Birth Of The Cool
Miles Davis
1957
Album Summary
Birth of the Cool is a compilation album by American jazz trumpeter and bandleader Miles Davis, released in February 1957 by Capitol Records. It compiles eleven tracks recorded by Davis's nonet for the label over the course of three sessions during 1949 and 1950.Featuring unusual instrumentation and several notable musicians, the music consisted of innovative arrangements influenced by classical music techniques such as polyphony, and marked a major development in post-bebop jazz. As the title suggests, these recordings are considered seminal in the history of cool jazz. Most of them were originally released in the 10-inch 78-rpm format and are all approximately three minutes long.
WikipediaI really liked this. Well, by liked, I mean tolerated it. Well, by tolerated it, I mean I would rather have my eyeballs injected with spider eggs, whilst having by pubes yanked out by an aggressive Bulgarian dinner lady, all the while a parrot is screeching "Jordan Henderson is the best in the world" down my ear, with every woman I've ever fancied and my family and friends all watching on; than ever listen to a single second of this ever again.
'The Birth of Cool' reminds me of when I spent my forties as an adult baby. We would meet up in groups of 12-15 and our mums would feed us milk, hug us and change our nappies. I would often piss and shit myself for real, which was a source of such joy for both me and the mums. I was thrown out in disgrace after an incident. I suggested, or more tried to force myself up one of the mums, so I could be reborn. Please understand that this was not sexual, I was merely trying to understand how it would feel to be born, to experience the journey from the womb, through the vagina and into the world, all with the awareness of an adult. Needless to say, the police were called in, the adult baby centre was shut down and I served 18 months in prison.
I know I am biased here because I really do love Miles Davis and a lot of his "cool jazz" contemporaries and artists that followed their lead, and I am also influenced by the music reviews of the time that likened this album and similar works to impressionist-style visual arts, but, what the heck, I'll embrace it all. This album is gorgeous. The layers, textures, colors...man. I love to imagine what it would be like to find a little time-space portal to loop back to NYC in the late 40s through early 60s when so much amazing jazz was happening. I love this album. Such art.
Too hip. Possibly in my top five all time jazz albums. Responsible for a whole subgenre full of bad imitators but, both as the wellspring of an aesthetic and as a standalone collection of music, this is crazy good
Fantastic album, completely different from what I would normally listen to but enjoyed it a lot.
Smooth. Really enjoyed this. Godchild is the best of the album for me. I like the low bass intro.
This is a very pleasant jazz album, and I’m actually really excited to see something from the 50s come up. I don’t think I had ever really listened to any Miles Davis before, although I’d heard lots about him.
Ok, now this was truly Cool. A smooth set of tracks. I can get behind this Miles, and listening to this might be a better entry point than the other 2 I've had on the list so far.
I love when I see an album that can be pointed to and say "Right here. That's where it all started." What a cool formative moment in jazz history, and not to mention its fucking BALLER. The head for Budo always slaps, and the ending section of Moon Dreams slays me every time.
Can't say no to some more Miles. I can definitely tell that this came before Kind of Blue. The songs are shorter, less exploratory and experimental. Still, there are flashes here and there that bear the Miles Davis edge, like the end of "Moon Dreams." I was about to say I'm not feeling as jazzed by this, then "Budo" hit me like ONE TWO THREE HO! This is great, and a welcome reprieve from the middling selections last week. Favorite tracks: Budo, Move, Moon Dreams. Album art: Like Kind of Blue, this cover is unimaginative. Granted, it's 1957. But it's a black and white photo of Miles Davis. I do like the angle of the photo and the framing of text all around the picture. As far as '50s jazz album covers go, this one's not bad. 4/5
Shorter jazz compositions when cool jazz was just emerging. This is the peak of music of the era and so I would have to give it 4 stars. However, jazz still has quite a journey to go, and Davis has yet to attain his zenith of creativity. I don't think the shorter pieces work well with the genre.
Miles Davis is probably the single most talented musician to have lived in the 20th century, well known for occasionally blowing open the entire genre he worked in and inspiring dozens if not hundreds of imitators. For any other musician, this would be their masterpiece - for Davis, it barely cracks the top ten.
What a talent. Imagine being able to play that much trumpet while smacked out of your eyeballs? It should be a lesson to all these namby pamby modern rock'n' rollers, get off the 'gram and get on the smack.
holy fuck, this album made me feel things.....one of the best pieces of musical composition I've ever, and will ever listen to.
