Customer Reviews

Kind of Blue (50th Anniversary)

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

Most people know what is included in this box set so I won't get into details on that. The hardback book is great, the six 8x10 photos are nice, and the blue vinyl is outstanding!

So why two stars?

Both cds and the dvd are scratched beyond belief because of the horrible packaging. The record and discs are both held in the record gatefold. Opening the gatefold, the inside left side is designed like the back of the record jacket and the record is held in that side of the gatefold. On the right hand inside are three slits in the cardboard that hold the discs. The bottom half of the discs slide into the cardboard while the top half is exposed. I cringed when I saw this. Taking all three discs out as carefully as I could, all three have deep scratches on them. To get discs in this quality from a brand new $75+ set is not right. No care was taken into protecting these discs at all.

This is probably going to be a common problem so I hope Sony will give out replacement discs but you'll still have to keep them in seperate jewel cases if you want to keep them protected from damage.

Everyone who loves good jazz or music in general will know this album,so just a quick note on the quality of the discs. Perhaps I was lucky but my three discs were all right. The DVD had a slight mark in one spot,however it too was ok. The audio discs were fine. However I can't believe that the brains at Sony couldn't find a better way to package the three discs,instead of slipping them bare into a half cardboard sleeve. My 180 gram vinyl record was also in good shape. I have transferred the three discs into traditional plastic cases for protection. The book is very handsome and is well done. The poster is ok-nothing to get excited over. The photo reprints are nice as is the copy of the hand written album notes by Bill Evans. I still think this set is a bit on the expensive side,considering that this album has reaped a ton of profit. For Davis and jazz collectors it will be a "must buy". For everyone else,maybe the price will come down in the future.

Let me first point out that this project was ambitious enough, that the music is still great after 50 years.
But what could this box set have been, when it was done with the ambition to make all errors from the past up?
So why did Sony/Columbia NOT give us the entire, uncut and complete studiosequences, with all tracks in the order they were recorded, and all false starts and studio chatter?
It really does NOT make sense to release the tracks, and after that only a selection of the studio chatter and false starts.
There is no connection between what was happening in the studio and the music, and that's why you give this studio chatter, etc., for in the first place.
This Special Edition is compiled for true collectors of Miles' music and lovers of this great record "Kind of Blue".
These collectors and lovers have, you might expect, already one, maybe more releases of the album at home.
So they are looking for something they don't have, and hope that all the errors and mysteries are solved with this release.
From the several Japanese releases we know that it is possible to release the complete two sessions as they were recorded in 1959, so why did Sony NOT release those?
The most interesting music of the other recordings during that time was most certainly the television broadcast "The Sound of Miles Davis" recorded between the two sessions of Kind of Blue.
Certainly "So What" of these sessions is the most interesting track, since here we can hear how this fine track sounds with pianist Wynton Kelly, instead of Bill Evans, and Cannonball Adderley (who was ill) replaced by three trombones.
This track is much more interesting than the version of "So What" recorded much later in Amsterdam. (and I am from the Netherlands).
Why give us a blue vinyl record in this box set?
It's only a gimmick that was already done before, but NOT for real collector's.
The poster is most certainly intented for those who are still having a room full of popstars hanging around, and the material on the DVD was also already released completely.
That leaves only the book, and to be honest the book is nice, has great pictures, but has several errors and leaves so many questions open.
Questions about:
- The speed error of side A.
- The mix up about the switch of the tracks on Side B.
- The correct recordingdata, and why that was corrected by Sony in the first place on The Master Sound Edition of 1992 by Amy Herot.
I think Columbia Legacy has something to explain. Because in 1992 the recording date for the second session was changed to April 6, 1959.
Mind you the first time we got "corrected speed".
- Who wrote what of "Kind of Blue"?
We all know that the liner notes from Bill Evans are not correct, but did nobody see there are two handwritings on the original handwritten liners of Bill?
He left the titles out, and when Macero took over from Towsend and asked Miles for it, he gave the wrong titles!
Why? Because Bill Evans wrote all the sketches, and maybe he also wrote all music, and inveted the titles, including that of the record, also.
Problem with all those questions and books around Miles and Kind of Blue: they are all written by Miles Davis fans.
Miles "used" music from others before, Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson can tell, Gil Evans, Jimmy Heath, Charlie Mingus, etc., etc., and most certainly Bill Evans too.
I really like Ashley Kahn's book, certainly far better than the other, but he stops with his research when it is at its most interesting point.
On several cards and memo's you can see Bill's handwriting too.
Even on Townsend memo's.
We know he came to Miles home several times to arrange for these sessions, even on the morning of the first session, we know he wrote certainly at least two tunes, we know he did all sketches, we know.........
But here all research stops.
I am not impressed by Miles excuses that he wrote "Donna Lee" and Charlie Parker stole that away from him.
That's no excuse to give Bill Evans laughing $ 25! An insult.
After all Miles could hardly play "Donna Lee", he did it just once and it was too difficult for him.
So how on earth can you compose a tune that is too difficult to play yourself?

