The Complete On the Corner Sessions

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The Complete On the Corner Sessions
The Complete On the Corner Sessions cover
Box set by Miles Davis
Released October 2, 2007
Recorded Columbia Studio E (& B)(NYC) June 1972- May1975; March 9, 1972; June 1, 1972; June 6, 1972; June 12, 1972; August 23, 1972; September 6, 1972; December 8, 1972; January 4, 1973; July 26, 1973; September 17, 1973; September 18, 1973; June 19, 1974; October 7, 1974; November 6, 1974; May 5, 1975
Genre Jazz fusion
Length 6:47:13
Label Columbia
Producer Teo Macero
Professional reviews
All Music Guide 5/5 stars link
BBC (extemely positive)link
Music Box 5/5 stars link
Pitchfork Media (9.2) link
RollingStone 4/5 stars link
Miles Davis chronology
A Tribute to Jack Johnson
(1970)		 The Complete On the Corner Sessions
(1972)		 Big Fun
(1969 - 1972)

The Complete On the Corner Sessions, is the eighth and final deluxe box set in the Miles Davis Series.

Columbia records has released a series of ten box sets containing recordings from the 1950s to the 1970s. These contain material not available on other Columbia albums. Following on from The Complete In a Silent Way Sessions; The Complete Bitches Brew Sessions; The Complete Jack Johnson Sessions; and The Cellar Door Sessions the latest release takes a look at the funk/ Jazz fusion album that would have a strong influence on hip-hop in the late 1980s, especially on the Beastie Boys. The album was Miles' electronic twist on what Duke Ellington called the “jungle sound.” His band was made up of musicians trained not in the basics of jazz, but on the new sounds of James Brown and Sly Stone.

The box set includes more than 6 hours of music. Twelve of these are previously unissued tracks. Another five tracks are previously unissued in full. They cover sixteen sessions from On the Corner, Big Fun, and Get Up With It until Davis's mid-seventies retirement. Miles is joined in these recordings by Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock, John McLaughlin, Jack DeJohnette, Billy Hart, and many others. The 6-CD deluxe edition also contains a 120-page full-color booklet with liner notes and essays by producer Bob Belden, journalist Tom Terrell, and arranger/ composer Paul Buckmaster as well as rare photographs and new illustrations.

Contents

[edit] Recording History

Like with many of the Miles boxed sets, the overall title is rather misleading, in this case particularly so. It was already a stretch, for instance, to compile all sessions Miles did between August 1969 and February 1970 on the 4-CD The Complete Bitches Brew Sessions, when the actual Bitches Brew sessions took place over just three days in August 1969. But the forthcoming boxed set covers three years of sessions, from March 1972 to May 1975, and contains music with entirely different vibes, concepts, approaches and personnel.

The On the Corner sessions were recorded in June and September 1972. These sessions formed the basis for the 1972 album. On the Corner was scorned by critics at the time of its release and was one of Davis's worst-selling recordings. Its critical standing has improved dramatically with the passage of time; today it is seen as a strong forerunner of the musical techniques of hip hop, drum and bass, and electronic music.

Davis claimed that On the Corner was an attempt to connect with a young black audience which had largely forsaken jazz for rock and funk. While there is a discernible rock and funk influence in the timbres of the instruments employed, from a musical standpoint the album was a culmination of sorts of the musique concrete approach that Davis and producer Teo Macero (who had studied with Otto Luening at Columbia University's Computer Music Center) had begun to explore in the late 1960s. Both sides of the record were based around simple, repetitive drum and bass grooves (the track delineations on the original album were arbitrary at best), with the "melodic" parts snipped from hours of meandering jams. These techniques, refined via the use of computers and digital audio equipment, are now standard amongst producers of electronically-based music. Also cited as musical influences on the album by Davis were the contemporary composer Karlheinz Stockhausen, who was later falsely rumored to have recorded with the trumpeter in the late 1970s, and Paul Buckmaster (who played electric cello on the album and contributed some arrangements).

