Customer Reviews

Bags Groove

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This piece of music is some of Miles Davis best, being recorded christmas eve 1954, at a time where Miles had just ridden himself of his longlasting drug habit, he entered the studio in company with Milt Jackson and his rhythm section at the time: Kenny Clarke, Percy Heath and for this special occasion, Thelonius Monk. The original recording named Miles Davis and the Modern Jazz Giants contained all the recordings from this incredible session, that is the two takes of Bags Groove plus The Man I Love, Swing Spring and Bemsha Swing. The cd release split the two Bags groove takes and the rest, and made two albums out of it: Bags Groove and the other named Miles Davis and the Modern Jazz giants. Both records are a real treat, but Bags Groove is in my mind Miles entering the higher realms of Jazz music, his solos herein are so beatifully constructed, and the groups team effort ranks among one of Jazz finest moments, it's incredible swingin' and contagious, yet tenderly so. The rest of the tracks on this album although from another session earlier that same year, are great too. Sonny Rollins and Horace Silver makes fine performances here, sheer joy.

Few records are worth buying for the sake of one or two tracks, and although this is NOT the case here, I still would have gotten the record just for the sake of the title track - it truly shines.

This had to have been a most bizarre session, what with Miles telling Monk to lay out during his solos and all..

BUT Miles was a man with something to prove at this point..he had more or less kicked his heroin habit and was on the road to full musical recovery, as well, when these sessions went down ( 29 June and Christmas Eve 1954).

The tracks are wonderful, with Milt Jackson's famous "Bag's Groove" leading the way. (reocrded X-Mas eve) With the exception of Monk playing in John Lewis' place, this is Miles recording with the original Modern Jazz Quartet (Percy Heath and Kenny Clarke bass and drums, as well as vibraphonist Jackson)- which could also explain why Miles wanted Monk to lay out... The rhythm section is solid, and Miles' playing great, if not inspired. Jackson's vibes hold the piece together nicely. Alas, other takes from that session, including Monk's "Bemsha swing," "Swing Spring," and "The Man I Love," were not included on this cd...

Sonny Rollins' "Oleo" is another highlight (recorded 29 June with Rollins on tenor, Horace Silver on piano, with Heath and Clarke) and shows both Sonny and Miles in great form. Rollins was THE rising tenor star, and this track, as well as "Airegin," "But Not For Me," and "Doxy," prove full well; a year later, Miles would want Rollins to be in his 1st quintet, but Rollins, like many others in that era, had a heroin problem and would retreat( not for the last time) to clean up and "woodshed"... Rollins suggested an unknown named John Coltrane for Miles' group......

The cd is not as critical to have as others, but it is a great time period cd, showing Miles' growth from just a few months earlier, when he was on heroin. His playing is weak at moments, but vastly stronger, as was Miles' will and creativity. He wouldn't have to wait long before he would express his ideas to the world with his 1st great quintet

Unlike other reviewers on here, I consider this album to be a must-have for anybody's jazz collection. I have always given out Miles' "Kind of Blue" as a jazz primer to any jazz virgins wanting to get into the genre. Bags is another way to ease into jazz discovery. However, "Bags Groove" is an essential album for both the experienced and novice jazz fan alike. Milt Jackson's bopping, almost loungy vibes take us on a relaxing ride back and forth through the spaces while Miles' airy crooning is a perfect compliment. Monk almost feels out of place because when his piano speaks, it almost demands that you listen. This is why Miles asked Monk to lay out, to be sure. As an aside, the story of Monk and Miles almost coming to blows has been pretty much debunked by both sides. Monk wouldn't have been aggressive in a million years, while Miles said it best in his autobiography (paraphrasing): Miles was a scrawny thing while Monk was well over 6' and was an imposing specimen. Miles would have lost the fight before it began.

And for the earlier dolt reviewer who claims "Monk was never that good at his instrument (nor was Miles)," maybe you better tell that to the people at Julliard, where both of them studied. One doesn't just get into Julliard because their daddy's a senator. Another example is of Monk having another musician over to his house one day in the mid-50's. Monk opened his piano and began doing a dead-on Bud Powell impression, whose style obviously would NEVER be confused with Monk's. After a brief example of Bud's style, Monk closed the piano, turned to his houseguest and put his finger to his lips as if to say "don't tell anybody".

This is a nice little album featuring Milt Jackson (Bags), on two takes of the title track. He is masterful on vibes, and it's a shame he didn't do much more on this release. The other tracks are pretty much fillers. One of my favorite songs from the time is "Airegin" written by Sonny Rollins (which is really just Nigeria spelled backwards). However, this version is nowhere near as good as the take on the album, "Cookin' with the Miles Davis Quintet." The latter version is hard bop and this one is a lot more tame. Honorable Mention goes out to "Oleo" but I would look elsewhere for early Miles.

If you read up on jazz history, you'll find out that PRESTIGE was a label for heroin addicts who needed fast cash to score a fix and it shows in the majority of the recordings I own on the label. Apparently, the musicians got paid in cash on the day of the recording, but were only allowed two takes at the most. There are some highpoints on the label, though, and "Bags Groove" is one of them.

