Search - Miles Davis :: Best of Miles Davis

Only the BEST if you don't count most of Miles' career!

Mark A. Elliott | Richmond, VA United States | 12/09/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This "Best Of Miles Davis" (how many of these collections are there at this point?) is culled only from his days at Prestige (1951-1956), a period which included some good albums and saw tremendous adjustments to his style. But almost anyone would argue that his greatest work and most fruitful collaborating was done during his many years with Columbia.

The title aside, the choice of songs here is perceptive including some of the most interesting tracks, if not the best known, that Miles recorded with a variety of ensembles during this formative period. In particular, check out the clean confidence of "I'll Remeber April" (from the sessions for the "Walkin'" album) and the loping blues line of "Doxy", written by Sonny Rollins and featuring him on tenor. "Oleo" and "I Could Write A Book" offer a glimpse of Miles' first great quintet just before they leave Prestige to expand their sound at Columbia. The former featuring young John Coltrane and the latter a good example of the complimentary care that Miles and pianist Red Garland could take with a ballad. The only puzzler here is the choice of "Surrey with the Fringe on Top", a 9-minute version of the tune from "Oklahoma". It's a nice interpretation, but in such a brief collection, two shorter and more exemplary songs might be more appropriate. As an introduction to Miles' work between "Birth of the Cool" and "'Round About Midnight", one could do worse than this collection."