When he released "Bitches Brew" in 1970, Miles Davis opened up a new angle to jazz which stirred up emotions like no other record before. Some critics accused Davis of selling out, while the public bought it like crazy. It... more » is one of the most examined albums of all time, even garnering a box set of the sessions. To date, "Bitches Brew" is one of the top selling jazz albums of all time. "Miles Electric: A Different Kind of Blue" examines the next step in the creative process...performing these songs live. The 1970 Isle of Wight featured an array of performers from The Who to Jethro Tull to Joni Mitchell. With improvisation playing a big role in the performance, the band (Jack DeJohnette, Chick Corea, Keith Jarrett, Gary Bartz and Dave Holland) had to be "on", yet ready to change on the fly. Directed by award-winning producer Murray Lerner, "Miles Electric" sits down with several of the performers who played with Miles, interspersed with his 1970 Isle of Wight performance, as well as artists such as Carlos Santana and Joni Mitchell, who describe the impact Miles Davis had towards music.« less
At Last, The Complete 1970 Isle Of Wight Gig Plus More!
J. Lund | SoCal, USA | 11/28/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"With most of the audio portion of Miles Davis' remarkable career now extensively issued or reissued (including the Sony/Columbia boxed sets that included unreleased sessions and alternate takes), video is the next and possibly final frontier for filling in the gaps of Davis' prolific and consistently productive career. Several DVDs covering Miles' underrated final years (1985-1991) have already been issued (and rumors persist that the 20-CD Montreux box may someday have a DVD counterpart, which would be an amazing feat if it comes to pass). Now MILES ELECTRIC cracks open the vaults to the 1960s and 1970s, hopefully the first of many vintage Davis videos to come.
Miles' 1970 Isle Of Wight performance before 600,000 fans had attained legendary status over the decades, but until now only a few audio soundbites had been issued (and remarkably the entire set was never bootlegged). MILES ELECTRIC includes but is not limited to the entire 38-minute IOW performance. In 1970 Davis was perhaps in his all-time peak physical condition, and musically confident of his ability to bridge his jazz-based roots with the more adventurous pop culture sounds of that era. His trumpet work here seems limitless technically and full of fresh improvisatory ideas. And contrary his (exaggerated?) reputation, Davis is seen acknowledging the crowd with a wave of his horn when leaving the stage as the performance ends.
The rest of the group is similiarly adventurous, including Chick Corea and Keith Jarrett on keyboards, Gary Bartz on sax, Dave Holland on bass, Jack DeJohnette on drums, and Airto Moreira on various percussion. What more can you ask for than a collection of outstanding musicians -- all first-tier names in the music's history -- thinking outside the box in a variety of ways? By the way, the video looks crisp and the sound (with two surround options in addition to stereo) is clear and well-balanced, with just some slight distortion on Miles' trumpet at times (but not to a bothersome extent). Considering the recording conditions, the audio and video turned out very well.
Notice that the DVD has a running time of 123 minutes, while the concert itself is 38m. What the producers decided for this release was to surround the IOW gig with a documentary that puts Davis' "electric era" into proper context, with interviews of the IOW bandmembers (all of whom are currently still alive and musically active except of course for Miles, who is nonetheless heard via interview clips from the 1980s). Also interviewed are other Davis associates and a few critics, including the infamous Stanley Crouch (who seems to be the first option when a dissenting voice regarding Miles' post-1969 career is needed). Although the performance isn't complete (wish that were a bonus option), there is an equally-thrilling 1964 clip from the Steve Allen show of Davis and his quintet playing "So What.""
That's Entertainment
Scott McFarland | Manassas, VA United States | 11/17/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"The 38-minute performance at the Isle of Wight (in front of 600,000 rock fans) is awesome. The fidelity is good and the camera work is too. The average viewer/listener might be awed when watching Jack DeJohnette play his fractured funk or Keith Jarrett grimace while runs of quality music flow forth from his fingertips. Me I already knew this band was this good (these are the guys, minus one keyboard player and plus a different bass player, who went on to cut the massive "Live-Evil" within months). And I really, really enjoy watching this music that I love to listen to so much.
The interviews which fill out the DVD to movie length are good, interesting, and at times revealing. Bonus footage is included of interview segments that didn't make the film's cut, strung together in a highly watchable manner.
This music makes no bow to commercialism. People who aren't interested in musical experimentation and boundary-smashing might find it hard to take. But make no mistake this is as good as music or art can get. This is Miles at his best and music at its best.
"
As others have said FINALLY, FINALLY!!!
D. Garcia | Los Angeles | 01/23/2006
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Sheech. I don't know how many videos I've seen talking about Miles. Talk, talk, talk! With little tiny clips that just kill then they are withdrawn. Frankly I don't care so much who Miles was personally. We all have our good and bad points. But... I LOVE his music... or what ever it was... that SOUND. That challenge! Miles heads know what I mean by this...
So I'm watching this thinking "Oh my god, not ANOTHER Miles movie with talk, talk, talk..." But then finally...
Thirty Eight minutes of Miles. Almost like it should be with no stops, no comments. Just Miles and his band. Isn't that what it's really about?
The MUSIC. The ART.
Like much of Miles' music from this period it's extremely uneven, up and down but the ups are so brilliant they are astonishing, like some kind of magic. Basically this is Miles' band from the Black Beauty/Live At Fillmore period - the NOT Bitches Brew period. It's very experimental, doesn't always work but always pushes and questions. This is Miles getting ready for Bitches Brew and the later stuff that still hasn't been equaled or even touched really. Heck this stuff hasn't been touched. Music hasn't really evolved much from Miles Magus period.
