Jan 12 2009
Miles Davis Hangs Out on the Corner
Talking about Miles and his shift into the electronic world of jazz during the 70s got me thinking about some of his other albums of the late 60s and early 70s. While he had been making a gradual shift toward what would ultimately become “Bitches Brew” for some time, the album that really showed his shift and greatly alienated his fans was 1972s “On the Corner.”
The album must have hit his fans, grown used to “Kind of Blue” and other “traditional” jazz albums and performances, like a slap in the face. Of course, Miles was attempting to do just that. He was trying to shake up what people thought about jazz. He was trying to single-handedly bring jazz to younger people who were now into funky sounds and electric guitars and rock and roll.
Jazz has always been about experimenting. It was always meant to be a musical genre that turned others on its ear. Even going back to Jelly Roll Morton, although his music sounds quaint today, it was something new, different and electrifying at the time. Peopel considered jazz “devil’s music” much as they did rock and roll during much of the jazz heyday. Of course, that had as much to do with inherent racism as anything, but it still held true.
“On the Corner” is like nothing you would expect from Miles. Even I cannot bear to listen to much of it and I practically worship at the man’s feet. I can appreciate what he was trying to do, but I don’t think the result is very successful. To me, it sounds like noise.
The album was his worst selling in his history when released. His fans abandoned it as though the record were pox-carrying blankets. The critics were savage in their attack against the record. It seemed like Miles’ attempt to inject something modern and new into jazz was a failure.
However, over the years, the views of this album have changed. Many believe that it was an important work for Miles. Indeed, just as without Louis Armstrong Miles may not have existed as a jazz innovato at all, perhaps Miles’ later works could not have happened without “On the Corner.”
So, I present at least one track from this album. Perhaps you will like it. Maybe it will open new doors within your brain about what jazz can be. Personally, I’ll stick to the recordings from the 50s and 60s, thank you.
This is “Black Satin” from his “On the Corner” album from 1972.
