Customer Reviews

Milestones

5 star:		(27)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This was Miles' second album for Columbia. But because it came in right after his heralded first Columbia album, "Round Midnight," and just before the immortal "Kind of Blue," it tends to be overlooked in the Miles' canon. Make no mistake about it, the album contains some of the most fiery yet organized music of Miles on record. Cannonball, after all, was not on the 1st Columbia album, and "Kind of Blue," as magical as it is, often acquires a kind of meandering, moody quality due to its quiet, introspective nature.

"Milestones" also represents a kind of "second chance" for the members of Miles' sextet. Due to the personal and alcohol/drug-related problems of his sidemen, Miles simply decided to disband the group for most of 1957. When he had a change of heart and resurrected the sextet for this late 1957 recording, the other five members sensed they had to prove themselves to two audiences: the public and Miles himself.

Cannonball not only brings his characteristic fire to each of the selections, but stands up more effectively to Coltrane's advanced harmonies on this date than on the "Kind of Blue" session, in my opinion. The trio number with Red Garland is representative of some of Red's best trio work on the Prestige label but without the Rudy Van Gelder sound (which tends to make all pianists' touches sound the same). Moreover, I can vouch from memory and personal experience that the title tune, "Milestones," had a far greater influence on musicians' moving to modal and "free" harmonies than anything on "Kind of Blue" (perhaps because the latter album's singular beauty is beyond replication). Finally, the alternate takes appear to be first takes because Miles, if anything, sounds fresher and more inventive on these than on the master tracks. Like Sinatra, Miles had little patience with, or reason for, a second take.

I have virtually every album Miles has ever made. I began collecting his albums when I was in fifth grade. I own pretty much everything from the 1949 Live Performances in Paris with Tadd Dameron to Star People. This particular recording is among my favorites of all of those Miles albums. It swings like no other, and is also, along with Porgy & Bess, the direct link between Miles Ahead and Kind Of Blue. Any fan of trumpet or jazz music needs to own this. Miles Davis, John Coltrane on tenor, Cannonball Adderley on alto, Red Garland on piano, Paul Chambers on bass and Philly Joe Jones on drums. With a group like this you'd think these guys would get in the way of each other because they're all so incredible. However, this is far from the case. They interact perfectly. From the brilliant fast pace of Jackie McLean's "Dr. Jekyll" to the stolen "Walkin'" remake "Sid's Ahead", Miles is in miraculous form on some bebop and blues. Cannonball and Trane really get into it as well. Listen to Trane tear through Dizzy Gillespie and John Lewis's "Two Bass Hit". "Miles" better known now as "Milestones" (either one is acceptable), has become a cool jazz classic and Miles sounds amazing on it. So does everyone else. "Billy Boy" gives Red Garland a chance to shine and finally solo (I don't recall him soloing on any of the previous tunes). Here Miles does not play, and reportedly asked Red to imitate Ahmad Jamal, one of his favorite pianists. What a fun tune, it swings like crazy. However, the best is saved for last on "Straight, No Chaser", with everyone going absolutely insane. Cannonball has a witty quotation of Bird's "Now's The Time" solo, check that out. Every solo is fun and swinging. If you're a fan of great music, you'll love this album. One of Miles's many great records.

I'd consider "Milestones" one of Miles Davis' five or so best albums, which means it's probably one of the best 15 or so albums in the entire jazz genre and perhaps one of the top 40 in any genre.
If you listen to the first two tracks and find it a bit off-kilter ("Dr. Jekyll") or slow ("Sid's Ahead"), keep listening. The final four tracks, particularly the brilliant "Miles" / "Milestones," will get you hooked. In fact, while Thelonious Monk gets credit for his classic composition "Straight, No Chaser," I believe that this album's version is the definitive one -- much like "All Along the Watchtower" may be a Bob Dylan song, but it really belongs to Jimi Hendrix.
Don't hesitate to buy it and make it a regular part of your collection. "Milestones" is well worth it!

Aside from the Miles/Coltrane box released last year, this marks the first time that this material has appeared in true stereo in over four decades. Prior to that, it was only available in mono or electronically re-channeled stereo. The title cut also marked the first time that Miles had written in the modal style that would be immortalized on the Kind of Blue album. Expanding the group to a sextet was one of the giants of alto sax, Julian 'Cannonball' Adderley. Adderley's style of playing complemented Coltrane's perfectly--at times requiring you to really listen closely to tell who's playing what. Both players had incredible range on their instruments. Milestones includes three bonus tracks--alternate versions of "Two Bass Hit," "Milestones" which is actually superior to the 'original'), and Monk's "Straight, No Chaser." Milestones is a true classic album from a classic group.

This is a staggering album... The title tune "Milestones" is now a classic. The theme is fascinating not for what is played but for what is implied. You hear yourself singing harmonies all around those that you actually hear. And the rhythm section is just rocking; Philly Joe's drumming is dense with swirling cymbals and rapid-fire rolls, his excitement and passion overpowering. And then, Cannonball Adderley at his most joyous, breaks in with a solo that almost on its own takes the jazz soloing of the era into a whole new expressive dimension. One hearing of this massive record and it feels like you've known it all your life.

