Miles Davis

BLUE NOTE CLASSIC VINYL SERIES

This Blue Note Classic Vinyl Edition is mono, all-analog, mastered by Kevin Gray from the original masters, and pressed on 180g vinyl at Optimal.

The legendary trumpeter Miles Davis was still near the beginning of his storied career when he cut the three sessions that comprise his Blue Note recordings in 1952, 1953, and 1954. In the late 1940s, Miles had been a member of Charlie Parker’s quintet and Dizzy Gillespie’s big band, as well as cutting select sides as a leader including the influential Birth of the Cool sessions for Capitol Records. Miles’ star was still rising at the time he hooked up with Alfred Lion and Blue Note, but he was clearly on his path towards becoming one of the greatest bandleaders in jazz. Initially released across three 10” LPs—Young Man With A Horn, Vol. 2, and Vol. 3—the music captured on these Blue Note sides contains all the hallmarks of his early style from blazing bebop to beautiful ballads. When Blue Note transitioned to the 12” LP in 1955, Lion compiled Miles’ recordings onto two volumes as the inaugural releases of the 1500 series.

PERSONNEL:

Miles Davis, trumpet
Jackie McLean, alto sax
Jimmy Heath, tenor sax
J.J. Johnson, trombone
Gi Coggins, piano
Horace Silver, piano
Oscar Pettiford, bass
Percy Heath, bass
Kenny Clarke, drums
Art Blakey, drums

Recorded at the WOR Studios, NYC, on May 9, 1952 (tracks A3, A6), on April 20, 1953 (tracks A4, A5, B4), and at Rudy Van Gelder Studio, Hackensack, NJ, on March 6, 1954 (tracks A1, A2, B1, B2, B3, B5).

TRACKS:

A1: Take Off
A2: Weirdo
A3: Wouldn’t You
A4: I Waited For You
A5: Ray’s Idea
A6: Donna

B1: Well You Needn’t
B2: The Leap
B3: Lazy Susan
B4: Tempus Fugit
B5: It Never Entered My Mind