breakthroughs in harmony and modality. Davis employed the Electric Flag's Harvey Brooks to double up with upright bassist Dave Holland on the Fender bass, and he is the modal heartbeat of every tune, freeing up the multiple drummers and keyboardists to weave a complex polytonal/polyrhythmic web of volatile chords and colliding rhythms.
Joe Zawinul's "Pharaoh's Dance" and Davis' "Bitches Brew" treat their multiple themes in a ritualistic manner, as several strata of voices engage the lead melody in exciting exchanges. "Spanish Key" offers a thrilling sense of tension and release, as the trumpeter navigates a "Sex Machine"-styled vamp with a terse, brilliantly constructed solo, revelling in his new guitar-like phrasing. "John McLaughlin" is Davis' tribute to the innovative guitarist; "Miles Runs The Voodoo Down" is a spooky, visceral melange of funk, blues and third world sources; and Shorter's "Sanctuary" is a moody ballad that builds to a fever pitch. The savage emotional power of BITCHES BREW and Davis' subsequent recordings cries out for a fresh critical reassessment.
Additional Tracks
Illustrator: Mati Klarwein.
Personnel: Miles Davis (trumpet); John McLaughlin (guitar, electric guitar); Harvey Brooks (electric guitar, electric bass, bass guitar); Bennie Maupin (bass clarinet); Wayne Shorter (soprano saxophone); Joe Zawinul (electric piano, organ); Chick Corea, Larry Young (electric piano); Don Alias (drums, congas, percussion); Jack DeJohnette, Lenny White (drums); Jumma Santos (congas, shaker, percussion); Airto Moreira (cuica, percussion); Jim Riley, Jimmy Riley (percussion).
Recording information: Columbia Recording Studio B., New York, NY (08/19/1969-01/28/1970).
Rolling Stone (12/11/03, p.118) - Ranked #94 in Rolling Stone's "500 Greatest Albums Of All Time" - "...The word 'fusion' was never big enough to describe the visceral thrill of these explosive studio explorations and the pioneering tape-edit wizardry of producer Ted Macero..." Rolling Stone (5/28/70, p.50) - "...Miles' music continues to grow in its beauty, subtlety and sheer magnificence...these chaps have discovered a new way to cook..." Entertainment Weekly (p.73) - "Any one of these singular extrapolations can still transport you light-years away from reality in a heartbeat." -- Grade: A Q (4/99, p.128) - Included in Q's "Best Jazz Albums of All Time." Down Beat (p.66) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "[T]he pitch-shifting echoes at the start of the title track seemingly drift into infinity." Mojo (Publisher) (p.114) - 5 stars out of 5 -- "[I]t took electricity seriously, celebrating noise and fury in a way that only served to accentuate the spiritual magnificence within." Record Collector (magazine) (p.93) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "It singlehandedly gave birth to the jazz-rock fusion movement and changed jazz forever." Uncut (magazine) (p.90) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "[A] beautiful, scary, oceanic melding of studio-manipulated sounds that bridges the gap between modal jazz, hypnotic funk and Hendrix-side proto-metal..."
Romance? The music on this CD is a must. The second disc made for a very romantic night with my mate!!! Submitted by thebigred67 (Sacto, CA) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo 2 of 3 found this helpful.
Hmm. I pride myself on being an adventurous listener, and I'm a musician to boot, but I have a hard time finding something to hold on to here. Unlike some, I don't suspect that all lovers of this album are posing as aesthetes, but I'm embarrassed to say that my harmonic and melodic tastes are a little more traditional than this album allows. It's odd--I love a lot of ambient music that doesn't value melody at all--but this music feels like oversaturation to me. I'm glad that Miles continued to explore...it's what he did (and his best records are ALL post-bop anyway) but this one leaves me cold. Submitted by James (Minneapolis, MN) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo 2 of 3 found this helpful.
Noise? Yes. Wonderful noise. No other Davis album expresses the soul of the artist as well this one. It is pure energy on a slow burn interpolated with fantastic flights. It is one of the few albums that I never tire of--each time I listen to it I get chills, and I must have heard it a thousand times--often enough to wear out two sets in vinyl and another in tape. Put me on the proverbial desert island with a few books and a few records and this would be first on my list. The only reason I can think of not to get it is that "The Complete Bitchs Brew Sessions" is even better--much better. Davis had a way of getting the very best out of the very best players and CBBS shows this even more forcefully than the original release.
It appears, however, that this album also attracts considerable resentment-- those in self-forged chains often resent flights of freedom in others. If Picasso had never left his 'Blue Period,' he would not be remembered, and if Miles had continued to bop he would not have been the force in jazz that he came to be--here a master frees himself from conventional expression and shows what is possible. Submitted by stainpouch (Atlanta) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo 2 of 3 found this helpful.
Bitches As far as jazz goes this album is more full of life than any other album ive ever heard. Miles is amazing at putting a lot of feeling into one note and this album is full of emotion. Submitted by Mustin (Anderson, IN) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo 1 of 2 found this helpful.
Essential. I know a lot of jazz 'purists' disagree, but the music here is what I consider to be 'the real thing'. Even though I don't consider myself a 'music bully'(like the majority of Beatles fans...yes, you know who you are), this time I'll have to state that everybody needs to listen to this all the way through at least once in their life.
Any music conversation you may have in the future will be sorely uninformed due to your neglect of this masterpiece.
Listen - learn - then tell others. Submitted by Paul (Liverpool, UK.) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo 1 of 3 found this helpful.
Romance?
Hmm.
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