Miles Davis - The Complete Cellar Door Sessions (1970)

This six-CD set features trumpeter Miles Davis with his early fusion band, marking the significant change that he was to bring about in jazz. Recorded from December 16-19, 1970, Davis' music retained the comfortable swing and fiery emotion that he had espoused in earlier years, but added a dynamic force that signaled progress in the entertainment industry.

Taking advantage of the technological developments available to him, he experimented with the sonic powers of electric piano, electric bass, and electric guitar, without yet moving into the realm of synthesizers. Thus, this session comes between two vastly different aspects of the trumpeter's signature sound: after his acoustic, straightahead bop legacy and before his heavily synthesized jazz/rock fling. The Cellar Door sessions provided the original source material for Live/Evil (Columbia, 1972), but they're presented in their entirety here.


Personnel:

• Miles Davis: trumpet
• Gary Bartz: soprano and alto sax:
• John McLaughlin: electric guitar (CDs 5-6 only)
• Keith Jarrett: Fender Rhodes electric piano and Fender organ
• Michael Henderson: electric bass
• Jack DeJohnette: drums
• Airto Moreira: percussion (CDs 2-6 only)

Disc 1 - Wednesday, December 16 (1st set)

1. "Directions" (Joe Zawinul) 8:55

2. "Yesternow" (Miles Davis) 17:05

3. "What I Say" (Davis) 13:12

4. "Improvisation #1" (Keith Jarrett) 4:29

5. "Inamorata" (Davis) 13:59

Disc 2 - Thursday, December 17th (2nd set) part 1 and part 2

1. "What I Say" 13:33

2. "Honky Tonk" (Davis) 19:59

3. "It's About That Time" (Davis) 14:41

4. "Improvisation #2" (Jarrett) 6:39

5. "Inamorata" 14:33

6. "Sanctuary" (Wayne Shorter) 0:30

Disc 3 - Friday, December 18th (2nd set) [ EXCEPT Tracks 4,5,6. THANKS for add; ]

1. "Directions" 13:11

2. "Honky Tonk" 18:31

3. "What I Say" 15:09

Disc 4 - Friday, December 18th (3rd set)

1. "Directions" 11:53

2. "Honky Tonk" 17:00

3. "What I Say" 14:12

4. "Sanctuary" 2:03

5. "Improvisation #3" (Jarrett) 5:04

6. "Inamorata" 15:14

Disc 5 - Saturday, December 19th (2nd set)

1. "Directions" 15:09

2. "Honky Tonk" 20:49

3. "What I Say" 21:31

Disc 6 - Saturday, December 19th (3rd set)

1. "Directions" 19:04

2. "Improvisation #4" (Jarrett) 5:03

3. "Inamorata" 18:27

4. "Sanctuary" 2:12

5. "It's About That Time" 7:49