Hadn’t heard this Davis album but just like his others, I love it. These are shorter songs than his longer, later albums but they are still fantastic to listen to. I’ll have to listen to this album more as time goes on to find my true favs but I love the entire thing. The album cover is very basic but it’s what’s inside that counts. Great way to start off the week!
A great band is behind this, but Miles(🐐) is here to lead and crack the whip. Consequently there is a sense of perfection to this record.
Come on. Five stars. I have nothing to add that hasn’t already been said about this album. Come back to me when we get to the harder stuff, like Bitches Brew.
I love this album! I used to own this album! I don’t know what happens to this album, but I feel like John Hillery stole this album from me! If I see you on the streets John Hillery imma ask you if you have my album and if so, lights out son! That being said, this album gives me life. The energy is outstanding while contained. Had my blood flowing and air playing all the horn section. Perfect for a gathering with some friends or some solo nerding out in your living room. I actually have it on in my office now!
This album was the first work of jazz that I appreciated. It is so involving and revolutionary. With it, Miles changed history.
The first of what would be many of Miles' groundbreaking stylistic changes in jazz, leading the genre through some uncertain yet inevitable shifts that would eventually lead to it being the status quo for music. Don't miss out on the Royal Rooster live set from this time period as well, it captures the songs too well in its warm, steady quality.
It's interesting to understand that "Birth of the Cool" is a compilation and not an album per se. Comprised of songs recorded in three sessions during 1949 and early 1950, it's a record that shows the evolution of cool jazz, a style being molded on the go with different session bands full of musicians that would make history or were already doing so. Max Roach, Gerry Mulligan, Kenny Clarke, Lee Konitz and John Lewis all have great contributions on this release, showing that Miles Davis was not only a great musician, but also great at chosing his band. It's an 11 track compilation with 11 pieces of jazz history put together.
I'm a huge Miles Davis fan, and jazz of this era in general. This album came two years before Kind of Blue, and it has such a different vibe. The songs are short, and the album is short too. It doesn't have the long solos I'm used to in a Davis album. It's all about the band playing together, and not about Davis in particular. It's a very sweet and complicated at the same time. This is such a good recording too. I really loved this album, but I'm likely to give all Davis albums of this era a 5.
Not often a claim like this can be actually backed up, but this seems to do so. A really solid album from someone who seems to have defined and redefined jazz over and over for others to follow behind him.
I am by no means qualified nor worthy to do justice to any sort of review of this album (as if I am of any of the other albums). But here it goes. This is a compilation of 11 tracks recorded by Davis' nonet (nine musicians) over three sessions between 1949 and 1950. The music was a major development in post-bebop jazz. Bebop is 1940's jazz with a fast tempo, complex chord progressions and changes of key. There are several songs that fit maybe more into the bebop fast tempo area. On the flipside is cool jazz which is a more relaxed tempo and this album is credited with starting this cool jazz movement. A number of songs fall in this category. One of the innovative arrangements used on this album is polyphony which is two or more independent melody lines. Again, multiple examples of this throughout the album. There is a lot more history and in-depth breakdown to this album and music but the above-mentioned musical techniques are the ones I found to standout while listening. This is another album with really not a bad song to choose. The first song is "Move" and it does just that rolling along fitting maybe more in the bebop category. A good example of the polyphony with multiple melodies. "Jeru" and "Venus De Milo" are slower tempo, definitely cool jazz. "Jeru" also has a couple outstanding horn solos. I learned a lot from this album. Definitely a good album to chill to. I'm sure to get more jazz and Miles in this challenge and it'll be interesting to see the differences. I'm sure to learn more.
Five stars. Tempted to deduct a quarter of a point for the vocal jazz on track 12, but really can't complain.
Assez incontournable merci. On ne réinvente pas la musique tous les jours. Il y a Darn that dream qui me met sur mes gardes à chaque fois. C’est peut-être la seule pièce qui fitte moins.
I really do need to sit down with more albums by some of these great jazz musicians. This album was such a fantastic listen. I will definitely circle back to this one someday and really listen deeply. There's so much subtlety in there that there's a lot you can miss.
I love jazz, so that one's is a definite yes for me. -- I really enjoyed listening to it, one of my favourite jazz albums. This kind of music can instantly lift up my mood.
While I like this album because Miles Davis is a GOAT, it is a compilation album and lacks the unity of a complete, focused album. All the songs are really good, but it just feels as if it is missing that album feel.
