Miles Davis - Sketches of Spain (1960)

GEOGRAPHY WEEK (JANUARY 8-14, 2012)

I fully acknowledge Miles Davis as a musical genius and his playing here is spectacular, but I just don't listen to Sketches Of Spain as much as I probably should. I'm a fan, but I have to be in exactly the right frame of mind to listen to it properly. And even then, it must be listened to at a relatively loud volume with headphones in order to catch all the subtle nuances. A modern masterpiece, it has placed on many top album of all time lists since its release. Groundbreaking stuff, typical Miles.

Ratings/reviews:

• Stereo Review: "This is one of the very best jazz albums of recent years."
• High Fidelity: "Davis' playing is more consistently to the point than on any of his earlier discs."
• Billboard: "Davis plays with his usual aplomb and the backings are a gas."
• CashBox: "A great LP"
• DownBeat (★★★★★): "This record is one of the most important musical triumphs that this century has yet produced."
• The Rolling Stone Jazz & Blues Album Guide (1999): ★★★★★
• The Virgin Encyclopedia of Jazz (1999): ★★★★
• The Penguin Guide to Jazz (5th ed., 2000): ★★★½

Update: In 2017, it was ranked at #43 on Pitchfork's list of the 200 Best Albums of the 1960s.

Tracks: Concierto De Aranjuez is my favorite track with Will O' The Wisp a close second.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: I remember buying this at a Plano-area CD store around 1990 and thinking how hip I was for buying Miles Davis instead of Wilson Phillips.

Previously revisited for the blog:
Panthalassa: The Remixes (1999)
This Is Jazz, Vol. 8: Miles Davis Acoustic (1996)
Live Around The World (1996)
Music from Siesta (1987)
Miles Davis at Carnegie Hall (1961)
Milestones (1958)