Description: "It was 1969, and Miles Davis, prince of cool, was on the edge of being left behind by a dynamic generation of young musicians, an important handful of whom had been in his band. Rock music was flying off in every direction, just as America itself seemed about to split at its seams. Following the circumscribed grooves and ambiance of In A Silent Way; coming off a tour with a burning new quintet-called 'The Lost Band'-with Wayne Shorter, Chick Corea, Dave Holland and Jack DeJohnette; he went into the studio with musicians like frighteningly talented guitarist John McLaughlin, and soulful Austrian keyboardist Joe Zawinul. Working with his essential producer, Teo Macero, Miles set a cauldron of ideas loose while the tapes rolled. At the end, there was the newly minted Prince of Darkness, a completely new way forward for jazz and rock, and the endless brilliance and depth of Bitches Brew"--
Brief description: George Grella, Jr. has written about music and culture for over thirty years for print and online publications, and has contributed to the Grove Dictionary of Music and the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry. He is Music Editor at The Brooklyn Rail, publishes the Kill Yr Idols newsletter, and is the author of Miles Davis' Bitches Brew (Bloomsbury 2015). He has played jazz, classical, and improvised music from CBGB to Carnegie Hall.
Review Quotes:
"When Davis felt he could go no further with straight-ahead acoustic jazz, he embraced the electric age . . . by 1969, when he recorded the monumental double album Bitches Brew-the subject of a perceptive new monograph by George Grella Jr. in the 33 1/3 series-he had forged a bold new style, later dubbed the "electric Miles." Today no period of Davis's work exerts as much fascination for young jazz musicians." --New York Review of Books
"Grella Jr. discusses time and the slippage thereof in Bitches Brew (one of the latest additions to the brilliant 33 1/3 series) . . . [An] articulate and thought-provoking book . . . [Grella] writes well about the music on the album itself, providing a readable and non-technical description of musical themes . . . [and] offering insight into the construction . . . of individual tracks and the album as a whole." --International Times "Grella explores with passion, wit and analytical rigor [the] constellation of musical, social and psychological forces that came together to produce one of the most revolutionary works of contemporary music." --El Intruso "A worthwhile companion to your next Miles Davis listening session." --Jazzinstitut