In terms of personnel this is the great Miles Davis Quintet of '55-'56 with altoist Cannonball Adderley along of the ride. But whereas the Quintet was a group that specialized in ballads and pop tunes, this new outfit swung a lot harder. Most of the tunes here are played FAST. During his hiatus from the Quintet, John Coltrane's saxophone playing had improved by leaps and bounds; and the rhythm section of Jones-Chambers-Garland had become even tighter. It's hard to pick highlights from such a stellar set -- Adderley and Coltrane trading choruses at lightning speed on "Dr. Jackle", the incredible arrangement of "Two Bass Hit", the pioneering modal ideas of "Milestones", or the rhythm trio feature "Billy Boy". I guess I'd go with "Straight No Chaser", which features outstanding solos by everybody; listen to Miles at his 50s peak, or to Coltrane *and* Adderley play stack after dense stack of Coltrane's then-new "sheets of sound" technique! But this tune is just the first among equals. If you liked Kind of Blue, this album is absolutely essential for your collection.

"Milestones" is the second album Miles Davis released for Columbia records. Although it followed the landmark "Round About Midnight" and came before the classic "Kind of Blue," this CD doesn't quite get the recognition it deserves. But while it remains somewhat overlooked, "Milestones" is still very much a masterpiece, featuring the incomparable Miles Davis Sextet churning out moments of brilliance on track after track. The album gets off to a promising start with the fast and furious "Dr. Jackie," an upbeat number that moves along quite briskly. John Coltrane almost steals the show with his impressive sax on "Sid's Ahead," and Philly Joe Jones gives some nice drumming on "Two Bass Hit," which, again, features Coltrane in fine form. But they and the other members can't top Miles, who assumes a commanding presence on each track with his trumpet, as shown on the title track, "Dr. Jackie" and on the disc's closer "Straight, No Chaser." On this, the remastered version, we also have alternative takes of 3 album cuts which are just as good as the versions that made the original LP. "Milestones" is a classy record that would help shape Miles' future as one of music's most vital figures. It's just as important as "Kind of Blue," and shouldn't be missed.

MILESTONES was both the musical and chronological bridge between trumpeter Miles Davis' great mid-fifties quintet (John Coltrane on tenor saxophone, Red Garland on piano, Paul Chambers on bass and Philly Joe Jones on drums), with its postbop sensibilities and emphasis on fresh interpretations of standard material, and the more personalized and transcendent vision Davis would realize so brilliantly on his next album, KIND OF BLUE. By augmenting the quintet with Cannonball Adderley's matchless alto saxophone chops, Miles added tonal variety to a signature sound which, for all its beauty, had started to grow a bit predictable; and by redirecting his own compositional bent from harmonic to modal centers he literally wrote an entire new chapter in jazz history. All of this is excitingly evident on this crucial 1958 recording.
Taking numbers by Thelonious Monk ("Straight No Chaser"), Jackie McLean ("Dr. Jekyll") and John Lewis ("Two Bass Hit") on rides which even the composers themselves could never have envisioned, Davis and Company here set a new standard for small group improvisation. If anyone still had any doubts, MILESTONES certainly announced that the bebop era was over. Further leavening the proceedings, a hornless workout on "Billy Boy" allows Davis' excellent rhythm section (often obscured by the playing and reputations of this legendary front line) to sing and shine on its own while the leader takes a breather. But it's the two original compositions herein - "Sid's Ahead" and even more so the title track - which really point the way forward. The former is an epic-length jam balancing control and freedom in a manner almost unprecedented, with improvisational statements of consummate logic effectively becoming the structure of the piece over its thirteen minutes and change. "Milestones" itself is a sort of first stab at KIND OF BLUE, and could easily have fit on that album were it a bit lengthier - as it would subsequently become in concert. Miles' lightheartedly reflective melody is now a classic, and the permutations through which he and his band take it proclaim the advent of a powerful new approach to the genre. Great stuff, and a definite must-have for any serious jazz enthusiast!

Hot Jazz; If you are looking for a second "Kind of Blue" album , then "Milestones" will disappoint. Also, if you are looking for some nice background jazz music while you have your dinner party this is probably not the album for you. On the other hand, if you are looking for an album that features five of the most talented musicians ever to play jazz, cooking on some really great tunes and playing together like they've been doing this all their life then this might be the album for you. This one does not contain (as one reviewer stated) the same lineup as "Kind of Blue". Milestones has Philly Jo Jones on drums and Red Garland on piano. This is an album you really need to listen to closely to appreciate. Contains some seriously virtuosic playing; A Jazz Tour de Force

This CD showcases the newly formed Miles Davis Sextet, which added Cannonball Adderley to the already combustible old quintet of Red Garland, Philly Joe Jones, Paul Chambers, John Coltrane, and Miles. This CD is absolutely banging-- the sextet shows off its virtuoso form playing Jekyll; it lays the foundations of modal jazz in the title track; and the rousing rendition of Straight, No Chaser is amazing as well. Coltrane is much improved from his recordings with the first quintet, and the dynamic he forms with the alto sax of cannonball is inspiring-- especially on Jekyll. You liked Kind of Blue? You probably did. Then get this album.