[edit] Content

The box set contains over three hours of previously unreleased material. One oddity is the November 6, 1974 date, when Pete Cosey replaced Al Foster on drums on "Hip-Skip." Later that day he switched to guitar for "What They Do," playing alongside Dominique Gaumont. "Minnie" is based on the Minnie Ripperton song "Loving You," and is considered to have an almost commercial disco sound, the most traditional track of the whole collection. Certain critics argue that it points towards Miles' more melodic and arranged music of the 1980s.

[edit] Track listing

This list is the same as the provisional one that was published in early 2007, but the CD order has been swapped, some of the previously unreleased tracks have undergone edits, coming in at different lengths, and they have been given titles by Vince Wilburn, Miles' nephew, and Erin Davis, Miles' youngest son.

Disc One

  1. On The Corner (unedited master, recorded June 1, 1972) - 19:25
  2. On The Corner (take 4, recorded June 1, 1972) - 5:15
  3. One And One (unedited master, recorded June 6, 1972) - 17:55
  4. Helen Butte/Mr. Freedom X (unedited master, recorded June 6, 1972) - 23:37
  5. Jabali (recorded June 12, 1972) - 11:04

Disc 1 remixed by Richard King and Bob Belden in 2007

Disc Two

  1. Ife (recorded June 12, 1972) - 21:33
  2. Chieftain(recorded August 23, 1972) — 14:37
  3. Rated X (recorded September 6, 1972) - 6:50
  4. Turnaround (recorded November 29, 1972) - 17:16
  5. U-turnaround (recorded November 1972) - 08:27

Track 1 from BIG FUN Track 3 from GET UP WITH IT Tracks 4 and 5 are outtakes from the same track, sections of which were previously released on Bill Laswell's Panthalassa as Agharta Prelude Dub. See note below. Tracks 2, 3 & 5 remixed by Richard King and Bob Belden in 2007

Disc Three

  1. Billy Preston (recorded December 8, 1972) - 12:33
  2. The Hen (recorded January 4-5, 1973) — 12:55
  3. Big Fun/Holly-wuud (take 2) (recorded July 26, 1973) — 6:32
  4. Big Fun/Holly-wuud (take 3) (recorded July 26, 1973) — 7:07
  5. Peace (recorded July 26, 1973) — 7:01
  6. Mr Foster (recorded September 17, 1973) — 15:14

Track 1 from stereo LP master of GET UP WITH IT Tracks 2-6 remixed by Richard King and Bob Belden in 2007


Disc Four

  1. Calypso Frelimo (Sep 17, 1973) - 32:08
  2. He Loved Him Madly (Jun 19, 1974) - 32:17

Both tracks from stereo LP master of GET UP WITH IT

Disc Five

  1. Maiysha (recorded October 7, 1974) - 14:51
  2. Mtume (recorded October 7, 1974) - 15:08
  3. Mtume (take 11) (recorded October 7, 1974) - 06:51
  4. Hip-Skip (recorded November 6, 1974) - 18:59
  5. What They Do (recorded November 6, 1974) - 11:44
  6. Minnie (recorded May 5, 1975) - 3:53

Tracks 1 & 2 from stereo LP master of GET UP WITH IT Tracks 3-6 remixed by Richard King and Bob Belden in 2007

Disc Six

  1. Red China Blues (recorded 3/9/72) - 4:06
  2. On The Corner/New York Girl/Thinkin' Of One Thing And Doin' Another/Vote For Miles (recorded June 1, 1972) - 19:54
  3. Black Satin (recorded June 1 and July 7 1972) - 5:15
  4. One And One (recorded June 6, 1972) - 6:09
  5. Helen Butte/Mr. Freedom X (master)(recorded June 6, 1972) - 23:14
  6. Big Fun (recorded July 26, 1972) - 2:32
  7. Holly-wuud (recorded July 26, 1972) - 2:54

Track 1 from stereo LP master of GET UP WITH IT Tracks 2-5 are the stereo LP master of ON THE CORNER Tracks 6 & 7 are the masters for a 45 single, both are taken from track 4 on CD 3.

[edit] Notes

Note 1: All tracks composed by Miles Davis, unless noted otherwise.

Note 2: All tracks remixed by Richard King and Bob Belden are previously unreleased.

