Miles Davis: In A Silent Way (White Coloured Vinyl) (LP)

In November 68, Miles increased the number of sessions with multiple keyboards; his cursory directions reflected a radical return to the minimalism of the modal music of "So What" and "Flamenco Sketches" (No. 10). In February 69, Miles also resumed this style, adding guitarist John McLaughlin. The tapes ran at the beginning of the piece, and producer Teo Macero then cut them into segments and arranged them according to different themes. A long segment consisting of two consecutive guitar and trumpet solos is inserted at the beginning and end of "Shhh/Peaceful" as if it were a theme. Carried by the same single bass note and the regular beat of the Charleston cymbal, the whole piece is bathed in the vivid blue hues of the keyboards On Side B, John McLaughlin, Wayne Shorter and Miles Davis present a theme by Joe Zawinul ("In A Silent Way," stripped of all chords by Miles) in succession. Producer Teo Macero added these three performances, unchanged, to the end of the page. Thirteen minutes into the piece, the dark blue monochrome tone between the opening and the coda suddenly explodes with a blood-red intensity. Original release: Columbia LP CS 9875 dated July 30, 1969 Producer: Teo Macero Engineer: Stan Tonkel Miles Davis (tpt.); Wayne Shorter (ss.); John McLaughlin (el-g.); Herbie Hancock (el-p.); Chick Corea (el-p.); Joe Zawinul (org.); Dave Holland (b.); Tony Williams (d.) 18. February 1969 at Columbia Studio B, NYC