Description:
Miles Davis — Birth of the Blue
Smash prequel to what many consider the greatest jazz record ever!
- Four more songs from the pioneering ensemble that produced Miles Davis' Kind of Blue !
- Modal jazz precursor laid groundwork for future jazz innovation !
- 180 gram vinyl !
- Mastered by Matthew Lutthans at The Mastering Lab from a new 30 ips quarter-inch stereo master tape transferred from the original 3 track session tapes !
- Plated and pressed at Quality Record Pressings for flawless production and superior fidelity !
- Stoughton Printing Old Style tip-on gatefold heavyweight jacket with scuff-resistant matte finish !
"This session recorded within the confines of Columbia’s 30th Street Studio in New York City on May 26, 1958 captures the sextet in a free-flowing, exploratory mode, akin to a spontaneous blowing session... Our ratings for 'Birth of the Blue' are 10 for the Music (as comparison, 'Kind of Blue' is a stone-cold 11), and 10 for the Sound. We suggest you indulge in the 'Birth of the Blue' LP for its loose-knit renditions of American songbook classics. Savor the breathtaking solos that showcase one of the greatest jazz ensembles ever assembled, their artistry in full bloom". - Music = 10/11; Sound = 10/11 - Ken Micallef, AnalogPlanet.com, Jan. 17, 2025. Read the entire review here.
"This session deserves to stand alone and not be mixed up with a bunch of other stuff... The goal here was to give you the spread as seen in the 30th street studio when the recording was produced as the musicians stood before the microphones. The sound is 'you are there' superb as the 30th street studio most always delivered and of course hearing this group play for the first time 'as one' is exhilarating, especially having the tracks correctly assembled on a single LP".
- Music = 10/11; Sound = 10/11 - Michael Fremer, TrackingAngle.com. Read the entire review here.
"It's stunning. It's absolutely beautiful music... honestly, if you think of it as a companion piece, a prequel that's exactly what it is... the fact that it sounds most like the 45 RPM UHQR, and bear in mind this costs $40, ...it's got to be one of the bargains of the century". - Dave Denyer, YouTube video
"Just to hear this group, like probably what you would hear at a concert that's a revelation in itself in high fidelity, with really, really great sonics... Much better than any of the (other compilations).... this gets the thumbs up from me". - Ken Micallef, Jazz Vinyl Audiophile, YouTube video
Miles Davis's Kind of Blue was the number-one jazz album in history. It totaled five songs. There are four more songs from that same historic group, recorded in the same time period and at the same studio. And here they are. These songs deserve to stand on their own with artwork to highlight the quality of the music and that matches the time period of the recording. This is a rare opportunity to have a smash follow-up to what many consider the greatest jazz record ever!
Through the years, these four remarkable performances all from a single recording session in 1958 and all exemplary of the sound of Miles Davis' legend-loaded sextet of that year have not been served well. They have been largely treated as add-ons for other compilations. Now, for the first time, Analogue Productions, the audiophile in-house reissue label of Acoustic Sounds, Inc., together with Quality Record Prssings, has deservedly given these tracks a stellar stand-alone release for jazz fans to savor!
The once-in-a-generation lineup that recorded these tunes is the very same that would be immortalized for the enduring classic they would record almost a year later, Kind of Blue. Davis played trumpet sublime with his ensemble sextet featuring pianist Bill Evans, drummer Jimmy Cobb, bassist Paul Chambers, and saxophonists John Coltrane and Julian "Cannonball" Adderley.
Undervalued since their recording, the tunes on this album reflect historial and musical significance. They offer early glimpses into the modal jazz that Kind of Blue would bring to the forefront. Using modes common in modern classical music, rather than the chords of popular songs, Miles had begun to experiment with the new approach on the Milestones recording sessions previously.
Analogue Productions is proud to present Birth of the Blue in an exclusive first-of-its-kind stand-alone release that reflects our reputation for meticulous production, capturing authentic sound with clarity, depth and fidelity that exceeds the audiophile standard.
For this release, we started with the original 3 track recording session tapes that were mixed down to a brand-new 30 ips quarter-inch stereo master tape by senior mastering engineer Vic Anesini at Battery Studios. From that stereo master tape, Matthew Lutthans at The Mastering Lab cut the lacquers at 33 1/3 RPM utilizing the legendary Doug Sax's custom all-tube system and cutting lathe. The lacquers were plated and pressed on 180-gram vinyl at Quality Record Pressings. Lastly, the Stoughton Printing tip-on gatefold jacket with a deluxe scuff-resistant matte finish is the highest quality available. The artwork has an incredible spot-on look to a 1959 Columbia records release !
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