Note 3: On the two Turnaround tracks. These titles will prove to be incredibly confusing, as "Turnaroundphrase" is the title traditionally given to a completely different piece, namely the opening section of for instance Dark Magus and Pangaea. Saxophonist Dave Liebman called it "Turnaroundphrase," as does Jan Lohmann in his seminal discography on Miles. What's more, Turnaround and U-Turnaround are based on the tune that appears after 22:01 in "Prelude" on Agharta. On the LP version it's actually called "Prelude Pt2." It also appears on another official Sony release, Bill Laswell's Panthalassa. Laswell calls it "Agharta Prelude Dub". Why the makers of the On The Corner boxed set didn't stick to convention as established by Sony itself is a mystery.

[edit] Columbia Studio E Recording Sessions 1972-1976, NYC

All sessions listed could possibly be included on the forthcoming box set

1972
  • Miles Davis Octet - March 9, 1972
  1. Red China Blues
(Originally Released on Get Up With It)
  • Miles Davis And His Band - June 1, 1972
  1. On The Corner
  2. New York Girl
  3. Thinkin' One Thing And Goin' Another
  4. Vote For Miles
((All Songs Originally Released on On The Corner)
  • Miles Davis And His Band - June 6, 1972
  1. One And One
  2. Helen Butte / Mr. Freedom X
((All Songs Originally Released on On The Corner)
  • Miles Davis And His Band - June 12, 1972
  1. Jabali (unissued)
  2. Ife (Originally Released on Big Fun)
  • Miles Davis And His Band - July 7, 1972
  1. Black Satin
((Originally Released on On The Corner)
  • Miles Davis Octet - September 6, 1972
  1. Rated X
(Originally Released on Get Up With It)
  • Miles Davis Nonet - September 6, 1972
  1. Billy Preston
(Originally Released on Get Up With It)
1973
  • Miles Davis Septet - July 26, 1973
  1. Holly-Wuud
  2. Big Fun
  3. TDK Funk
  4. TDK Funk (alt. take 1)
  5. TDK Funk (alt. take 2)
(Unreleased or Unknown Sessions)
  • Miles Davis Octet - September 17, 1973
  1. Calypso Frelimo
(Originally Released on Get Up With It)
1974
  • Miles Davis Octet - June 19 or 20, 1974
  1. He Loved Him Madly
(Originally Released on Get Up With It)
  • Miles Davis Octet - October 7, 1974
  1. Mtume
  2. Maiysha
(Originally Released on Get Up With It)
1975
  • Miles Davis Septet - February 27, 1975
  1. Turn Of The Century (Untitled Piece)
(Unreleased or Unknown Sessions)
  • Miles Davis Septet - May 5, 1975
  1. Untitled Latin Tracks 1-5
(Unreleased or Unknown Sessions)
1976
  • Miles Davis Octet - March 30, 1976
  1. Mother Dearest Mother
  2. Untitled Track 1
  3. Untitled Track 2
(Unreleased or Unknown Sessions)

[edit] Performers

[edit] Performers By Year

1972
1973
1974

[edit] Performers by Song

"Ife" & "Jabali" (12 June 1972 - Columbia Studio E)
"Rated X" (6 September 1972 - Columbia Studio E)
"Billy Preston" (8 December 1972 - Columbia Studio E)
"Calypso Frelimo" (17 September 1973 - Columbia Studio E)
"Calypso Frelimo" (17 September 1973 - Columbia Studio E)
"He Loved Him Madly" (19 or 20 June 1974 - Columbia Studio E)
"Mtume" (7 October 1974 - Columbia Studio E)
"Maiysha" (7 October 1974 - Columbia Studio E)

[edit] Performers by Recording Session

March 9, 1972 Miles Davis (tpt); Wally Chambers (hca); Cornel Dupree (g); Michael Henderson (el-b); Al Foster (d); Bernard Purdie (d); James Mtume Forman (cga, perc); Wade Marcus (brass arr); Billy Jackson (rhythm arr)


June 1, 1972 Miles Davis (tpt); Dave Liebman (ss); Chick Corea (synth); Herbie Hancock (org); Harold I. Williams (el-p); John McLaughlin (g); Collin Walcott (sitar); Paul Buckmaster (cello); Michael Henderson (el-b); Jack DeJohnette (d); Jabali Billy Hart (d, perc, bgo); Charles Don Alias (cga, perc); James Mtume Forman (cga, perc); Badal Roy (tabla)


