Session details: Columbia Studio B (August 21, 1969)

Miles Ahead session details

August 21, 1969 (16 items; TT = 80:36)

Columbia Studio B, New York NY

Commercial for Columbia

Show chatter

Miles Davis (tpt); Wayne Shorter (ss); Bennie Maupin (bcl); John McLaughlin (g); Chick Corea (el-p); Josef Zawinul (el-p); Larry Young (el-p); Dave Holland (b); Harvey Brooks (el-b); Jack De Johnette (d); Lenny White (d); Charles Don Alias (d, perc); Jumma Santos [Jim Riley] (perc)

1	Spanish Key (take 1) (M. Davis)	4:11
	"CO 103750, take one..." Short take (0:40). Davis: "Can we break that up more? Can it be broken up more? OK, let's try it and see what happens..." They play (2:46). At the end someone says, "Have him turn you up more." Davis: "Right here? Turn this thing on, Teo." Macero: "Is the sound all right?"
2	Spanish Key (take 2) (M. Davis)	10:37
	Macero: "All right, two..." Undecipherable Davis remarks. They play (10:17). Davis: "I wanna hear some of that back..."
3	Spanish Key (take 3) (M. Davis)	7:36
	Macero: "All right, stand by please, this'll be take three..." They play (7:20). Davis: "Hey, Teo..."
4	Spanish Key (take 4) (M. Davis)	6:54
	Macero: "OK, this'll be take four... Cut to tuning. "Take four..." Two false starts (0:08, 0:09). They play (6:10). Take fades out
5	Spanish Key (issued version) (M. Davis)	17:25
	Edited (2:49) on Columbia 45171 and CSK 41598; edited (11:50) on Columbia CAS 42193
	As the take winds down Davis says, "Play some that, Teo..."
6	Pharaoh's Dance (part 1 take 1) (J. Zawinul)	1:11
	Macero: "This is CO 103313, part one, Joe..." Zawinul plays the opening of "Directions" on el-p (0:18-0:25). Various noodling. Macero: "All right, still take one." Davis: "Where's Harvey, man?" Macero: "I don't know what happened to Harvey." False start. Macero: "OK..."
7	Pharaoh's Dance (part 1 take 2) (J. Zawinul)	1:47
	Macero: "OK, this is take two..." Tuning, then short take (0:29). More tuning. Another short take (0:17). Rehearsal. Davis: "Hey Teo! We just did one section." Macero: "Right. All right, all right, all right." Davis: "Make a note of it, 'cause you know when you look at it Saturday, it's gonna look funny." Macero: "I know, 'cause I won't be here." (Laughter.) Davis: "You're not here today..."
8	Pharaoh's Dance (part 2 take 1) (J. Zawinul)	0:35
	Macero: "OK, stand by, this'll be part two, take one" Davis: "Yeah, but the bass clarinet makes an entrance, Teo, just put that down..."
9	Pharaoh's Dance (part 2 take 2) (J. Zawinul)	2:25
	Macero: "Part two, take two." Holland: "Can we do that again? I thought, I thought, I thought that was four bars." Davis (to Holland): "No, it's (he sings). I mean, attack, and then taper it off." Unknown: "You mean at the end of that second one?" Davis: "Just come down to another frame." Macero: "We're rolling..." They play (0:25). Holland and the keyboards work out the line. Group section (0:31). Holland: "OK, got it."
10	Pharaoh's Dance (part 2 take 3) (J. Zawinul)	1:20
	Another group section (0:23). Macero: "All right, you wanna do all that again?" More rehearsal. Holland and McLaughlin work on the line
11	Pharaoh's Dance (part 2 take 4) (J. Zawinul)	1:36
	Macero: "Four..."
12	Pharaoh's Dance (insert take 1) (J. Zawinul)	0:31
	Macero: "We'll call this 'Insert'... Take one." Holland (sings to McLaughlin): "It's a dramatic process, so it's not like..." McLaughlin plays
13	Pharaoh's Dance (insert take 2) (J. Zawinul)	0:57
	"Two..." Holland, McLaughlin, and the pianists work on chords
14	Pharaoh's Dance (insert take 3) (J. Zawinul)	0:34
	"Three..." More guitar/el-piano rehearsal
15	Pharaoh's Dance (insert take 4) (J. Zawinul)	2:53
	"Four..." Group section (0:36). More puzzlement about guitar/el-piano playing against each other. Davis (sounding impatient): "Play the triples..." More rehearsal. False start (0:09). Group section (0:58)
16	Pharaoh's Dance (issued version) (J. Zawinul)	20:04


