Customer Reviews

Steamin' With the Miles Davis Quintet

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This was the last of four albums recorded by the Miles Davis Quintet for Prestige records in 1956. (Cookin', Relaxin', and Workin' are the others.) My feeling is that the music, while generally strong, is what you'd expect from the last material to be released -- the music on the other albums (particularly Cookin' and Relaxin') is mostly better than what you'll find on this album.

The highlight, and without a doubt one of the best recordings from the 1956 Prestige sessions, is "The Surrey with the Fringe on Top". The rhythm section sets up their perfect light swinging groove, over which Miles's weaves a witty, melodic trumpet solo. Coltrane follows, barrelling ahead and providing the perfect constrast. "Diane" mines a similar groove though not quite reaching the same heights. The two ballads ("Something I Dreamed Last Night" and "When I Fall in Love") are typical for Miles during this time, with Coltrane sitting out; I think they are pretty colorless in comparison to "My Funny Valentine" (Cookin') and "It Never Entered My Mind" (Workin'). The same could be said for the bebop tunes -- not really on the caliber of "Airegin", "Oleo" or "Tune Up". Most of the music comes from the May session, not from the October session, so Coltrane's playing is more erratic than on Cookin' and Relaxin'.

I would get the other 3 albums from these sessions first, but this was a good enough group that almost everything by them is worth hearing. Steamin' is a very enjoyable listen.

For many years I have nursed a belief that My Funny Valentine on Cookin' was the single best piece of jazz music ever recorded on CD. Some crises of faith-- Lester Young's This Year's Kisses, Dave Brubeck's Take Five, etc.-- had challenged this conviction, but for the first time I think I may have a conversion.

Miles Davis's trumpet on Surrey With The Fringe on Top on this CD is the best that I have ever heard. It is physically impossible for anybody with a soul to be upset while listening to the first 35 seconds of this song.

Out of that quartet of LPs (Cookin'..., Workin'..., Relaxin'..., Steamin'...) culled from the 1956 Hackensack sessions with that absolutely *definitive* lineup of John Coltrane, Red Garland, Paul Chambers, and "Philly" Joe Jones, this is my favorite. That swing, that joyous *oomph* they collectively create, is not just outrageously foot-tapping, it's almost enough to get me out of my seat and MOVE (and that takes a lot, me being an assiduous non-dancer)! One of my favorite Miles Davis albums out of the almost limitless catalog. What words can express my appreciation that music this good has been preserved for all time on a CD I'll enjoy for the rest of my life?

It's amazing, the sound quality of these old recordings. The recordings, indeed, maybe old, but the musicianship is something that's undeniable! The entire band is amazing - just creating magic out of this air. It is so rare that the artists around today achieve this level of maturity, virtuosity, etc. It's truly divine - something not of this Earth, seemingly...

No go get yourself stuck on Miles!

Like its counterparts, "Steamin" offers the listener differnt viewpoints from the emerging 1st "Great" Quintet that Davis had to offer.

Always a sucker for a ballad or standard, Miles comes in front and center for "Surrey With the Fringe on Top," "When I Fall In Love," "Something I Dreamed Last Night," and "Diane." Miles' playing is top rate, ahis tone perfect, his demeanor cool, reserved, yet brimming with emotion. Add to that his Harmon Mute, and Miles is on fire. As always, the rhythm section of Red Garland, Paul Chambers, and Philly Joe Jones, are on target, keeping the tune on terra firma, allowing Miles to explore his emotional options.

The up-tempo numbers- Dizzy Gillespie's "Salt Peanuts," and Thelonoius Monk's "Well You Needn't"- allow the group to throw inhibitions to the wind and glet it all hang out, which was certainly up John Coltrane's alley. Trane's frantic, wandering style works fairly well on these numbers, though throughout the 4 lp set, Trane's addicitons are playing havoc on him, and his playing suffers in many places due to it. While his playing does not ruin the lps, it can not be ignored... The band, Trane included, cooks on these 2 uptempo numbers, and shows the listener that at the drop of a hat, the group was ready to rumble.

The 4 cds that make up their final 1955 Prestige Records recordings all vary in quality, but all are exquisite in showing the individual and collective talents that would all rise to superstardom. All 4 cds are highly recommended.

This is one of four albums compiled from two days of recording in 1955, and all four contain highly satisfying, entertaining jazz music. Davis's developing trumpet sound is distinctive and beautiful, and these are the recordings that put John Coltrane on the map (he didn't release anything under his own name until a few years later). Steamin' is mostly mellow music, although "Salt Peanuts" is a kick in the face, with a fast tempo and a long drum solo. This is highly recommended for anyone with more than a passing interest in Miles Davis.

... but I am just another voice to say that this is a great classic jazz album from a year (1956) that was one of the most productive in the history of jazz, perhaps the year when the relatively new LP format really came into its own. If you don't own it and are reading this, then you most likely need to buy it.

I understand there is a new remastered version available. The old version is excellent quality audio, so whether the extra bucks for the new version are worth it, I cannot say.

This is one of four classic albums that resulted from two incredibly productive days in the studio for Miles's first great quintet: Miles, John Coltrane, Red Garland, Paul Chambers, and Philly Joe Jones. The spontaneity of these recordings is a quality that is sometimes lacking in later Miles efforts. The "one-off" feel of "Salt Peanuts" is particularly fresh (though I miss Dizzy Gillespie's chant of "salt peanuts, salt peanuts" in his original recording). And Coltrane's couple of flubbed notes will make you smile; here is an emerging genius before he is fully formed. And, as always, the rhythm section of Garland, Chambers, and Jones is brilliant. In short, this disc will have you swingin' every time you put it in your player.

Although some of the other pre-Columbia Miles quintet dates seem to be mentioned more frequently, this is my favorite. As a college student, I put a dime in the College Drug juke box practically every day, simply to be able to hear "Diane" another couple of times. Years later I discovered that it was the theme song on the music soundtrack for the Janet Gaynor classic silent film, "Seventh Heaven." No track better demonstrates that incredibly lilting, infectious 2-beat feel that was the hallmark of the Garland, Philly Jo, Paul Chambers rhythm sections. If "dance" bands played like this, I wouldn't have disappointed my wife by turning out to be such a reluctant and bad dancer.

This was the final release (following Cookin', Relaxin', and Workin') of a marathon session Miles recorded for Prestige shortly before bolting to Columbia Records. As with the other titles, the playing is uniform throughout with a very good interpretation of Thelonious Monk's "Well You Needn't" and the gorgeous finale "When I Fall in Love." However, and this may be nitpicking on my part, whereas the albums mentioned above were thematic, this one appears to have been assembled slapdash from the session leftovers. (On the other hand, leftovers have rarely sounded this good.) Therefore, I would suggest purchasing any or all of the other three albums first, then coming back to this one.