Plaza Bop
Mr. Richard D. Coreno | Berea, Ohio USA | 03/14/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Recorded in 1958, but not released until 1973, the numbers chronicled - If I Were a Bell; Oleo; My Funny Valentine; Straight, No Chaser - were from a September 9 gig in the Persian Room at the Plaza Hotel.
Miles is the consummate leader of his band, which includes John Coltrane (tenor sax), Cannonball Adderley (alto sax), Bill Evand (piano), Paul Chambers (bass) and Jimmy Cobb (drums). The elliptical phrasings of Davis paint incredible soundscapes for each musician to propel, oftentimes in very subtle ways.
This is classic hard bop at a juncture where Davis was continually writing incredible visionary chapters on stage that drove his studio work to heights rarely pondered by jazz artists."