This is without doubt one of Miles's finest recordings, although he left so many of a superb quality that it is easy to engage in hyperboles every time. But I have no doubt that his solos on each of the title takes ("Bag's Groove", Milt Jackson's great tune) are among his best and most lastingly satisfying. He plays, on those, with a beautifully clear, open horn, showing wonderful sense of direction at all times, producing truly inventive phrasing, and subtlety of a kind only he knows how to. There is deep emotion in his playing, but always of a controlled kind, and in remarkable taste. He certainly is one of jazz's greatest masters, and his work, when it is at his best, as here, is truly fulfilling. The other musicians on these two tracks are pretty well on a par: Monk very definitely so, playing just as individualistically and profoundly as Davis. It is an interesting note that these were the two tracks where Davis told Monk to stay silent while he was soloing, which Monk did not appreciate. In truth, though, Davis was probably right to think that both he and Monk would flower forth more when presenting their own solos, and at the end of the day I feel it is Monk who plays the second track more differently from the first than does anyone else. Jackson is also in great form: dazzlingly fluent without superficiality, swinging with great refinement and assurance. The other tracks, i.e. "Oleo" etc., are played without Monk and Jackson: thus Horace Silver stars on piano, in his typically "funky", articulate and soulfully driving way, and Sonny Rollins is also heard to great advantage, though his best work was still to come (which means that he is already no less than excellent here). The bassist, throughout, is Percy Heath, and the drummer Kenny Clarke, and they do very fine work on all the tracks. A totally rewarding and satisfying recording, unhesitatingly recommended for decades of great listening (I have enjoyed it many times since its appearance in 1954). - Joost Daalder

Two takes of the title track open this minor classic. Milt "Bags" Jackson on vibes, Thelonious Monk on piano, and bop pioneers bassist Percy Heath and drummer Kenny Clarke join Miles' cool toned trumpet to give both takes definative treatments. This is the infamous session where Miles asked Monk to lay out, or not play behind, his solos. Whatever the studio controversy may have been, the music certainly did not suffer as everyone is in top form. The last five tracks come from a session recorded six months earlier and features a pair of future legends in Sonny Rollins' tenor and Horace Silver's piano. Heath's bass and Clarke's drums remain as the rock solid rhythm section. This set features a trio of Rollins' originals and one standard. Rollins is already displaying the form that would make him the top young tenor through the late fifties. He delivers masterful solos on his future standards "Airegin" and "Oleo", infusing a spark and a swing that picks up the pace from the more laid back title cut. Silver displays his genius with a funky piano solo on "Oleo". Miles' tone is typical of this period. His parched mute, and laid back middle register solos the very definition of cool. This cd is another underrated gem from the period between "Birth of the Cool", and his break through quintet sessions with Coltrane, Garland, Chambers, and Jones. This music is easily recommended to fans of the "Cool" school of jazz as well as those of the artists involved. Anyone who enjoys this cd is encouraged to check out its companion set, "Miles Davis and the Modern Jazz Giants" which features more of the session with Monk and Bags.

Well the big fuss on this CD is that Miles asked Monk to sit out during his solo on Bag's Groove. There are two benefits to this. For one thing, it really highlights Miles'playing as well as his interplay with the blues changes and bass lines of Percy Heath. It becomes a nice duet, allowing Miles to sound very pure, melodic and even cooler than usual. Style is so important to Miles, and I think Monk would have just cluttered it here. This has to be one of the best "Cool Jazz" blues grooves recorded. Monk does solo and comp with the other soloists later. Milt's solo is wonderful as well. The other benefit? With Monk sitting out, it lets us amateur pianists comp along on an F blues to Miles, with Percy Heath and Kenny Clark helping you out. Can it get any better?

Other highlights of the album are the new compositions by Sonny Rollins: Doxy, Oleo and Airegin. More marvelous solos. So why just 4 stars? As good as this is, these guys get even better later.

FYI: If you love this CD, you may want to consider buying the Thelonious Monk "Complete Prestige" 3-CD set, because CD 3 from "Complete Prestige" contains the entire Christmas Eve session from which the fantastic "Bags Groove" comes from. Then you don't have to program a mix between Bags Groove and Miles Davis & the Jazz Giants CD.

miles' trumpet on the title cut(s) is smooth as velvet and well worth the price of the cd.

in his memoir, miles and me, quincy troupe devoted three pages to the title cut and concluded '...before miles recorded bags groove he had secretly gone to his father's farm in millstadt, illinois, to kick his habit. that's why he played so great, because he was drug-free, really clean.'

This album by Miles Davis is one of the best jazz CDs I've ever heard. A mellow groove combined with Davis' characteristic laid-back, yet incredibly intense soloing makes for a treat for any jazz fan. Definitely get this CD... even though it's not one of Davis' most widely known albums, it is this reviewer's opinion that it is one of his best.