Concord hits bottom on the Fantasy catalog

[felser]

Ya couldn't make this stuff up. Coming soon, according to their website:

http://www.concordmusicgroup.com/albums/PRCD-30802/

and I quote:

Muted Miles - Miles Davis

This hand-picked collection puts a softly-focused blue spotlight on the intimate and unmistakable sound of the one and only Miles Davis playing his horn with a Harmon mute. In fact, this is the first-ever compilation to showcase his seminal harmon mute performances on Presige! Miles's artfully nuanced playing, presented with the sonic signature of his warmly-buzzing, muted trumpet tone is, to this day, often imitated but never duplicated. Featuring many of the all-time greatest names in jazz including John Coltrane, Charles Mingus, and Red Gardland, this incredible specially-priced collection is not to be missed.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

TRACKLISTING

1. Just Squeeze Me

2. My Funny Valentine

3. Surrey With The Fringe On Top

4. 'Round Midnight

5. If I Were A Bell

6. Nature Boy

7. It Could Happen To You

8. You're My Everything

9. In Your Own Sweet Way

[Free For All]

Next up: a compilation of all the tunes where Miles was wearing boxers.

[RDK]

And on their slate: Philly Joe Jones - The Zildjian Collection

[Stefan Wood]

The shirtless Herbie Mann collection.

[HolyStitt]

The shirtless Herbie Mann collection.

With butter or without?

[Chuck Nessa]

Seems they can't even spell Prestige.

[Neal Pomea]

They're only keeping alive 26 titles from their Takoma Records holdings. Hang your head and cry. It's theft from the public domain all over again.

[RDK]

They're only keeping alive 26 titles from their Takoma Records holdings. Hang your head and cry. It's theft from the public domain all over again.

I'm not sure if I'd call it "theft," but it is an unfortunate aspect of the capitalist system. At least, unlike many labels, they're making the music available through places like emusic.

We can't have it both ways. We can't chastize a label for trimming catalog titles that don't make them any money while at the same time bitching about bloggers who make that same unprofitable/unreleased music available for free.

[GA Russell]

I don't see the problem with the Miles release.

All of his Prestige material has been available for decades. It's not like they are leaving gems in the vault while they are re-releasing what's already out there.

Personally, I wouldn't want the disc. Miles' Prestige recordings are my favorite of his because of what he did without the mute.

But I can understand why someone else would like to try this new release. There is always a new generation to be introduced to this stuff.

[Swinging Swede]

Seems they can't even spell Prestige.

nor Red Garland

[7/4]

Cheap help.

.

[felser]

I don't see the problem with the Miles release.

All of his Prestige material has been available for decades. It's not like they are leaving gems in the vault while they are re-releasing what's already out there.

Personally, I wouldn't want the disc. Miles' Prestige recordings are my favorite of his because of what he did without the mute.

But I can understand why someone else would like to try this new release. There is always a new generation to be introduced to this stuff.

Even if you grant that what the world needs is a sampler of Davis's Prestige recordings, Concord already has five others of those in their catalog ("Plays for Lovers", "Prestige Profiles", "Jazz Showcase", 'Best of", "Bluing"). They are sitting on so much stuff, and there is such imaginative stuff they could do with what they do have, that this just struck me as especially lame on many levels. How about a box of the Miles pre-quintet recordings, for instance. How about a box of the Coltrane sideman recordings, how about something imaginative like Fantasy was doing when Concord bought them out?

[Free For All]

I don't see the problem with the Miles release.

All of his Prestige material has been available for decades. It's not like they are leaving gems in the vault while they are re-releasing what's already out there.

Personally, I wouldn't want the disc. Miles' Prestige recordings are my favorite of his because of what he did without the mute.

But I can understand why someone else would like to try this new release. There is always a new generation to be introduced to this stuff.

FWIW, I like the contrast on the original releases of the open/muted trumpet variation from cut to cut. An all-harmon compilation IMO would be too much of the same thing.

I think one important casualty of the download/compilation era is the loss of the original order/presentation of the tunes- I think in some instances that has been as artistically satisfying as the tunes themselves (one example that comes to mind is Speak No Evil).

[Niko]

is there miles/mingus stuff on prestige? or do they mean debut? (yes it's not a big thing)

[Stereojack]

Agree with many of the above comments, but this set isn't aimed at us anyway. More product to confuse the novice buyer.

One of my pet peeve phrases: "hand picked".

[gmonahan]

Next up: a compilation of all the tunes where Miles was wearing boxers.

[Chuck Nessa]

Next up: a compilation of all the tunes where Miles was wearing boxers.

Not the dogs. He was thinking of underwear.

[JSngry]

There's a good few paragraphs to be written about how Miles' method of playing w/Harmon involved "playing the mike" in a way not dissimilar to the way that Crosby did, to make the mike an integral part of the actual projected-to-the-listener sound, as well as how this could be seen as the beginning of an interest in electronic coloration of his sound that would more fully blossom later on, but I don't know that you need a full CD's worth of material to make the point.

[Christiern]

I hope Columbia gets crackin'--I'm waiting for Wynton: Once More Without Feeling

[AndrewHill]

I'm still waiting for the 'Kenny G for Golfers' collection.

[tkeith]

I hope Columbia gets crackin'--I'm waiting for Wynton: Once More Without Feeling

Oh how I love this post!

[marcello]

If I remember right, Prestige. put out a collection like this sometime in the 60's ( at least it was all ballads), when they were milking their Miles Davis archives for all they were worth.

I sent the page with the typos to Nick Phillips at Concord to correct. Nick is a fine person and has been at Concord for over 20 years.

Jim, that's a worthy idea you have, but as Jack says, not for the novice market.

[Fer Urbina]

Seems they can't even spell Prestige.

Presage?

Pre-siege?

Anyway, I'm too busy listening to the Lester Young's 45º-angled sax recordings.

And I look forward to the Dizzy Unbent and the Acrylic Bird compilations.

Watch out for Moustached Wynton, a selection of unshaven music. Also from Columbia, Crossed-legged Sonatas, by Glenn Gould.

I'll shut up now.

F