Track 1: Great fast paced start with the horns section rhythm. Awesome light and quick trumpet solo into the sax solo. Incredible speed of the bass on this; the bassline is absolutely moving. Perfect drum fills and solo break. Track 2: Nice pace on this song with the cool off-beat rhythm. Lil Poly thing going on. Incredibly crisp chord changes in the horns. Smooth trumpet solo. The off-beat melody now with the drums are super crispy. Sax solo is good a lil lackluster at times. Once again really tight changes on the ending and slowing it down a bit. Track 3: Slow and beautiful Start. Silky smooth progressions that feel like a walk through a park on a warm dark night. Bassline relaxes a bit in the background and provides just enough to keep a loose structure. Wow incredible note hold by the trumpet, and then busting right into these minor chords. Nice soft finish at the end. Track 4: Very tight walking bassline. Nice soft horn hits on the main section. Light and playful trumpet solo on top. Very airy sax solo but keeps smooth. The off rhythm hits and fills from the drums are great. Track 5: Fast pace song with light kit drums. The runs in the trumpet solo are nice and together. Lightning quick melodies. Great drum fills right at the end. Track 6: Nice trumpet lead on the melody right off the bat. A bit scattered with these solo sections but drums hold it together. Oh lord a very pretty trombone/euphonium solo super slick. Track 7: Incredible main melody led by the low brass and sax line. The drums accompany the horn hits super well. The trumpet joining that low melody line after the solo is a nice touch. Nice reach for the high note at the end. Track 8: Personal favorite song off the album. Great splashy cymbals. The main melody is just so catchy the way they toy around with the notes. The sax solo is just perfectly placed and light on the top. The trumpet solo brings some beautiful airy runs. Piano solo quickly brings it back to the main melody. Song just feels so laid back and relaxed. Track 9: light and playful with the intro melody. Great rises and falls of the song. Trumpet and sax solos were okay; felt a bit forced. Great dynamic shifts in the high and low parts. Track 10: fluid sax right off the bat. Nice 3 over 4 melody line. Trumpet solo was crispy and then slowly fades back into the backing track. Sax solo is an absolute highlight. Good lord the sax runs are insane in this. Was not a fan of the Forced ending. Track 11: clean and smooth melodic line. Nice percussive cutoffs for effect. Best piano solo on the album for sure; perfectly placed. Piano solo goes right to sax with some beautiful fast paced runs. Solo to solo transitions are incredibly smooth. Drums have some nice fills but I wish there was more. Brings back the main melody line at the end. Album is incredible and pretty much individually kicked off the cool jazz genre. I love Miles Davis, and I'll hold the uncommon opinion that this is my favorite album of his.
It's neat to come back to this album after listening to more of Miles's middle and later career stuff. It has a more traditional sound (not that folks would have said that at the time), but you can hear how much flavor Miles brings. 4/5
Experimental jazz is not what you want for coffeehouse vibes, it's too interesting to relegate to the background. This album has urgency that demands the full attention of the listener. If you can't provide that for these 32 minutes, move along and listen to something else.
Finalmente um jazz! Um pouquinho mais calmo que o bepop do Parker, Achei as faixas muito parecidas, mas acho q era a intenção do album
I have a soft spot for this kind of music. This may not be the real birth of cool, but it certainly is cool music, and great for programming concentration.
Tres bon album jazz. J’aimais beaucoup le jazz modal de davis mais jamais je m.tais penche sur ca periode cool jazz. J’ai adore 4.90
Probably the first jazz album I’ve sat down and listened to all at once. Need to that more often
Exactly what it says on the tin 😎 Exceptional listen, sounding somewhere between big band/swing and bop with it's frankly extensive list of performers on here (16 in rotation, to be exact). Although released in 1957, recordings were from 1949 and 1950 which was years before Davis would begin forming his quintets, so the songs can get a little busy at times. I'd reckon this is an overall easy listen though, and pulling all these singles together on the one album is certainly appreciated. This here is jazz 101, so don't skip your fundamentals
Brilliant album, thoroughly enjoyed having it on while I worked. I would have liked a few more tracks with vocals on it but other than that, loved it.
As the album name suggests, Miles Davis is the king of cool. I very much enjoyed this album, the vocals on the last studio track came out of nowhere and surprised me in a great fashion. As an extremely uncultured soul, this kind of cigar smoking, smooth jazz actually gives me nostalgic Tom and Jerry vibes from my youth. I kind of wish it didn't and kind of glad it does. Anyway, I love how relaxed I feel listening, cheers Miles.