This box was THE oportunity to deal with all the questions that still surround that wonderful music.
But it did NOT, and with all respect it should.
The truth should come out, and Bill Evans should finally have the credits he deserved 50 years ago.

This story alone is like a thriller, and I hope that the makers of a film about Miles will deal with all these unsolved mysteries.
When such a film is released I sure hope Sony or Columbia will come up with a complete box set.
This time with all errors explained, all studio chatter, false start, and all music released the way it was recorded on those two sessions, and of course with the correct data.

This record, this music and the musical legacy of all musicians involved, deserve just that.
And all jazzlovers, like you and me, too.

Arnold van Kampen, writer about jazz, Netherlands.

First off, the packaging of this set is flat out gorgeous. From the blue vinyl... to the book... to the photographs... to the reproduced artifacts... to the slipcase, this release truly is a collector item. So if you REALLY love the album (and by that I mean not just the music but everything about it from the artwork to Bill Evans' liner notes on down), you will not be disappointed.

That said there is not much in the way of new material here. The false starts and studio dialog really add nothing for the casual-to-mid-level listener. There is a cool live take of "So What", but it's not worth dropping a Benjamin for. I haven't watched the dvd yet, but it sounds like from other reviews that it may be the same one included with the DualDisc version. So if you REALLY need to hear new material to justify the purchase of this set, you will be disappointed.

In summary I would recommend buying this if:
a) you read and enjoyed Ashley Kahn's book about the album
b) you have a turntable.

Much has been said about the Miles Davis' "Kind of Blue." The album is the subject of two books and any Miles Davis bio worth picking up devotes several pages to it's development and musical importance. The record is known for its simplicity and improvisation, as the sextet of jazz masters use a minimum amount of chords to create a mood that's profound, yet accessible. The original album consists of five tracks recorded in two days. Now, a half a century after its creation, there's a lot more.

The musical paleontologists at Epic/Legacy have given this superior work the full treatment, expanding the music onto two CDs, with more Miles on a DVD, which includes a documentary on album and a rare television appearance of Miles and his band, from 1960. The box set also includes four essays, session transcripts and a 60-page book.

The documentary, which is described as "newly produced," obviously isn't a recent as you might expect, as the late Ed Bradley comments on the influence of the album along with Bill Cosby, Herbie Hancock, Carlos Santanna and Q-Tip. The late Jackie McClean also it appears, making this the only element of this reissue of a 1958 record that could be called dated. A rare television appearance of Miles and the band is also included, catching Miles in his prime, living up to his legend even when he's smoking cigarettes in the background as his band plays.

The songs on "Kind Of Blue" were believed by many to have been recorded in one take, but among the "new" music is an alternate take of "Flamenco Sketches," along with shorter versions of album's five tracks and one false start. Jazz nerds are given further insight into the recording process through the brief dialogues between Davis and the record's producer and engineer, between the takes. This banter is transcribed and followed by analysis in the accompanying book. On the second disc is another session with the same musicians, which were first released together in 2000, and a 17 minute live version of the album's opener "So What."

