Miles Davis: Love Songs

By AAJ STAFF   /   All About Jazz   


Throughout his long, varied and storied career, Miles Davis was known for many things. As the father/godfather/originator/pioneer of bop, hard bop, fusion and other styles, Miles’s 40+ albums revealed a diverse array of styles and sounds. Through it all, however, Miles maintained his trademark poise and lyricism, often best expressed through his ballads. On this collection, that element of Davis’s playing is exposed and explored, revealing a diversity even in the broad unity of the love song. These tunes range from the languishing remorse of "I Fall In Love Too Easily" (punctuated towards the end by Frank Butler’s startling but perhaps appropriately quick rim clicks), the dreamy reminsicence of "I Thought About You" and the soft and billowy orchestral breeze of "My Ship" to the anticipatory pacing of "Someday My Prince Will Come." Throughout, Miles keeps different times with help from the legendary likes of bassists Ron Carter and Paul Chambers and drummers Frank Butler, Jimmy Cobb and Tony Williams. Gil Evans’ signature arragnement of "I Loves You Porgy" captures the aching romance of Gershwin’s downtrodden heroine through Miles’s use of his trademark Harmon mute. "Stella by Starlight" offers sax lines by John Coltrane and Cannonball Adderley over the subtle compiing of Bill Evans. A live from Lincoln Center take of "My Funny Valentine" offers soft duets by Hancock and Carter and provides stretches for Miles and tenor George Coleman to whisper, shout, splurt and slur lovingly in their appreciative listeners’ ears, traveling far afield before returning to the crux of their musical amorousness in the final moments.








Love Songs is a compilation album by American jazz musician Miles Davis, released on February 2, 1999, by Sony Music Records. The songs it compiles were recorded between May 10, 1957, and February 12, 1964.

Track listing    

1. "I Fall in Love Too Easily" (Cahn, Styne) – 6:48
2. "I Thought About You" (Mercer, VanHeusen) – 4:56
3. "Summer Night" (Dubin, Warren) – 6:05
4. "My Ship" (Gershwin, Weill) – 4:34
5. "Someday My Prince Will Come" (Churchill, Morey) – 9:09
6. "Stella by Starlight" (Washington, Young) – 4:51
7. "My Funny Valentine" (Hart, Rodgers) – 15:09
8. "I Loves You, Porgy" (Gershwin, Gershwin, Heyward) – 3:40
9. "Old Folks" (Hill, Robison) – 5:17

Personnel    

Cannonball Adderley – alto saxophone George Avakian – producing Danny Bank – bass clarinet Bob Belden – producing Joe Bennett – trombone Frank Butler – drums Johnny Carisi – trumpet Ron Carter – bass Paul Chambers – bass Jimmy Cleveland – trombone Jimmy Cobb – drums George Coleman – tenor saxophone John Coltrane – tenor saxophone Sid Cooper – clarinet, flute Miles Davis – trumpet Gil Evans – arranging, conducting Victor Feldman – piano Howard Fritzson – art direction Bernie Glow – trumpet Herbie Hancock – piano Dick Hixon – trombone

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