Nice compilation that shows a talented and young Davis. I liked it. It has a nice mix of energetic and smooth.
Jazz ! I quite enjoy it, But I feel like this sort of songs need the right atmosphere and place, otherwise it is music for musicians or "elevator/Lift music", which is a waste for the latter. In short, full of flavours and a good happy loose feeling / freedom going on. 4 stars
It's a good listen and an early piece of success for Miles Davis before creating his jazz opus.
It’s crazy how much this album dominated jazz as a sound. This now sounds like the baseline of jazz, the starting point- almost passé in the sense that it so thoroughly overtook the jazz sound
A good listen, no complaints. Enjoyable although I had it on in the background and know little about Jazz, so I wouldn't be able to distinguish the songs from each other. I will say I wouldn't mind returning to this for some relaxing laidback tunes.
This isn't the "let's get high and listen to Miles" album I'm familiar with. Loved this one, guessing a further deep dive into Miles Davis is in my future.
А ведь чем дальше десятилетие – тем тщательнее отсев. Так понимаю, с середины века до нас доходят совсем монументальные для своего времени вещи. Без всякого репетативного душнилова, его ради снобов и травокуров позже придумали. Посему немудрено, что у 50-ых как эпохи такой высокий рейтинг. Да, пусть там не много найдётся того, что в 2к21 срезонирует с актуальной действительностью. Но почти всё может вызвать приятные ассоциации с временами и местами, где никогда не бывал, но которые отпечатались в культурном коде благодаря массовой культуре. Да, долгая экскурсия может поднадоесть, но несколько часов наедине с музыкой тех лет оставляют светлое впечатление. Так и в случае с этим альбомом. Треки, ради которых в какой-нибудь Мафии стал бы ехать в машине с радио, а не пользоваться быстрым перемещением. Треки, которые и сам бы, возможно, выбрал в качестве саундтрека для произведения о тех годах. Посоветовал бы другому, спроси кто «Чел, ты вроде немало музла знаешь, чё-нить из джазца подкинешь?». Я бы, конечно, троллинга ради сначала вбросил бы альбом Queen – Jazz, но потом бы ответил серьёзно. В общем, хорошие треки.
Short, sharp, and straight ahead. Understated and restrained, but music that still swings. Recorded over the course of a year in 1949 and early 1950, but not released in this format until 1957, 'Birth Of The Cool' still sounds fresh today. Whilst not quite as ground-breaking as what would come later for Miles, it’s still brilliantly played, totally hummable and full of great hooks.
Should be like best album ever, right? Sure. It didn’t hook me in, but I get it. And I get its place. I’ll listen again of course, it’ll hit one day.
Very pleasant. My mom categorizes all Jazz into three buckets. "Hot", "Cool", and "What Time Does the Tune Start". I guess this is where "Cool" came from! Fave track - hmmm, not sure any single tracks stood out to me - just enjoyed the album as a whole. "Israel", maybe?
Very soothing. I love how, on the surface, it sounds like they're just jamming with no formal direction yet there's an arch to each song that shows that there's a designed direction which each instrument is following.
The tracks really flow well together. Miles playing is very upbeat with great melody. It’s also extremely easy to listen to. I love records you can throw on and listen to while cleaning. It makes it so each time you hear the record, you hear something new and continue to fall in love with it. Four stars because I only listened to it once through.
Escuchar a Miles Davis siempre me da pa'rriba, incluso aunque llegue a sonar triste, que no es el caso acá. De todas formas, no soy un gran fan del jazz, entonces esto me agrada, pero no se queda tanto conmigo. 9/10
Jazz, for me, is more dependent more on the setting in which I hear it, than the music itself. Could I sit and just listen to this? No. Would this be great to create a certain atmosphere or mood. Yes. Would it be great to listen to live. Definitely.
My god what an album. I do appreciate that this is not the most experimental Miles Davis album, and it's just some good normal jazz. I'm not that into the world yet and this is a good starting point I think. Great album.
Lovely jazz. None of the songs stuck out to me in particular, but excellent study music.
59 Birth of The Cool - Miles Davis 12 tracks. I've listened to a lot of rubbish recently & while I'm no Jazz connoisseur, this was just what I needed today. Music that could just transport you away. It's dated, but in a good way. I'm not sure how you could not like this. 4/5
This is sneaky. I spent the first half doing something while listening and thought it was just ok. Unemotional, smoove jaz. But this kind of music rewards attention. Way better if you focus on it.
