Favorite Track on Bitches Brew

[Guy Berger]

"Pharoah's Dance" for me. I'm always surprised when I see it described as a "long jam" -- after I realized what was going on (and that took me a while), I've always seen it as a great example of large scale composition in jazz.

Guy

Edited August 16, 2004 by Guy Berger

[jazzbo]

I went with the title track. I just love the variety and the shifting texture, and that amazing trumpeting! I can still experience shock and awe listening. . . .

[Big Al]

"Spanish Key" with that killer groove that just won't quit!

[Noj]

I went with "Miles Runs The Voodoo Down."

[Spontooneous]

Title track for me. The contrast of the rubato and groove sections gives it a cogent form. Teo's concept of looping certain passages works perfectly. And the trumpet playing slays me.

[jazzbo]

John McGlaughlin is too short to get some love!

[JSngry]

John McGlaughlin is too short to get some love!

Poor guy...

[sal]

That's a tough question. I almost went with "Pharoah's Dance", but "Bitches Brew" is too unforgetable. That echoing trumpet, leading into that funky groove, the menacing keyboards, the guitar solo....its just perfect. What an amazing album!!

[JSngry]

I took "Sanctuary", because it's a mindphuck of a way to end an mindphuck of an album.

[danasgoodstuff]

"Sanctuary" 'cause that's what Miles sounds like he's looking for with all that rattle & hum building up to his three note cry. Lots of interesting stuff tto listen to all the way through, and yes I do own the box...

[sidewinder]

I chose 'Miles Runs the Voodoo Down' in the quadraphonic version (mindblowing ) but I've always had a huge fondness for the version of 'Sanctuary' on this album. This was the first Miles Davis I ever bought (the Mati Klarwein design on the cover sucked me in) and one which still throws up great riches even now.

I recall with amusement my 'what the XXXX is this' reaction on hearing 'Pharoah's Dance' for the first time all those years ago. The start of a long and fascinating journey into the Milesian universe...

Edited August 16, 2004 by sidewinder

[tonym]

Title track.

Has me looking over my shoulder every time.

[Guy Berger]

Miles's playing on "Voodoo Down" is so awesome... both solos just completely dance around the funky groove, varying the dynamics (even briefly moving into ballad territory in the 2nd solo) and then those intense, fast, upper-register runs in the 2nd solo... whew.

Guy

[Guy Berger]

This monumental music is almost 50 years old!!!!

[Gheorghe]

Me too "Miles run´s the Voodoo down" for Miles´playing the whole range of the trumpet, from very high to very Deep.

But it´s hard for me to pick up one tune. I like all the Long tracks, but don´t really find much that interests me on "McLaughlin", Maybe  because you don´t hear Miles.

About Sanctuary I have mixed Feelings. When I was a kid and Bitches Brew was still quite "new", I found it "boring" since there was no Rhythm to snap, tap or Dance, I could go "nuts" listenig to "Voodoo" but started to get "tired" when it came to "Sanctuary". Now I can listen to it from another Point of view. It sounds to me more like an Extension of the more Abstract slower tunes the quinted recorded in the second half of the sixties, in the acoustic period. And now when you have the great "Lost quintet" from the CBS Bootleg series, you can hear he Plays it as a Closer on each concert, but I think he combined it with "I fall in Love too easily" 

[sidewinder]

Wow - I wanted to vote, couldn’t and then realised that this was a thread from 2004.   As time rolls on, ‘Spanish Key’ and ‘Pharoah’s Dance’ become more significant to me. Yes, ‘Sanctuary’ is to my mind looks back to the ‘Water Babies’ era and perhaps the band saying a fond farewell.

Edited July 29, 2019 by sidewinder

[Gheorghe]

13 minutes ago, sidewinder said:

Wow - I wanted to vote, couldn’t and then realised that this was a thread from 2004.   As time rolls on, ‘Spanish Key’ and ‘Pharoah’s Dance’ become more significant to me. Yes, ‘Sanctuary’ is to my mind the look back to the ‘Water Babies’ era and perhaps the band saying a fond farewell.

About Sanctuary I remember what Bill Coles wrote in his "Critical Biography About Miles Davis". This was one of my first jazz books and the first Miles bio then in the very early 70´s. You know, like many from the older Generations Bill Coles wrote off the then "New Miles". 

