Top Ten Miles Davis Albums

As you can see, I wasted a bit of time slapping that together first, anyway...

Some thoughts on my choices:

I skipped a few landmarks, it's true. The list is also conservative in a way (and has a narrow focus of years), but oh well!

Relaxin'  is one of my favourites simply for the fact that the group sound so 'together', and is my fav of those 4 Prestige albums
At Newport is a pretty red-hot live set, and a Harp Bop showcase with great sound
Sketches gives the jazz world a beautiful step into genre-blurring
Miles Smiles my fav of his 2nd Great Quintet etc - 'footsteps', 'cirlcles' and so on
Bitches Brew despite enjoying In a Silent Way more, BB is hard to pass up as an achievement (in editing?) as an experiment, as a mood
Agharta worth its place in the list for the scope


I actually nearly put 'Tutu' in because it is noteworthy in his discography, but it's just not a fav so I passed it over.




Edited by dreadpirateroberts - 02 Jun 2012 at 12:15pm

^ what do you think of 'Birth,' John? I don't dislike it, but something about that album doesn't grab me like much of his other output, and I can't figure out why, haven't been able to for years.

Edit: Yes, another nod to 'Miles Smiles'!


Edited by dreadpirateroberts - 02 Jun 2012 at 12:19pm

In no particular order:

Bitches Brew - We'll get the more obvious choices out of the way. This album was not liked, or should I say, understood when I got it. It was one of the first Miles Davis albums I ever heard, maybe 'the' first for me, sometime in 2005, but it may have been in early 2006. Years went by and I didn't give this one another chance, meanwhile I was getting into Miles' music and buying up other albums, while this album sat in my room like an elephant at a cocktail party. I always tried to get into it, and sometimes I'd sort of enjoy it, but never understood the popularity of it, besides it's historical importance. One day, not too long ago in fact, it all made sense. The pulsating beats, the trippy, duel rhoades-piano, the excellent horn work, and the great atmosphere made this an essential recording if Ive ever heard one. What's ironic is I always liked Big Fun, which could be seen as the sister album to Bitches Brew.

In A Silent Way - Well, this one Ive always enjoyed, and was also one of the first Miles albums I bought. The calm atmosphere, and that lineup just make this a great album. This is chill-out music to the max. I look at this album as like the calm before the storm (the 'storm' being Bitches Brew). I'm sure we all know why this is a great album (I mean, it's the #1 jazz album on this site!) and Ive discussed this album a million times.

Kind of Blue - As much as I knew about this album being one of the best jazz albums ever made, I avoided it for a little while, mostly because I was exploring Miles' fusion albums, and wasn't fully into acoustic jazz at the time (2006/early 2007). I knew So What for a while, but didn't give it or the rest of the album my full attention. After getting into non-fusion jazz, I went to this album, and I remember one night where this album just clicked on so many levels. This album, no pun intended, can really get rid of the blues if you've got them. It's such a beautiful album, but also very contemplative at times. I noticed its beauty after a bad time with a girl, and it just moved me so much. It's also a great album to hear when you're really happy. This is also one of the few jazz albums I can leave on repeat over and over again and it's just as good as the last 3 times the record spun.

E.S.P. - My first non-fusion album by Miles. You'd think I'd have gone with Kind of Blue first, but I got this one first because of the line-up. I bought this one along with Nefertiti. I remember popping it into my car CD player, and it was a hot July day in 2007, and usually I reserve Miles Davis for night time, but from the first note, I loved this album. It's not one of the more talked about Miles albums from the second-great quintet, but I think it's one of the best ones (but they're all great of course).

Big Fun - Ah, one of my favorite albums. I'm judging the re-release of this, with 8 tracks. But it doesn't really matter. This was my favorite album in 2007 when my interest in jazz was at its peak. I listened to this album a lot, at different times of the day; mid-day, evening, late late night, etc. This album is sort of similar to Bitches Brew, but in my opinion, is more creative and has a greater atmosphere. I mean, all the Indian influences really resonate with me, as Ive always enjoyed Indian music in my jazz (along with Brazilian). Again, I bought this album for the line-up, not realizing the beauty within. Great Expectations is a trip, and when it reaches the uplifting section, it's like an accomplishment, and always brings me to a good place in my mind. Then the album gets funky, like on Live-Evil or On The Corner, but the best thing is Go Ahead John, with those crazy drum rhythms and McLaughlin's fuzzed out guitar. The jams on this album are some of the best, and every time I go back to this album, I'm reminded why I enjoy music so much. This is a desert island record for me. Big Fun would probably be #1 if I were ranking it.

