MEDIUM Hybrid SACD
CONDITION sealed
CD CASE M mint
BOOKLET M mint
SERIALNUMBER Yes
LIMITED Yes
MISCELLANEOUS Stereo, Mini LP Gatefold
MUSICIAN HOMEPAGE milesdavis.com
Miles Davis — trumpet
George Coleman — tenor sax
Herbie Hancock — piano
Ron Carter — double bass
Tony Williams — drums
my funny valentine - 15:13
all of you - 15:09
stella by starlight - 13:06
all blues - 9:01
i thought about you - 11:22
Miles Davis’ My Funny Valentine marks several historic turning points
For Davis, the live album represents the final time on record he’d perform standards rather than original compositions
It also stands as one of the last documents made by the same band that created Seven Steps of Heaven
As such, the work teems with bebop melodicism yet steers clear of Davis’ oft-controversial avant-garde leanings
Most significantly, however, the set captures the ballads performed at a benefit concert from New York’s then-new Philharmonic Hall just months after President Kennedy’s assassination
Tapping into a seemingly divine inspiration, Davis never sounded so elegant or poetic
Staged as a benefit to support voter registration in the South, the February concert came amidst the height of the Civil Rights movement, a cause dear to Davis’ heart
Yet unforeseen circumstances raised the stakes
Having professed his admiration for Kennedy years prior, Davis appears to approach the compositions on My Funny Valentine (and, in particular, the title track) as homage to the fallen leader, a collective soliloquy comprised of pieces shot through with deeply emotional passages, spontaneous brilliance, sensitive beauty, and sublime poignancy
Elegiac moods permeate the performances; Davis and his Harmon mute paint with intricate brushstrokes
Pianist Herbie Hancock, bassist Ron Carter, and drummer Tony Williams are their leader’s equal, and would continue with Davis until later in the decade, helping form what’s now known as the “second great quintet
” But the secret weapon on both My Funny Valentine and its sister Four & More arrives in the form of tenor saxophonist George Coleman, whom jazz experts Brian Morton and Richard Cook deem “one of the unsung heroes of modern jazz”
His lines are subtle and sophisticated, straightahead but capable of unanticipated direction, and here, he comes into his own
As does the entire band
RECORDING LIVE, February 12 1964 at Philharmonic Hall of Lincoln Center, New York City
ENGINEERING Fred Plaut
LABEL Columbia
RE MASTERING Rob LoVerde
RE RELEASED June 2014
AVERAGE RATING 4 ½ Stars out of 5
MADE IN USA
STYLE Jazz / Cool Jazz / Hard Bop
AVAILABLE as long as inventory stock
