Kind of Blue (Legacy Edition)

Miles Davis | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (January 20, 2009)
• Original Release Date: 1958
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Sony Legacy
• ASIN: B001KL3GZO
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MiniDisc  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (784 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,799 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #33 in Music > Jazz > Bebop > Hard Bop
  • #44 in Music > Jazz > Modern Postbebop
  • #76 in Music > Jazz > Bebop > General AAS

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com essential recording

This is the one jazz record owned by people who don't listen to jazz, and with good reason. The band itself is extraordinary (proof of Miles Davis's masterful casting skills, if not of God's existence), listing John Coltrane and Julian "Cannonball" Adderley on saxophones, Bill Evans (or, on "Freddie Freeloader," Wynton Kelly) on piano, and the crack rhythm unit of Paul Chambers on bass and Jimmy Cobb on drums. Coltrane's astringency on tenor is counterpoised to Adderley's funky self on alto, with Davis moderating between them as Bill Evans conjures up a still lake of sound on which they walk. Meanwhile, the rhythm partnership of Cobb and Chambers is prepared to click off time until eternity. It was the key recording of what became modal jazz, a music free of the fixed harmonies and forms of pop songs. In Davis's men's hands it was a weightless music, but one that refused to fade into the background. In retrospect every note seems perfect, and each piece moves inexorably towards its destiny. --John Szwed

Product Description

Originally released in 1959, Miles Davis's magnum opus Kind of Blue is still considered by many to be one of the greatest albums of all time. Starring Davis, John Coltrane, Cannonball Adderley, Bill Evans, Wynton Kelly, Paul Chambers, and Jimmy Cobb, Kind of Blue has held onto its status as an album that crosses genres, speaks to generations, and is one of the first (if not the first) album that any new jazz acolyte purchases. Kind of Blue (Legacy Edition) offers the complete studio sessions on 2 CDs, including false starts, alternate takes and a 17-minute 1960 live version of "So What."

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

95 of 97 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Jazz Album Ever With Some Extra Goodies, January 29, 2009

By 

Socrates Stewart "Baltimore Boy, Music Collec... (Owings Mills, MD) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Kind of Blue (Legacy Edition) (Audio CD)

"Kind of Blue" is an album that all collectors with even a passing interesting in jazz should own. No need to review the core album as most listeners would be familiar with it by now and there are tons of testimonials for the original.

So why the special "Legacy Edition?"

This is not for everyone to be sure, but for listeners who really love this album, Miles Davis, and jazz of the 1950's and early 60's, "Legacy Edition" will give more insight into the material and help the listener appreciate more of what went into making "Kind of Blue" the great jazz standard that it is.

While it might overkill for some, true jazz lovers and "Kind of Blue" fans will not only get some nice second helpings from the album, they'll also get an idea of how Davis and his all-star cast created this gem.

One other note, those having old CD copies of "Kind of Blue," the ones with the animated profile of Miles on the booklet cover, not the recreation of the original LP cover, should definitely ditch their old CD and get the new remastered release. It is a huge improvement. Instead of sounding washed out and slightly off pitch, the remaster sounds fresh, with very high resolution, warm, and intimate, just the way Miles Davis and his stellar side kicks recorded it.

272 of 293 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Your CD colletion is kinda blue if you don't own this! (5+), June 26, 2000

By 

Cary S. Whitt "Tune Junkie" (Columbus,Ohio USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Kind of Blue (Audio CD)

If your idea of the perfect jazz record is Kenny G's Duotones, then don't bother reading this cause it talks about the REAL thing.

Well this is THE jazz album to start off with. I'm sure you've all heard that before, but, it's quite true. From Freddie Freeloader to All Blues, we are constantly reminded of what a genius time it was for jazz in that period. Just look at the all-star line-up on here, Cannonball, Coltrane, Bill - simply amazing! This is a disc that everyone has heard before at some point in their life whether they were aware or not. The saying that this is the most influential jazz record may be true, I tend to think its the most rewarding. This re-release version is superb! It contains an alternative version of "Flamenco Sketches" and original photo package to boot. the sound is by far the best this recording has ever seen. This is a recording the word masterpiece is reserved for. An absolute must own!

If this is your first jump into real jazz might I suggest, Cannonball Adderly's "Somethin Else" or Coltrane's "Love Supreme", both make excellent companions to "Kind of Blue".

141 of 150 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It's about time!, March 13, 2009

By 

R. Davis "Persnikety Pedant" (California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Kind of Blue (Legacy Edition) (Audio CD)

I have owned nearly every digital version of this album.
I had the first one from the wrong tape. I then got the Gold 'corrected' version, then I got the mass release of the 're-master'. I bought the SACD.
Now this re-master (by the same folks who did the first re-master).

OK... so here's my take.
Let's forget the first CD. It was a mistake.

The Gold was the right speed, but the two track master used is just dead and the mix is awful, allowing too much echo in some parts, not enough presence, and some passages of horn are just nearly impossible to hear well.

The first re-master was a revelation. The horns were right up front, the balance was greatly improved and you could tell that they remixed it from the original 3-track. I loved the new Alternate Take of Flamenco Sketches. But something was wrong. This was obviously meant for the iPod crowd, and not for audiophiles. The channels had been normalized to HOT and without using any dynamic compression. The loud horn passages were all clipped severely, resulting in a viciously harsh presentation.

The SACD is a joke. They made this a 5.1 disc for some stupid reason, adding echo - reverb - whatever, in the rear channels. Whaaaa? Come on, I just wanted to hear the original 3-track masters as faithfully as possible. Ugh... Even being DSD does not help this mess.

Finally... this last release is done right. The balance is correct. There is NO clipping. It's near perfect in its presence. The middle channel is well represented (phantom), and the soundstage is wonderful. The horns have warmth that the clipped version just couldn't create. This is finally done properly... by the same folks. So how come they got all the others so wrong??

So... even if you have the last releases, this one (the 50th Anniversary) has to be purchased because it is the only one that is correct. It is the only one that actually represents the best possible 2-channel CD-quality mix. Obviously it's not perfect in that it is still only 16bit - 44.1khz, but it's a vast improvement.

Enjoy!