Customer Reviews

The Complete Concert 1964: My Funny Valentine + Four and More

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The title notwithstanding, this is not in fact the "complete" concert; it's missing "Autumn Leaves." Additionally, the tracks are not sequenced as they were actually played, but as they appeared on the two original LP releases, "My Funny Valentine" and "Four and More." This is unfortunate, because while the actual concert was well paced, with a nicely varied mix of different tempos and song forms, in producing the LPs Columbia elected to put almost all of the ballads on "My Funny Valentine" (disc one here) and almost all of the up-tempo numbers on "Four and More" (disc two). To my ears, the homogenization that this arrangement entails dilutes the impact of the music somewhat.

The new version of this concert that appears as part of the seven-CD boxed set, "Seven Steps," (released in September 2004) includes "Autumn Leaves," sequences the songs in the order in which they were performed, and has been remastered to improve the sound. Unfortunately, while Sony is now preparing separate reissues of the individual albums that make up the "Seven Steps" boxed set, it appears that there are no immediate plans to issue an updated version of "The Complete Concert"; instead, they are releasing remastered editions of the original single albums, "My Funny Valentine" and "Four and More."

Therefore, the best way to hear this music would be 1) to buy the "Seven Steps" boxed set, assuming you can afford it and are interested in the other material it includes; or 2) get the new, remastered versions of the "My Funny Valentine" and "Four and More" albums.

For those who don't have the box set and would like to listen to an approximation of the concert as it was actually played, you can program your CD player to play the tracks in the following order: "Intro by Mort Fega," "So What," "Stella by Starlight," "Walkin'," "All of You," "Go-Go (Theme and Announcement)," "All Blues," "My Funny Valentine," "Joshua," "I Thought About You," "Four," "Seven Steps to Heaven," "There is No Greater Love," "Go-Go (Theme and Re-introduction)."

The story goes that Miles' more or less agreed to waive his normal fees for this concert and contribte all proceeds to charity. While this probably didn't matter much to Miles in terms of the money lost, it certainly must have for Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter, and the still teenaged drum prodigy Tony Williams, fresh from playing with Sam Rivers' group.

It's apparent from the start that the uneasiness of the evening translated into some of the most explosive live jazz ever laid down, with Williams' flailing away on his drums, getting more excitable, faster, and probably doing so just to see if Miles can keep up. Ron Carter and Herbie Hancock certainly had no problem doing so, and, to his credit, neither did Miles.

The other apparent point in the show was that tenor sax player George Coleman didn't fit in the new group, even though he played, as some said, the best gig of his life. Coleman was on Miles transitional "Seven Steps to Heaven" lp the year before, as Miles was putting together a new group after Paul Chambers, Jimmy Cobb, Wynton Kelly (who would all form the Wynton Kelly Trio) and saxophonist Hank Mobley (who replaced Sonny Stitt who replaced John Coltrane) all left the group. (This concert was in fact the last gig Coleman would play with the band- Sam Rivers would replace him briefly, before Wayne Shorter would leave the Jazz Messengers and join the band, thus completing the 2nd great quintet)

Despite of, or because of, the tensions in the group, these live sides are some of the most ferocious ever laid down on vinyl, and are a necessary part of any jazz fan's collection.

This recording is one of the best jazz recordings of all time. It certainly is the best live recording I've ever heard. The liner notes to this CD recall that this 1964 concert was performed during the height of the civil rights movement. It was a benefit to register black voters in Louisiana and Mississippi. Miles decided that all of the musicians would play for free and donate, as a group, all proceeds to the movement. Backstage, some of the band members were ...[ticked] off big-time -- it was typical of Miles that he never even consulted them beforehand, but told them shortly before they were to appear on-stage. These guys came out and just literally blew the roof right off of the Lincoln Center. Everyone was hacked off, but it generated an explosive energy that each musician channeled positively into his instrument. I mean these cats just CHARGED into "So What", then sprinted through "Walkin", the 19 year-old Tony Williams back there just driving everybody to greater and greater heights. They kept it up through an inspired rendition of "Joshua", then took a break. After that break, there was no let up. They took off on "Four" and played "seven steps to heaven" like it was their very lives at stake. Ron Carter is back there walking so hard his fingers must have been falling off. During the last cut on disk 2, the band began to settle down a little, and then came out after intermission with a beautiful set of ballads. Tony Williams never liked George Coleman much, but George plays so beautifully on this date even Tony couldn't be unhappy. The two disks are both awesome, and the recording itself is technically excellent, all of the musicians can be heard pefectly.
The ballads on disc 1 are played with such feeling and deftness, it is just an absolute pleasure to listen. It is an honor, really, to be able to hear world-class musicians at the absolute top of their form. This concert is not to be missed by any true jazz lover. It is a combination of ultimate hard driving swing and beautiful ballad. The price for this great concert is ludicrous -- $... It's almost an insult to this great music, but you gotta take advantage of this. I remember I paid a lot more a while back for this 2 CD set. If you want to enjoy jazz at its finest, get this CD.

