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Dec 03, 2024 Web Exclusive By Hays Davis

At the time of this set’s performances, Miles Davis was one of the most pivotal figures in jazz music, and he had long seen France as being important to his career. From a 1949 festival appearance while in his early 20s, the trumpeter/bandleader/composer went on to play more often in France than in any other country outside of the U.S. With a Miles Davis Quintet that formed for the recording of Davis’ 1963 album Seven Steps to Heaven, the French audiences for his 1963-64 shows saw a group that would remain intact (with Wayne Shorter taking over on saxophone in 1964) for the next few years.

Miles in France 1963 & 1964 – Miles Davis Quintet – The Bootleg Series, Vol. 8 includes three complete July 1963 shows from the Festival Mondial Du Jazz in Antibes Juan-Les-Pins and two October 1964 shows in Paris, at the Paris Jazz Festival. Available in 6-CD or 8-LP formats (along with a 2-LP set that offers just the 1964 recordings), the set presents over four hours of previously unreleased music. The booklet provides further insight into these performances through 2024 interviews with bassist Ron Carter and tenor saxophonist George Coleman as well as liner notes from journalist Marcus J. Moore.

Years before rock audiences would turn to his early-’70s fusion work, Davis and his Quintet were an onstage marvel, and the 1963-64 crowds were presented with a group that was by turns lyrical and intense, and often thrilling. Davis is a wonder throughout these shows, with his fascinating lead on the breakneck “Walkin’” a masterclass in driving a group to staggering peaks and racing along the precipice without teetering into chaos. With “My Funny Valentine,” he breathes new life into the standard, finding fresh ways to consider its melody, and the set offers multiple and unique performances of the song that find him playing alongside tenor saxophonists George Coleman in 1963 and Wayne Shorter in 1964.

From the first minute of “So What” in July 1963, the Quintet sounds as if they had spent a decade together. Bassist Ron Carter flies alongside a 17-year-old Tony Williams, who keeps up a fiercely high-tempo groove while keeping it light enough not to overwhelm the brass. Herbie Hancock matches the rhythm section with breathtaking runs up and down his piano, with a delivery that’s equal parts complex and melodic. And Coleman brings a riveting performance to the front line with Davis, who leads on trumpet with a master’s mind and hand.

As Carter recalls of Davis in the set’s notes, “He allowed us to do whatever the chemist allowed his proteges in the lab to do. Take these chemicals I’m giving you guys and see what we come up with. Just call the fire department if necessary.” (www.milesdavis.com)

Author rating: 9/10