Miles Davis - 'Round About Midnight (1957)

Note: the CD I listened to was the 2001 reissue with four bonus tracks.

Just Miles being Miles. Spectacular debut of what would come to be known as his "first great quintet" including John Coltrane, Red Garland, Paul Chambers, and Philly Joe Jones. It was also Davis' first album on the Columbia label. It's got a little bit of everything: hard bop, ballads, straight ahead swing, show tunes, standards - the track listing probably closely resembles one of the band's live setlists from one of their live performances around that time. It's some sweet stuff, Daddy-o. Davis was a real bang-tail gone cat. This is one of those albums I listen to and think to myself, "Why don't you listen to this more often, you big dummy?!?" If you believe Wikipedia (and, in this particular case, I do), this album is universally acclaimed:

Excellent liner notes on this reissue. I could live to be one hundred and have ten professional portraits taken every day of my life and I'd never have a photo as cool as that cover shot. Essential.

Reviews/ratings:

• DownBeat (★★★★★): "let me say that you should buy this LP immediately"
• The Penguin Guide to Jazz (5th ed., 2000): ★★★½
• The Rolling Stone Jazz & Blues Album Guide (1999): ★★★★★
• The Virgin Encyclopedia of Jazz (1999): ★★★★

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: Did not chart

Tracks:  I enjoy all ten, including the bonus tracks. Today, my favorites are All Of You, Bye Bye Blackbird, and Two Bass Hit.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: Purchased around the time of its 2001 re-release, when I was in full-on "Miles mode," a phase that lasted for several years in the early 2000's.

Previously revisited for the blog:
At Newport 1958 (2001)
Panthalassa: The Remixes (1999)
The Complete Birth of the Cool (1998)
This Is Jazz, Vol. 8: Miles Davis Acoustic (1996)
Live Around The World (1996)
The Hot Spot: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (1990)
Music from Siesta (1987)
In A Silent Way (1969)
Miles Davis at Carnegie Hall (1961)
Sketches of Spain (1960)
Kind Of Blue (1959)
Milestones (1958)