The music probably deserves five stars, especially young Tony Williams pushing all the musicians to the very edge on some cuts. On the softer tunes, Miles Davis proves once again he is the true master of the ballad. My only complaint: Columbia does it's usual inadequate job in post-production--they didn't even take the time to edit out the duplicated announcements (from the two seperate records). When one looks at what a great job Fantasy/OJC or Bluenote does on their re-issues, it makes the overpriced Columbia reissues pale in comparison.

This is a wonderful album and has to rank as one of the most extraordinary "live" recordings of its time. Most "live" recordings in the 1960's sounded like the microphone was stuffed in a shoebox and sitting on the other side of a lake from the band. But it appears that the engineers at Columbia came up with a microphone arrangement that really worked-at least for acoustic jazz.

Part of the context that is lost (and the liner notes makes no mention of it) is that these performances take place just a few months after President John Kennedy was assassinated. The shock and grief that followed the killing plunged the whole nation into a dark sadness that carried through the Christmas holidays and New Year's. By the time Miles and company took the stage at the Lincoln Center the country was more than ready to shed its funereal clothes to live life again. (This is also the context from which the Beatles burst into American imaginations from their first appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show.) The audience was eager to grasp the joy of life and Miles fed off his audience to play beyond his usual high standards.

The first disc features the slower, bluesier numbers while the second disc has the faster and more exciting tunes. Several critics have complained that Mils actual concert was not so divided and was actually more varied and mixed up. If that concerns you, there are plenty of sites on the Internet that can advise you of the proper sequencing of all the selections on this CD set. Speaking for myself, I am quite pleased with the arrangement of all the pieces as they are on THE COMPLETE CONCERT 1964.

Not enough credit can be given to a young Tony Williams to set the character of these performances as he drives the drums with exceptional excellence. Herbie Hancock shows that he could put on quite a show without all the electronic "gee-wiz" he came to love latter. Ron Carter more than kept up with his able bass (the CD edition keeps his presence sweet and audible-he was practically a ghost employee on LP editions.) George Coleman plays the best saxophone of his life and shows his excellent taste and intuitive support for Miles' ferocious groove and swing. (Yes, I agree Wayne Shorter is a better musician; but that is no reason to retroactively dump on Coleman).

Miles and company took the moment and made it theirs. They sounded like only a band fresh in the relief from a profound funk can. This is a great album and a great place to fall in love with jazz. Buy it. If you don't suddenly understand what jazz is all about here-maybe you never will.

I can't tell you how great this album is, you have to hear it to believe it. Everyone knows the details about the tension before the concert that was a catalyst into some of the best playing these guys ever did. Don't get me wrong, I love Miles's later recordings, In a Silent Way, On the Corner and Tutu, but this is the last time that he really played in a traditional way. Saying that, this recording will not remind you of any of the standards he recorded in the late 50's. The tempos are outrageous, the grooves change from slow to fast swing, latin, and the songs are stretched and reformed. It's like Picasso's version of the Mona Lisa. The rhythm section is UNBELIEVABLE. I'm a guitar player and hearing the way they groove and swing and change styles is not just great, it's psychic. You could get a jazz education just focusing on one instrument at a time and studying what each player does in this setting. Some of the other reviewers have slighted George Coleman. Most of the criticism is that he's not Wayne Shorter. When you listen to this CD, hear how he plays, the wealth of ideas, the humor in his solos, his sound. What I hear is a tenor version of Cannonball Adderley. He plays so well, it's hard to understand why he isn't held in higher regard of the great tenor players. Miles's playing on this album is not his best, he was starting to get sick and his tone is not as strong as could be. But his ideas and phrasing are out of this world. You only need to listen to the mesmorizing tone he plays with on "Stella by Starlight" to know he was on another planet this night.
I'd love to see Columbia come out with a box of this one. I've read that there was at least one more song (My Romance)that has not been released and possibly more. This would make a great box set, possibly with the Live at Antibes bootleg recording.
This is a must have jazz album. Definitely a desert island disc.