This gets 4 stars from me only because I know there is better Miles stuff out there.
My only complains are small. Too many close ups. I want to see the whole BAND 90% of the time not a close up. This is a jazz band interacting. That's the interesting part not the solos. And a bit too many cuts. For all those music video editors who think they are on the cutting edge... MTV editing is a banal cliché. Everyone does the fast cutting thing. It adds nothing. Especially to music like this that forces contemplation.
Anyway these are really small complaints.
Like others I'd like to see some of the later bands too. PLEASE CBS let us spend our money on you!!! Release the Live/Evil, Agarta, Dark Magus stuff on DVD too.
Actually the talking is not too bad on this. Some good insights. It's amazing how inarticulate the band members are about what made them tick during their school days with Miles. Pete Cosey is, I think, a standout. He's STILL some kind of way out goblin. And Santana is surprisingly articulate which is strange as he hardly ever actually played with Miles. I heard he was just too intimidated. I have a tape of one performance he did with Miles that's really really good though. What happened to Santana? Why isn't he doing anything that's anything? Despite what others have said about Joni Mitchell she too is articulate about Miles. And the short clips of her getting dissed by an audience are way cool.
Humorously, Miles got BOTTOM billing at Isle of Wight!!!??? In retrospect that makes us all seem pretty stupid, even though we weren't really stupid. It's just Miles was so damn good he was so far ahead of us we couldn't see 'till it was gone!
Thank you Dewey..."
Terrific
H. Lim | Carlingford, NSW Australia | 11/05/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"The previous reviewer is quite correct. Most reviews seem to assume that this concert was one long formless jam. This is incorrect.
The pieces being played are:
Directions: 7:12
Bitches Brew: 10:05
It's About That Time: 6:29
Sanctuary: 1:01
Spanish Key: 8:15
The Theme: 1:55
Yes, he does actually play Go-Go at the end, just as if it were still 1959! It sounds rather out of place here.
This is an incredible performance. The moment when the "Bitches Brew" bassline starts up and Miles begins to shriek over the top is pure magic. This is fusion jazz at its absolute best. Gary Bartz' solo on "Spanish Key" is also incredible!
By the way, the "Tribute to Miles" sung by Airto Moreira at the end seems to be a rendition of "Bitches Brew"; and the pieces Carlos Santana demonstrates on the guitar are "In a Silent Way", "Spanish Key" and (his tribute to Miles) "Concierto di Aranjuez." ]
The piece played by Pete Cosey is "Turnaroundphrase" (aka "Moja")
If you have ANY interest in Jazz, or in music from around 1970, then get this NOW!!"
Perfect for fans and newcomers
Ed Stokes | Philadelphia, PA, USA | 12/04/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Two points I'd like to make up front: 1) this is the best live music DVD I've ever seen, 2) Miles's electric period from 70s & late 60s is by design great rock music, and 90% of my interest in Miles Davis lies here, so if you're not more or less in the "rock" audience I have nothing of interest to tell you. Specifics follow.
As is the norm with "historic" concert videos like this, the 38 minute concert is preceeded by about 38 minutes of interviews with the musicians (including several Miles interviews from different years), clips from other Miles performances (release these all dammit!), and some hip rock contemporaries, notably Joni Mitchell & Carlos Santana. The clips and interviews are unusually interesting and well-selected, and should get latecomers up to speed on the music. Several of the musicians from the concert demonstrate a few licks on their instruments, and all are pretty hot really -- should be immensely pleasurable to any aspiring musicians out there. Meanwhile on the critical front, anti-electric fogey Stanley Crouch provides a taste of how controversial this new phase was. Also amusing, pretty much everyone does an impression of Miles's raspy whisper.
The show itself is presented without narration or other distraction. Like much of the Isle of Wight material currently being released, it's very well-filmed. It presents a great performance by a band at its peak, probably the best live Davis our TVs will ever know (uhm, at least from that decade). If this were the whole DVD, it would still be a great product.
Point of nomenclature: when musicians of this technically accomplished quality aren't playing rock, they're playing jazz. Period, no hypens. These guys were playing rock.
Fans of improvising, bottom-heavy rock acts with virtuoso musicians such as Jimi's Band Of Gypsies, the first 3 Santana albums, mid-70s King Crimson, and some contemporaneous funk acts (which I should be hip to but am not), will be in heaven with this performance -- man for man and talent for talent, this band could cut any of those acts. I suspect Grateful Dead fans's heads'd explode if exposed to this, and then you'll have to clean all that mess up, so proceed with caution.
To cap it off, the newly-interviewed musicians are asked to improvise brief tributes to Miles. These are pretty snazzy too. Percussionsist Airto Moreira gets a surprising groove going with just vocal sounds and banging; Herbie Hancock's requiem on electric piano is pretty sweet; and watching the young-ish bass guy (sorry I didn't write down names -- he's in the bonus materials and didn't perform at the Isle of Wight show) inspired me to grab my bass and get the hang of slapping. (Young-ish bass guy should do an instructional vid.) (Come to think of it, maybe he has.)
Incidentally, anyone wanting Miles studio albums from this period should start with [...] Brew (more is better) and Jack Johnson (single CD version is fine), then explore the many live double albums from that period."