Miles Davis, Gil Evans - Porgy and Bess

Take George Gershwin's Porgy & Bess, add Miles Davis and arranger Gil Evans, and what do you get? A classic jazz album that--despite the fact that the material has been rendered almost overly familiar due to countless interpretations--still sounds remarkably fresh four decades after its initial release. Miles' soft yet piercing trumpet style is perfectly suited to Gershwin's melancholy melodies, Evans' musical direction of his 18-piece orchestra is impeccable, and their version of "Summertime" may well be the finest ever waxed. Davis and Evans teamed up for several recordings after this one (including the landmark Sketches of Spain), but Porgy & Bess still stands as one of their most successful collaborations. --Dan Epstein Amazon.com

Lovely melodies

While the melodies are lovely, and the music is well played, there is something missing from this recording. It doesn't quite reach the level of Gershwin's dramatic musicianship. Nice to listen to, but it would not be my first choice for this opera. August 15, 2008

Porgy And Bess

Miles Davis-Porgy And Bess *****

Right upfront I have to say I am not a big fan of big bands. I'd rather have a small tight ensemble any day, there for I was a little bit skeptical when I first bought Porgy And Bess. but what sold me was that it was a Miles collaboration with Gil Evans, the same person he teamed up with on Sketches Of Spain, which to me is one of the most amazing albums ever made, maybe even better than Kind Of Blue, probably not though. So I bought this album in somewhat good faith, got it home and realized the longest track was only six minutes long. Miles is an artist that needs time to express himself fully, and emotionally, he can't be expected to cram that into a mere six minutes, or so I thought. Porgy And Bess destroyed everything I ever thought about it. This has since become one of my all time favorite Miles albums, and one that still amazes me upon every listen.

The melodies are ones that anyone who knows anything about American music would recognise, for the most part any way. But Miles put a twist on them all with the help of Gil. 'It Ain't Necessarily So' is stunning, while this version of 'Summertime' is the most stellar version ever cut! Yes the song is way over done, but with a version this good who cares? 'Buzzard Song' is utterly brilliant. The emotion I thought Miles wouldn't be able to convey during these short pieces is here and maybe more so than on any other recording. Because while it maybe be listed as 13 different pieces, really the album plays as one long incendiary piece.

Upon every listen to Porgy And Bess I find myself falling more and more in love with Miles' great music. I seem to get lost in this album every time I hear it, much like I do with his Kind Of Blue album. Those are the only two albums I can honestly say encapsulate me with joy to the point of almost becoming comatose, so with that being said there is nothing more to say because now I am going to listen to this, as should you. May 9, 2008

Best P&B ever

My mother listened to show tunes when I was a little girl, so I have heard "Porgy and Bess" MANY MANY TIMES. This version is the best ever.

mar
April 21, 2008

I rock this

I rock this as loud as I can on the road to drown out the crappy gangster rap that I am subjected to by some of my fellow motorists. Sometimes I think they turn down their crap to listen to my Gold.

Sometimes throwing your pearls in front of swine can pay off. April 15, 2008

Brilliant!

This beautiful merge of well written material, beautiful orchestration and brilliant soloist could hardly fail, and it didn't... The music is at times romantic, at times brooding and pensive, at times chilling, expanding the emotional potentials of the material, without ever becoming flamboyant or extrovert...

The subtlest jazz at its best, really nice collaboration of Miles and Gil Evans, reminiscent of Birth of the Cool and Sketches of Spain (the latter album not really being jazz, but still remarkable music).
In short, this album is about one of the best trumpets in jazz meeting one of the best arrangers in jazz, working together on some of the best material used by the jazz musicians... December 4, 2007

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