June 6, 1972 Miles Davis (tpt); Carlos Garnett (as, ts); Bennie Maupin (bcl); Herbie Hancock (el-p, synth); Harold I. Williams (el-p, synth); Lonnie Liston Smith (org); David Creamer (g); Collin Walcott (sitar); Paul Buckmaster (cello); Michael Henderson (el-b); Jack DeJohnette (d, handclaps); Jabali Billy Hart (d, handclaps); Charles Don Alias (perc, handclaps); James Mtume Forman (perc, handclaps); Badal Roy (tabla, handclaps)


June 12, 1972 Miles Davis (tpt); Carlos Garnett (ss); Bennie Maupin (bcl); Lonnie Liston Smith (org); Harold I. Williams (el-p, synth); Michael Henderson (el-b); Al Foster (d); Jabali Billy Hart (d, perc); James Mtume Forman (cga, perc); Badal Roy (tabla)


August 23, 1972 Miles Davis (tpt); Cedric Lawson (org); Reggie Lucas (g); Khalil Balakrishna (sitar); Michael Henderson (el-b); Al Foster (d); Badal Roy (tabla); James Mtume Forman (cga)


September 6, 1972 Miles Davis (org); Reggie Lucas (g); Khalil Balakrishna (sitar); Cedric Lawson (synth); Michael Henderson (el-b); Al Foster (d); James Mtume Forman (cga, perc); Badal Roy (tabla)


November 29, 1972 Miles Davis (tpt); Carlos Garnett (ss); Cedric Lawson (keyb); Reggie Lucas (g); Khalil Balakrishna (sitar); Michael Henderson (el-b); Al Foster (d); James Mtume Forman (cga, perc); Badal Roy (tabla)


December 8, 1972 Miles Davis (org); Carlos Garnett (ss); Cedric Lawson (keyb); Reggie Lucas (g); Khalil Balakrishna (sitar); Michael Henderson (el-b); Al Foster (d); James Mtume Forman (cga, perc); Badal Roy (tabla)


January 4, 1973 Miles Davis (tpt); Dave Liebman (ss); Cedric Lawson (keyb); Reggie Lucas (g); Khalil Balakrishna (sitar); Michael Henderson (el-b); Al Foster (d); James Mtume Forman (cga, perc); Badal Roy (tabla)


July 26, 1973 Miles Davis (tpt, org); Dave Liebman (ss, fl); Pete Cosey (g); Reggie Lucas (g); Michael Henderson (el-b); Al Foster (d); James Mtume Forman (cga, perc)


September 17, 1973 Miles Davis (tpt, org); Dave Liebman (ts, fl); John Stubblefield (ss); Pete Cosey (g); Reggie Lucas (g); Michael Henderson (el-b); Al Foster (d); James Mtume Forman (cga, perc)


September 18, 1973 Miles Davis (tpt, org); Dave Liebman (ts); Pete Cosey (g); Reggie Lucas (g); Michael Henderson (el-b); Al Foster (d); James Mtume Forman (cga)


June 19, 1974 Miles Davis (tpt, org); Dave Liebman (fl); Pete Cosey (g); Reggie Lucas (g); Dominique Gaumont (g); Michael Henderson (el-b); Al Foster (d); James Mtume Forman (cga, perc)


October 7, 1974 Miles Davis (tpt, org); Sonny Fortune (ss, fl); Pete Cosey (g); Reggie Lucas (g); Dominique Gaumont (g); Michael Henderson (el-b); Al Foster (d); James Mtume Forman (cga, perc)


November 6, 1974 Miles Davis (tpt, org); Sonny Fortune (ss, ts, fl); Pete Cosey (g, d, perc); Reggie Lucas (g); Dominique Gaumont (g); Michael Henderson (el-b); Al Foster (d); James Mtume Forman (cga, perc)


May 5, 1975 Miles Davis (tpt, org); Sam Morrison (ts); Pete Cosey (g, perc); Reggie Lucas (g); Michael Henderson (el-b); Al Foster (d); James Mtume Forman (cga, perc)

[edit] References


[edit] External links

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