The voluminous criticism, discussion and the additions to this essential album threaten to overwhelm a work known for it's lack of complexity. The music authorities may have tried to drown the public with data and transcriptions, but they've provided the ultimate life preserver in the box set: A 180-gram blue vinyl version of the album. - Craig Belcher

Hey, this disc is only going to be 50 years old once and not really until next year, the same year I will be 50. The two audio CD's sound fantastic. The 58 Sessions stuff sounds better than the KOB disc and that is saying something. I could do without the false starts and studio chatter but it is I guess a historic document that adds something to the package but not necessarily to the audio experience. The DVD is an interesting addition. I had seen the interview part of the disc on TV some time ago. The performance segment is also worth watching. How would you like to have been one of those cats sitting in the folding chairs getting paid union scale to back up Miles and Trane. Great stuff.

The discs aren't scratched as one reviewer put it (maybe his were) but the way they are packaged scuffs the discs with a mark that does not affect the playback or sound of mine. One star off for cheaping out on the jewel boxes.

The photos are a nice touch. Suitable for framing? Not quite. The bound book is interesting but I have not gotten around to reading it. The poster does nothing for me and I don't have a vinyl rig anymore so can't comment on the sound quality of the LP other than to say it's BLUE VINYL.

A curious combination of items to be sure. Would I have done it differently, definitely. Is it worth the money, hard to say but it is a very special package of a very special group of jazz musicians that put down some classic tracks that will be listened to for the next 50 years. Would make a great birthday gift for a jazz lover turning 50 this year or next and Xmas is right around the corner.

5 stars for content and sound quality. 4 stars for everything else.

I could not have been more excited about this package when I heard about it. So much so that I specifically asked someone to buy it for me as a holiday gift. And upon receiving it, I can say, with some amount of certainty, that this is little more than a glorified version of everything else I already have.... and poorly packaged at that.

First of all: the other reviewers are right, the packaging ruins the discs inside. I didn't believe it either until I saw it. I pulled the CDs and DVD out and saw some minor scratches, figuring it wouldn't really affect the playback - and it didn't. But so what? I should NEVER receive a brand new product with scratches in it. And even worse, it seems that the vinyl is so poorly pressed that there are what appear to be "smudges" in the grooves. It's as though someone took a tiny piece of steel wool and made a little gash in one spot on the first track. And it is extremely audible. Moreover, the packaging itself is all banged up, with bent corners on the vinyl, crease marks on the inner sleeve, etc.

As far as content goes, the other reviewers are right here as well. There just isn't enough. We could have had a much more substantial set here with all the tape that exists. The book inside is top-notch.... I only wish the musical content matched it.

If you've never heard Kind of Blue, do yourself a favor and buy any of the remastered CDs singly. You won't regret it. When it comes time that you want to dig deeper and find the treasure troves of other content out there, you might consider buying this box, but you'd probably be better off finding it somewhere else.
--------------

UPDATE 01.14.10: After a week of frustration with this product I returned it as defective. Really bummed about that, but so it goes.

I read the criticism (primarily of the packaging) of the 50th Anniversary edition by Miles Davis. The packaging is not good. The cd/dvd inserts is a good idea but it was not thought through. I love the blue vinyl and I think the hardcover book is very nice. The other items are unmemorable. The extra tracks are hit or miss, mostly miss. I haven't watched the dvd. The pictures are printed poorly and not worth a 2nd look. Still I think the record is very nice and sounds great.

Many people have said it, but the following was damaged:

The LP
The CDs
The DVD

All scratched.

The books, etc are very nice, but not worth the inability to have good, clean vinyl.

Like the subject says, the music speaks for itself. The packaging gets a point off for the way they slide the CDs & DVD into slits in the LP cover.

But the WORST part about all this is the way it gets packaged by Amazon for shipping. NO PADDING WHATSOEVER. My order came in an oversized box with the Kind of Blue box just floating around inside. Luckily, there was only minor damage to one of the corners (if I returned it for that, the replacement could arrive in worse condition, so I'm gonna live wiith it - it's not THAT bad, but still...).

I'm not sure why Amazon does this with vinyl orders, but it's something to keep in mind if you're planning on ordering any vinyl from them. I just received the new Ryan Adams release on vinyl from them - same thing, no padding at all. Luckily that one arrived safely.

Buyer beware if you're purcahsing vinyl from Amazon......