From 1975 to 1981 the jazz giant Miles Davis temporarily retired from music. Almost completely reclusive, nobody outside of a very close circle knew what was happening to him. Only one jazz writer was able to get close to him during this time: Eric Nisenson. From 1978 to 1981 Nisenson conducted dozens of interviews with Miles Davis and his associates. The result was 'Round About Midnight, an engaging firsthand account of Miles's fascinating and difficult career. From his recordings with Charlie Parker and the birth of the cool nonet, through the Coltrane quintet, the Gil Evans–arranged masterpieces of the sixties, the landmark Kind of Blue album, the Shorter/Hancock/ Carter/Williams group, and the success of Miles's fusion recordings of the seventies, Miles's personality—contemplative, abruptly defiant, strong, elegant—meshed with his art to form one of the most compelling legends in the history of American music. Whole actively disdaining his audience, he sought to broaden it by incorporating elements of other musics—classical, flamenco, rock, funk—into his uncompromising jazz. This contradictory combination of contempt and a desire for recognition fueled controversy in both his public and private lives, and resulted in Miles’s lengthy self-imposed isolation. Nisenson broke through that isolation, and his biographical portrait is vivid and telling This updated edition features a new preface, new material covering Miles in the eighties, and a new recommended listening section.
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About the Author
Eric Nisenson is the author of several jazz books, including The Making of Kind of Blue. He lives in Malden, Massachusetts.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent portrayal of a great musician.,
By E. Jordan (sanem@TheRamp.net) (Illinois (U.S.A.)) - See all my reviews
This review is from: 'Round About Midnight: A Portrait of Miles Davis (Paperback)
'Round About Midnight is an excellent book about and man, his music, & how he evolved to be one of the most important musicians & trumpeter of the 20th century. Shows the true essence and personality of a controversial man & musician who always spoke the truth about himself, his music, & those around him.....Along with the book by Quincy Troupe, it is a must for any avid Jazz afficionado. Very enjoyable reading and I, for one, will always cherish it & no doubt read again and again.... Thank you Mr. Nisenson for this good piece of writing.......
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Not just another Miles biography,
By
This review is from: 'Round About Midnight: A Portrait of Miles Davis (Paperback)
If you want the ultimate Miles biography, get the Jack Chambers one. This book, at 300 pages, is sketchy in comparison. It is almost criminally negligent about Miles' music of the 60's and 70's. What makes it worth reading, however, is Mr. Nisenson's personal memoirs. The preface is called "Hangin' Out with Daffy Davis". In it, he tells how he went from idolizing Miles when he was a teenager to a situation where his phone would ring late at night and he would groan, "Oh no, it's that damned Miles again!" We've all heard that Miles wasn't a saint; this edition of Nisenson's portrait confirms it. Despite my earlier comments, Nisenson is an excellent author and "'Round About Midnight" is a very enjoyable read. So if you buy all good books on Miles or you'd like to hear something a little different about him, get it. (After you read it, by the way, think about the fact that this guy did not rate one mention in Miles' autobiography.) If you want only one Miles bio, however, it's got to be the Jack Chambers or the Ian Carr one.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This is a great place to start!,
By Andy Williamson (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews
This review is from: 'Round About Midnight: A Portrait of Miles Davis (Paperback)
A truly engrossing book, full of classic stories and memories of recording sessions. A great primer for the new Miles fan. Check it out.
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First Sentence:
It didn't really matter that it was one thirty in the morning, because Miles's duplex apartment, which was perpetually kept in womblike darkness, always had an ambience of the wee small hours of the morning. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
sixties quintet, original quintet, electric music, jazz movement, hard bop, jazz community, rock audience Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Charlie Parker, New York, Gil Evans, Miles Davis, Philly Joe, Fifty-second Street, Dizzy Gillespie, Max Roach, Sonny Rollins, John Coltrane, Jimmy Cobb, Tony Williams, Louis Armstrong, John Lewis, Kind of Blue, Thelonious Monk, Bill Evans, Gerry Mulligan, Miles Ahead, Percy Heath, Three Deuces, Art Blakey, Coleman Hawkins, Dexter Gordon, Duke Ellington New!
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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
It didn't really matter that it was one thirty in the morning, because Miles's duplex apartment, which was perpetually kept in womblike darkness, always had an ambience of the wee small hours of the morning. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
sixties quintet, original quintet, electric music, jazz movement, hard bop, jazz community, rock audience Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Charlie Parker, New York, Gil Evans, Miles Davis, Philly Joe, Fifty-second Street, Dizzy Gillespie, Max Roach, Sonny Rollins, John Coltrane, Jimmy Cobb, Tony Williams, Louis Armstrong, John Lewis, Kind of Blue, Thelonious Monk, Bill Evans, Gerry Mulligan, Miles Ahead, Percy Heath, Three Deuces, Art Blakey, Coleman Hawkins, Dexter Gordon, Duke Ellington New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 8
books:
See all 8 books this book cites
5
books
cite this book:
- A Musical Biography (Music for the Bicentennial) by John R. Parker in Front Matter
- Rhapsody in Blue: Solo Piano (Original) by George Gershwin on page 78
- In December by Gloria Davis on page 18
- Jazz Masters Of The 50s (Da Capo Paperback) by Joe Goldberg on page 78
- From Satchmo To Miles by Leonard Feather in Front Matter
See all 8 books this book cites
- The Making of Kind of Blue: Miles Davis and His Masterpiece by Eric Nisenson in Front Matter, and Back Matter
- Miles Davis - Kind of Blue: Deluxe Edition by Miles Davis on page 15
- Keeping Score: Music, Disciplinarity, Culture (Knowledge: Disciplinarity and Beyond) by David Schwarz on page 167
- Open Sky: Sonny Rollins And His World Of Improvisation by Eric Nisenson in Back Matter
- Giant Steps: Bebop and the Creators of Modern Jazz, 1945-65 by Kenny Mathieson in Back Matter
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