Miles Davis
Bitches Brew(180Gm)

The controversial ‘Bitches Brew’ still divides opinion fifty years after its release. Some regard it as the work of genius others as an aberration. It built upon the controversy that his previous album ‘In A Silent Way’ had stirred up. Incorporating elements of Rock and Funk, like ‘In A Silent Way’ it strengthened the rhythmic intensity that was such a bold departure from Miles’ work with his second great quintet. This double album was recorded 19th through 21st August 1969 and released in 1970. It features three keyboard players – Chick Corea, Joe Zawinul and Larry Young, two bass players including Dave Holland and Lenny White, Jack DeJohnette and Don Alias. Sometimes all at once. Wayne Shorter and Bennie Maupin share the spotlight in the horn section. British Jazz Rock Fusion guitarist John McLaughlin stars with some very innovative playing too. Producer Teo Macero spliced tracks together from various takes and recordings to make elongated tracks that were never played as a whole tune in the studio. This was revolutionary for a Jazz album, though he had also done so with ‘In A Silent Way’. Traditionally, Jazz albums had been recorded as a single take with the musicians all in the studio playing simultaneously. There are six tracks over four sides, some of which are now considered classics. Joe Zawinul’s ‘Pharaoh’s Dance’ is an explorative masterpiece’. The dark brooding ‘Bitches Brew’ is leftfield and is the aural transcription of a nightmare. The jazziest cut is probably ‘Spanish Key’, which is also the most accessible track on ‘Bitches Brew’. Superb. ‘Miles Runs The Voodoo Down’ is a gritty mid-tempo Funk groove that builds to a climax. ‘Bitches Brew’ is a genuinely explosive album that sold over a million copies and helped revolutionary Jazz. One can describe ‘Bitches Brew’ as ‘Jazz but not as we know it’.