Dark Magus - Evil, tribal funk. That's what this is. When I got this album in 2007, I didn't think much of it. After a few months, I understood how great it was, but then bad things happened in my life and I all but forgot about this album. I rediscovered its greatness in 2008, as the anger and darkness of this album resonated with me at the time, and between the angry bass, the late Pete Cosey's ferocious guitar playing, and all the great drum and percussion work, this album just worked for me. There isn't really a lot of jazz here, and if not for Steve Grossman on soprano sax, there would be almost no trace of "jazz" to be found. When Miles isn't playing apocalyptic chords on the organ, his trumpet is just wailing and vibrating. He is not playing like a jazz trumpet player, but something else.

Agharta - Similar to Dark Magus, but actually has a level of jazz mixed in. Also this album isn't as 'evil' as the former, but is actually funkier in its approach, and I feel this was the peak of Miles funk. He finally found a good balance. Not much to say more that I didn't mention for Dark Magus, but just a fun album to throw on, I really like the version Tribute To Jack Johnson here, a little faster and funkier.

Miles Smiles - I didn't get this one until late 2009, maybe 2010, I don't specifically recall (must have bought other albums that peaked my interest more at the time). When I finally got around to focusing on this one, I realized how cool this album sounds. There aren't many chords played, so it's just the drums and bass backing up the soloist, even Herbie is just soloing on a lot of tracks without comping chords. Ive heard something similar Ornette Coleman's albums, but Miles' albums were always about mood, so this album definitely rose up to my list of favorites. Also, the cover art is funny.

Relaxin' - Simple. This album is a very relaxing album, and one I like to throw on at dusk, when the sun has set, but it's still light out---a nice way to cap off a day. Excellent work from Miles with the muted trumpet and Coltrane lays down some nice stuff too.


Honorable Mention:
Get Up With It - I just bought this album relatively recently so I haven't had it long enough to fully appreciate, but I know this is an album I should have got a long time ago. It's sort of like the mid-late 70s band on a studio album, lots of funky moments but it's much more deeper than that, and is just this kind of music I can't describe. One of Miles' best.


Unfortunately, no 80s albums, as much as I like most of what Ive heard, they just can't touch the older albums.






Edited by darkshade - 02 Jun 2012 at 2:20pm

I'm just going to do 5.

5. Kind of Blue - too classic to not be here.
4. Live Evil - simply wild.
3. Big Fun - love the nonstop grooves
2. Sketches of Spain - I just find it really beautiful in a way that nothing else Miles has done really compares to.
1. Get Up With It - holy hell how does this even exist?  Mindblowing.


Edited by triceratopsoil - 02 Jun 2012 at 9:47pm

triceratopsoil wrote: I'm just going to do 5. 5. Kind of Blue - too classic to not be here. 4. Live Evil - simply wild. 3. Big Fun - love the nonstop grooves 2. Sketches of Spain - I just find it really beautiful in a way that nothing else Miles has done really compares to. 1. Get Up With It - holy hell how does this even exist?  Mindblowing.

Having just 5's good too - I agree with Sketches entirely, wonderful, wonderful album.  I nearly put Live Evil in mine, but I wasn't 100% sold on the mix of studio and live. But I do like it still

Sean Trane wrote: Kind Of Blue Sketches Of Spain Porgy & Bess Filles De Kilimandjaro Miles In The Sky In A silent Way Bitches Brew Jack Johnson Live-Evil Big Fun Agartha

Nice, Porgy & Bess I nearly put down too, always nice to hear a less 'abrasive' Miles

Hmm...lets see...in no particular order:

I recommend Four & More. The sax player did not colonize before Wayne Shorter joins it, but this album is splendid.

Found one on Amazon for $55 before shipping hmmm...might keep looking!

Cool - parts of this one actually reminded me of Funkadelic a little

js wrote: Some say that it was a trip to a Funkadelic concert in Detroit that got Miles going this direction. This was when Funkadelic was a psychedelic rock band. If he saw them in Detroit, good chance he saw Iggy Pop too. I've always thought parts of Magus sound like early Iggy Pop. If again, he saw them in Detroit, other possible bands sharing the show were MC5, Alice Cooper and Ted Nuegent.

Wow, that's excellent to know. I always think of Miles as being quiet about his influences, partly due to his at times dismissive nature, but I can definitely see high possibilities of those bands the more I sample Dark M. I will have to order it soon. Right after Big Fun anyway