This is a very special concert for Miles Davis and the musicians he employed at the time for three reasons. First, It is the first released live album I can think of that featured the second great quintet {Wayne Shorter would replace George Coleman after Sam Rivers and Archie Schepp were not the hornmen that Miles wanted in his band.} Also the money that the band made from the preformance was donated to an organization called C.O.R.E. {congress of racial equality}You gotta remember back in '64 there were alot tensions and divisions between races in our country, unfortunately still are... Finally the songs in the quintet's repotoire are played with such elegance and grittiness. It's the perfect ballance of emotions for acoustic jazz music. It's also the kind of jazz that won't reward you as much if you just put it on as background music {Just like Kind Of Blue, I had to listen to it alone to fully appreciate it.} I also like that the emcee Mort Fega anounces the band members one at a time. It makes me feel like I'm in the concert hall with the audience. What can I say? these guys are top notch professionals. Tony Williams propells the group through all the standards very well and provides light but extremely firey drumming through the up tempo-numbers on disc two. Christ, wasn't he only like 19 or something at the time? He was in such command of his instrument even back then. He played the drumms with the kind of professionalism that was well beyond his years. Ron Carter plays/plucks his bass strings amazingly fast on the bass especially on disc two. Herbie Hancock is such an intuitive pianist {but don't expect to hear his blues/gospel/funk style like on Watermellon Man and Blind Man Blind Man.} The playing he did on his blue note albums and the playing he did in Miles' band is very different stylisticly {both styles are awesome} on the ballads disc he plays in an elegant impressionistic style that recalls Bill Evans. George Coleman is simply a wonder to behold during this concert! What a beautifully elegant and strongly commanding tenor saxaphonist! {alot like Dexter Gordon} Disc one is the ballads in the group's repetoire. I love the part towards the end of My funny Valentine when Herbie's solo is almost over and the audience starts clapping, then Miles comes out on stage to restate the theme with "da da dah da dah..." and the audience explodes with aplause. There is alot of tension when Miles starts of each new ballad. Williams drumming gradually becomes more intense and the songs build up musically and just skyrocket with emotion from there. especially "M.F.V." and "All of you". Disc two is great as well because signature tunes like "Walkin'" and "So What" {both from the 50's} are played with a faster and a more rapid fire tempo. Music Producer Michael Cuscuna remarked on the Ken Burn's Jazz special that this quintet created an "elasticity" I think he's absolutly right, they are playing some very complicated music of a give and take nature. However this band just might fool the untrained ear, they make what they are playing seem so easy and effortless. the way they shift tempo or crescendo in a number is just remarkable. I love the fact that this concert features George Coleman in the tenor sax chair. I'm only 19 and I know that in some regards he is a truly underappreciated musician {which is a shame}. Don't get me wrong, I love Wayne Shorter's compositional talents {JuJu, Witch Hunt, Speak No Evil}, but If I had to pick, I love the elegant romantic traditional style that Coleman plays in compared to the harsh toned edge of Shorters sound. The bottom line is that this is exceptional acoustic jazz that still sounds fresh almost 40 years later. Miles always had a talent for picking the best musicians possible for his band to shape his own unique artistic/musical interpretation of modern music. The talents that he picked definately shine throughout during this wonderful evening of music! My only regret is that I couldn't have been there to witness it for myself!

This is simply an amazing live album from Miles and the gang. Tempers flared before the show, which translated into an emotional, power-packed effort. I doubt that you will find a more energy intense live album around. These boys show what music is all about with their superb playing. George Coleman on sax, Ron Carter on bass, Herbie Hancock on piano, and the Tony Williams on drums.

There is such power on this album that you'll welcome the brief breaks for Mort Fega's announcements. My favorite cut of the night is "Walkin'", which is nothing more than a playground for these talented musicians to make themselves be heard. Everyone gets to carry a solo, and they are all amazing. Hancock sounds like he has fifteen fingers as he flies across the ivory keys, and Coleman's and Davis' solos are amazing too, but Williams pounding on the skins is unbelievable. Most of the album is this way. "All Blues" is another of my favorite tunes here. The second disc is highly upbeat with "So What", "Four" and "Joshua".

All the boys put in such performances throughout the show. Everyone is definitely on top, and the band was tight. If you are a fan of Miles, this is one that you have to have. This show was definitely mind blowing, and it still amazes me every time I listen to it.

Everyone knows the story of how Miles waived his normal fees and gave it to charity. Everyone also knows about the tension this created amoung the band. But no one could've expected this. From start to finsh this concert resuted in some of the most explosive playing ever. This album introduced a side of Miles Davis that I'd never seen before. But its not just Miles, the entire band lights the stage on fire. Disc two is full of up tempo charts, or really, old standards taken ridiculously fast. "So What" is taken so fast that the bass line can barely be played, but Seven steps to heaven is my favorite. George Coleman plays the heck out of this song. This album is an absolute must have for any jazz fan. Warning: This album will make you tired.

I've been listening to this music since the album 'Four and More' came out in the UK in 1965. This is a great Miles Davis band playing at the peak of its ability. Yes, I love George Coleman, even though Tony Williams didn't. Quite simply this is a wonderful gig, and an essential item for any jazz collection: as an album, I'd rate it third only to 'Kind of Blue' and 'Giant Steps'.