And from his very conservative Point of view he stated that "Sanctuary" is the only track worth listening to" . The then latest Miles Album "On the Corner" he said is "an Insult on the intellect of the People". 

Well, I think it was not such a radical Turnaround: Bitches Brew is the Logical next step after "Silent Way" and "Silent Way" is the next logic step after "Filles" so I think there is not such a radical Change. And the Transition from "Bitches" to "Live Evil" , "Corner" to the last pre 1976 bands with more electrified stuff also was something that grew slowly. 

As much as Miles said he doesn´t look back he still played some swing Rhythm at one Point on "Aghartha", I Always have to laugh at that Point because it seems to me that Miles thinks About Old Alfred Lion as he might say to Miles "But Miles, it must schwing" 

Edited July 29, 2019 by Gheorghe

[EKE BBB]

I would need a “None” option

[felser]

The title track for me.  But I listen to the whole album when I pull it out.   The cut of that era/genre that is by far my favorite is "Dr. Honoris Causa", especially the version on the self-titled Zawinul album.  Utter magic,

[Rooster_Ties]

9 minutes ago, felser said:

The title track for me.  But I listen to the whole album when I pull it out.

Yeah, to be honest, Bitches Brew is something I just take in as a whole most of the time.  That entire "Complete Bitches Brew" box, really, is ALL material that I just let wash over me, to a degree that's definitely different than most other Miles albums (or boxes).

I've said it before, but Bitches Brew and that entire box is music I only listen to when I'm doing something else, usually something physical -- like cleaning the apartment, or lots of filing, or something where I've got a bunch of mindless work to get done over a whole day.  And it's been like that for me for YEARS.  None of the other Miles boxes are like that for me, but Bitches Brew is all just material I let wash over me while I gotta get other shit done.

Doesn't work for exercising at the gym (at least not for me), or that kind of work -- but anything where I have to be productive, but not focus too closely on what I'm doing.

As a result, I don't know that I could ID more than half the tunes by name any more (and I couldn't tell you which half of the tunes I'd get right either), other than "Sanctuary".

[Guy Berger]

On 7/29/2019 at 9:39 PM, Gheorghe said:

About Sanctuary I have mixed Feelings. When I was a kid and Bitches Brew was still quite "new", I found it "boring" since there was no Rhythm to snap, tap or Dance, I could go "nuts" listenig to "Voodoo" but started to get "tired" when it came to "Sanctuary". Now I can listen to it from another Point of view. It sounds to me more like an Extension of the more Abstract slower tunes the quinted recorded in the second half of the sixties, in the acoustic period. And now when you have the great "Lost quintet" from the CBS Bootleg series, you can hear he Plays it as a Closer on each concert, but I think he combined it with "I fall in Love too easily" 

I assume you've heard the original, 2nd quintet+1 version of "Sanctuary", from early 1968?  Davis completely reimagined it (and IMHO, significantly improved it) during the BB sessions.

Re "I Fall in Love too Easily", it's incorporated into the intros of the August 1969 studio version (or rather, versions), not just the live versions.

3 hours ago, Rooster_Ties said:

Yeah, to be honest, Bitches Brew is something I just take in as a whole most of the time.  That entire "Complete Bitches Brew" box, really, is ALL material that I just let wash over me, to a degree that's definitely different than most other Miles albums (or boxes).

As a result, I don't know that I could ID more than half the tunes by name any more (and I couldn't tell you which half of the tunes I'd get right either), other than "Sanctuary".

I view Bitches Brew (the 6 tracks on the original album) vs. the other post-August tracks on the box as being fairly distinct.  The latter are certainly very interesting and contain some gems, but the average quality level is lower.

[Gheorghe]

My CD of Bitches Brew has one additional track from a year later I think. It´s titled "Feia" or something like that. First I was lookin forward to listen to this "new" track since I thought as much as Miles´music developed from 1969 - 1970/71 it might be something really "catchy" and rhythmical but to my huge disappointment it is a very boring track. Maybe I don´t have the ears or the Patience for it, but for me it sounds like some very slow, very experimental stuff. I´m not so dumb that I would enjoy only Things you can tap your feet to, I have learned to enjoy Free Stuff, Ornette Coleman, Cecil Taylor when I was very very Young, but this track "Feia" or "Feio" just doesn´t say anything to me...…..