Live at the Fillmore East (March 7, 1970): It's About That Time [Original recording remastered]

Miles Davis | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 21, 2001)
• Original Release Date: 1970
• Number of Discs: 2
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B00005M0N2
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (33 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #64,534 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

54 of 59 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Shorter is better (Wayne Shorter, that is), October 5, 2001

By 

G B (Connecticut) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Live at the Fillmore East (March 7, 1970): It's About That Time (Audio CD)

With this release, there are now three official documents of Miles Davis at the Fillmores: March 1970 (this one), April 1970 (Black Beauty, at the Fillmore West), and June 1970 (At Fillmore). The three albums all have a similar sound and repertoire -- electrified improvisation over rock grooves with a nice dose of free jazz. The main thing elevating It's About That Time above the other two is saxophonist Wayne Shorter, who would leave after this recording to be replaced on the April and June recordings by the inexperienced and ineffective Steve Grossman. Shorter is positively scary on some of the tracks here -- just listen to his torrential tenor saxophone blowing over the churning rhythm section on either take of "Directions". He dominates this music. I personally prefer the tenor sax over the soprano, and there's plenty of the former here as an added bonus. As for Miles: he blows some intense, screaming trumpet as on the other Fillmore discs, but gains additional inspiration from Shorter's presence. After all, the two had been playing together for over five years at this point. Percussionist Airto Moreira makes some irrelevant noise but you'll tune him out quickly. The rhythm section (Chick Corea, Dave Holland, Jack DeJohnette) is as explosive as always, whether setting up a funky groove on "Spanish Key" or freely improvising on "It's About That Time". Corea's distorted and processed electric piano provides a more than adequate replacement for the lack of guitar. The sound quality here isn't the best, but who cares with music this powerful? If you have either Black Beauty or At Fillmore and were wondering whether this is worth picking up, the answer is DEFINITELY YES. And if you don't, pick this one up anyway.

(Despite being labelled the last gig with the "Lost Quintet", this set sounds different from the Summer and Fall '69 gigs featuring this group minus Airto. That music was jazzier and didn't have the distortion on Corea's electric piano. It also included some of the older pieces like Round Midnight and No Blues. Hopefully Columbia will release some of that great music one day.)

28 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars For those who like an ongoing challenge..., August 28, 2001

By 

J. Lund "jazzbrat" (SoCal, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Live at the Fillmore East (March 7, 1970): It's About That Time (Audio CD)

While it doesn't surprise me, it never ceases to amaze me that most of Miles Davis' music never loses its sense of unpredictability, even as his musical vision gains in clarity among listeners with the passage of time. That is particularly true of this album, issued over three-decades after it was recorded. At times on these sets, Miles' "controlled freedom" approach to music seems on the verge of losing it entirely, with passages that sound more like avant-garde jazz than Fillmore-friendly jazz/rock. Nonetheless, a balance is maintained via DeJohnette's dynamic grooves, and Miles' trademark ability to pull chaos back into order with a single phrase on his horn. One minute you've got tumultuous interplay, the next you've got Miles playing brilliantly over irresistable yet complex backbeats.
In comparison with the two other officially-released 1970 Fillmore albums, I give this CD the edge due to the outstanding recording quality & remastering, the presence of Wayne Shorter on reeds, and the lack of post-production cut-and-paste that marred AT FILLMORE. Miles is in remarkable form on all three recordings, playing mostly with a harder tone that moves confidently and flawlessly into the upper reaches of his horn (does anybody still speak of Davis as having inferior trumpet-playing technique--he sounds like he can do anything he wants with the horn here). Yet in the music's occasional quieter moments his softer, lyrical side is on fresh display.

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars FINALLY! The "Lost Quintet" (plus one) at last., August 29, 2001

By 

Ed Packer (Suffern, New York USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Live at the Fillmore East (March 7, 1970): It's About That Time (Audio CD)

I was a sophomore in college when Miles brought this band to play in our gym. I had never attended a "jazz" concert before, so imagine my surprise when these guys took the stage and began to BURN!! I'll admit that I didn't understand what I was hearing at the time, but the experience changed me forever.
In the ensuing years, I have been to hundreds of jazz shows, and have amassed a huge collection of jazz recordings. However, my memory of the "Lost Qintet" in the winter of 1970 has always haunted me. Now, at last, a recording of this group at the Fillmore East has enabled me to relive those first moments when Miles, Dave, Jack, Chick and Wayne opened my ears (and mind)to the endless possibilities of music.
This is a great recording, the quality is there, the energy is almost unbearably intense. A must for Miles fans. In my opinion, his greatest band ever!!