'Round about Midnight

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Round About Midnight' is an album by jazz musician Miles Davis, released in March of 1957 and his debut on Columbia Records, CL 949. Recording sessions took place at Columbia Studio D on October 26, 1955, and at Columbia's 30th Street Studio on June 5 and September 10, 1956.

History

At the Newport Jazz Festival in 1955, Davis performed the song "'Round Midnight" as part of an all-star jam session, with the song's composer Thelonious Monk, along with Connie Kay and Percy Heath of the Modern Jazz Quartet, Zoot Sims, and Gerry Mulligan. Davis's solo received an extremely positive reception from many jazz fans, and critics. It was viewed as a significant comeback and indication of a healthy, drug-free Miles (he had in fact been free from heroin addiction for well over a year). Miles's response to this performance was typically laconic: "What are they talking about? I just played the way I always play." George Avakian of Columbia Records was in the audience, and his brother Aram persuaded him that he ought to sign Davis to the label. Davis was eventually signed to Columbia Records, and was able to form his famous "first great quintet" with John Coltrane on saxophone. 'Round About Midnight was to be his first album for his new label.

Davis was still under contract to Prestige Records, but had an agreement that he could record material for Columbia to release after the expiry of his Prestige contract. The recording dates for the album were at Columbia Records studios, the first session was on October 27 1955 at Studio D, during which the tracks "Tadd's Delight", "Dear Old Stockholm" and the soon-to-be standard "Bye Bye Blackbird" were recorded (this is the first studio recording of the quintet). The remainder of the album was recorded during sessions on June 5 and September 10 1956 at Columbia's 30th Street Studio. During the same period, the Miles Davis Quintet was also recording albums to fulfil the contract with Prestige.

On release, 'Round About Midnight received an average reception. Ralph Berton of The Record Changer described it as "orthodox, middle-of-the-road conservative progressive jazz." To this day, the editors of The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD continue to dismiss this record as a footnote to the Prestige contractual obligation sessions (eventually released as the albums Miles, Relaxin', Workin', Steamin', and Cookin') stating that they "...fail to cast quite the consistent spell which the Prestige recordings do."

Considered by most to be one of the pinnacles of the hard bop era, the song selection on Midnight represents a summation of the earlier bebop era, with the performances tempered by Davis' inherent lyricism but rooted in the new style as promoted by hard bop pioneers Art Blakey and Horace Silver with the Jazz Messengers, and the Max Roach / Clifford Brown quintet, in 1956 featuring ex-Davis foil Sonny Rollins.

It should be noted that Coltrane had yet to become an iconic figure in jazz history, his presence in the Davis Quintet a let-down to many in lieu of the aforementioned Rollins. His style, while embryonically frenetic and searching, was not quite the sheets of sound approach celebrated later in the decade. In April 1957 Coltrane's heroin use would lead to his leaving Davis and working with Monk, and under Monk's tutelage the saxophonist's playing style solidified considerably.

On April 17, 2001, Sony reissued the album for compact disc on its Columbia/Legacy label, remastered to 24-bit with four bonus tracks, comprising master takes of all the tunes recorded at the three sessions, with alternates previously available on the box set The Complete Miles Davis with John Coltrane. A further two-disc reissue on June 14, 2005, appeared as part of Sony's Legacy Edition series, with the first disc the 2001 reissue, and a second disc containing the Davis' celebrated Newport Jazz Festival of 1955 performance of "'Round Midnight," along with a recording of the quintet's set from the 1956 Pacific Jazz Festival.

Personnel

Musicians

Technical Personnel

George Avakian - Producer, Liner Notes
Frank Laico - Engineer
Teo Macero - Mastering
Don Hunstein - Photography
Aram Avakian - Photography
Dennis Stock - Photography
Seth Rothstein - Reissue Project Director
Michael Cuscuna - Reissue Producer
Bob Belden - Reissue Producer
Randall Martin - Reissue Design
Ray Moore - Reissue Engineer
Mark Wilder - Reissue Engineering and Mastering
Howard Fritzson - Reissue Art Director
Bob Blumenthal - Reissue Liner Notes

Track Listing

Side One

"'Round Midnight" (Bernie Hanighen, Thelonious Monk, Cootie Williams) – 6:00
"Ah-Leu-Cha" (Charlie Parker) – 5:55
"All of You" (Cole Porter) – 7:05

Side Two

"Bye Bye Blackbird" (Mort Dixon, Ray Henderson) – 7:59
"Tadd's Delight" (Tadd Dameron) – 4:33
"Dear Old Stockholm" (Traditional, arranged by Stan Getz) – 7:55

Bonus Tracks 2001 Reissue

"Two Bass Hit" (Dizzy Gillespie, John Lewis) – 3:47 (October 1955 session)
"Little Melonae" (Jackie McLean) – 7:24 (October 1955 session)
"Budo" (Miles Davis, Bud Powell) – 4:17 (October 1955 session)
"Sweet Sue, Just You" (Will Harris, Victor Young) – 3:39 (September 1956 session)

Disc Two of 2005 Legacy Edition Reissue

All except track one from the Pacific Jazz Festival of February, 1956

"'Round Midnight" – 6:00 (live from the Newport Jazz Festival 1955)
Introduction by Gene Norman – 1:35
"Chance It (Max Making Wax)" (Oscar Pettiford) – 4:33
"Walkin'" (Richard Carpenter) – 10:02
Dialogue Gene Norman and Miles Davis – 0:27
"It Never Entered My Mind" (Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart) – 5:17
"Woody 'n' You" (Dizzy Gillespie) – 5:45
"Salt Peanuts" (Dizzy Gillespie, Kenny Clarke) – 4:33
"Closing Theme" (Davis) – 0:27

Newport Jazz All-Star Personnel

Miles Davis - trumpet
Zoot Sims - tenor saxophone
Gerry Mulligan - baritone saxophone
Thelonious Monk - piano
Percy Heath - bass
Connie Kay - drums

Notes

References

Nisenson, E. 'Round About Midnight - A Portrait Of Miles Davis. Da Capo Press, 2nd ed., 1996.
AMG All Music Guide - "Round About Midnight (Bonus Tracks)>Credits"
Jurek, T. - "Round About Midnight (Bound Tracks)>Review"