2 Spanish Key (take 2) CD: Columbia 88697 70274, Columbia 88697 54519
5 Spanish Key (issued version) 45 rpm: Columbia 4-45171 12" LP: Columbia GP 26 (= CS 9996, PG 30977, GQ 30977), Music on Vinyl MOV LP020, Mobile Fidelity Sound Laboratory MFSL 2-439, Columbia CAS 42193 (12" single), CBS/Sony SONP 50255/6, CBS/Sony SOPL 24/5, CBS/Sony SOPJ 58/9, CBS/Sony 28AP 2151/2, CBS/Sony 36AP 1771/2, Mosaic MQ6-183, Columbia 88697 70274-2 CD: Columbia C2K 40577, Columbia C2K 65774, Columbia C4K 65570, Columbia C4K 90924, Columbia CK 65449, Columbia 88697 70274, Columbia 88697 54519, Mobile Fidelity Sound Laboratory UDSACD 2149, CBS/Sony 50DP 703/4, CBS/Sony CSCS 5151/52, Sony SRCS 9118/9, Sony 8837/40, Sony SICP 669/72, Sony SRCS 9714/5, Sony SIGP 20/1, Sony SICP 834/5, Sony SICP 1220/1, SICJ 10008/9, Sony SICP 20002/3, Sony SICJ 30077/8, Sony SICP 30267/68, Columbia Legacy 86975 24922
16 Pharaoh's Dance (issued version) 12" LP: Columbia GP 26 (= CS 9996, PG 30977, GQ 30977), Music on Vinyl MOV LP020, Mobile Fidelity Sound Laboratory MFSL 2-439, CBS/Sony SONP 50255/6, CBS/Sony SOPL 24/5, CBS/Sony SOPJ 58/9, CBS/Sony 28AP 2151/2, CBS/Sony 36AP 1771/2, Mosaic MQ6-183, Columbia 88697 70274-2 CD: Columbia C2K 40577, Columbia C2K 65774, Columbia C4K 65570, Columbia C4K 90924, Columbia 88697 70274, Columbia 88697 54519, Mobile Fidelity Sound Laboratory UDSACD 2149, CBS/Sony 50DP 703/4, CBS/Sony CSCS 5151/52, Sony SRCS 9118/9, Sony 8837/40, Sony SICP 669/72, Sony SRCS 9714/5, Sony SIGP 20/1, Sony SICP 834/5, Sony SICP 1220/1, SICJ 10008/9, Sony SICP 20002/3, Sony SICJ 30077/8, Sony SICP 30267/68, Columbia Legacy 86975 24922

The music that does not appear on Bitches Brew is included on the bootleg CDs Deep Brew, Volume 1 and Deep Brew, Volume 2 (Mega Disc) and Unreleased Bitches Brew Session (So What (CDR) SW-146/47). Part 4 of "Bitches Brew" ended up as "John McLaughlin."

The tapes of these sessions contain a large number of gaps, the result of Teo Macero's editing and post-production. Apparently on this occasion Macero worked directly from the master tapes, not from safety copies; as a result there are no extant "complete" recordings of these sessions. For the details, consult Enrico Merlin and Veniero Rizzardi's Bitches Brew: Genesi del capolavaro di Miles Davis (Milano: Il Saggiatori, 2009), which carefully analyzes the issued recording and all available unused studio material.

The Davis Quintet maintained a busy touring schedule during this time: Rutgers University Stadium, New Brunswick (Rutgers Jazz Festival) (July 27); Sheraton Park Hotel, French Lick (French Lick Jazz Festival) (July 31); Spectrum, Philadelphia (August 15); Kiel Auditorium, St. Louis (St. Louis Jazz Festival) (August 16); Grant Park Auditorium Theatre, Chicago (August 22); Crosley Field, Cincinnati (Ohio Jazz Festival) (August 23); Mid-South Coliseum, Memphis (Memphis Jazz Festival) (August 24); Shelly's Manne-Hole, Los Angeles (September 9-21).