Very pleasant. Songs are the perfect length, lots of interesting musical themes and patterns. Solid 7/10.
Nothing wrong with a little Miles Davis, and this album doesn't disappoint. Jazzy in a way that makes you want to listen to it again, although I don't feel compelled to immediately repeat it. Feels like a 4-star album to me.
Quite enjoyable. No individual track stood out to me, but it was a smooth and relaxing ride the whole way through. For me, at least, it's more the kind of music that's meant to be enjoyed in the background as you do something else, rather than something you listen to just for the pleasure of it; for that reason, I thought about giving it a 3, but I think it's juuuuuust good enough it can sneak its way in as a 4/5.
Love the low reviews from people hearing *this* phase of Miles Davis and going “whoa, mister wacky jazz, you’re going way over my head with this!”
Look I get it, it miles fuckin Davis, but I cant say that I would listen to any of these songs
First time of listening and a little embarrassment for not having listened to it before. So Miles went from Be-Bop to Cool Jazz in this one recording, it is amazing how smooth the nonet are across all the tracks, like they have been playing together forever. Loved "Moon Dreams" "Deception" "Godchild" and "Boplicity". It is amazing how modern and relevant these tunes sound today. It just goes to show how ahead of their times Miles and Gerry Mulligan et al were in the late 40's Early 50's. Yup this is one that is justifiably on the list I think. Cool Cats indeed!
Best Song: Moon Dreams. Although I usually prefer my jazz upbeat, this song is the absolute definition of cool. Worst Song: Venus De Milo. A just okay track sandwiched between two far better ones. Overall: Sometimes an album title just fits. This whole album is undeniably cool, suffused with a sort of suave but understated confidence. This is lean back, pour a stiff drink type jazz.
Birth of the Cool by Miles Davis (1957) This is a fine album by Miles Davis. But it isn’t the familiar Miles Davis of Kind of Blue (1959) or Bitches Brew (1970). This is the early Miles Davis of 1949-1950 (although it wasn’t released until 1957, by which time Davis was already developing way beyond). On this album, instead of hearing Davis’ familiar trumpet leading small and sparingly arranged jazz combo, we get jazz arrangements for nonet (nine-piece band), including the standard instruments of trumpet, drums, bass, piano, two saxophones (alto & baritone), and trombone, but also the rather unexpected tuba and French horn. Nasty critics would have you think this was due to Davis’ inability to keep up with Dizzy Gillespie. Poo. Please note that the title of this album is not “The Birth of Cool”. It is “Birth of the Cool”. And there’s a big difference. Davis would not be so pretentious as to claim that his distinct and original compositional style was the first to be described as “cool” (in our conventional sense). Rather, the album title describes jazz that stays in the ‘cool’ range of the ‘musical color’ spectrum—violets, blues and greens—avoiding the fiery and bombastic reds, oranges, and yellows of ‘hot’ jazz like big band, swing, and bebop. This ‘birth of the cool’ had a long period of living gestation in the mode of unresolved chords and tensionless harmonies from Impressionist composers like Fanelli, Sibelius, Respighi, Ravel, and Debussy (although this last one would deny it). Also, this music sounds more like soft pastels and less like bold and vivid primary colors. More like Claude Monet and less like Joan Miró (Do an internet search of images for these two painters to see what I mean—it can’t adequately be described in words). That said, this music is highly intelligent and extraordinarily well done, even if the idiosyncratic tuba and French horn sound out of place to twenty-first century ears. It is compositionally complex, of course, but it avoids the extremes in range and dynamics, staying within the ‘comfort zone’ of each performer, even to point of having horn players ‘underblow’ to achieve mood and orchestral blend. The overall effect is casual and comfortable. Steady tempos here are best followed by tapping forefinger to thumb rather than trying to use your feet. Keep focused on the melodic lines, leaving chord changes to the experts (not me, anyway). If you’re curious to follow the chord progressions, listen to the piano on this record. That’s its basic function. Flaws are evident, of course, including flubbed notes and some intonation struggles within such a disparate ensemble. And overall, there seems to be a lack of variety, but that shouldn’t prevent an honestly enjoyable experience. Please listen to this one! 4/5
very quality!! Jazz is very impressive, both in the skill needed to play it, and in the imagination required to compose it
I mean. This is a turning point album, hugely influential- the ‘birth’ of something new. It’s not perfect, it feels a little out together. But it’s bloody cool.
I listened to it while working and totally enjoyed it. Honestly, hearing Anita talk and rave about it and how unique it is among jazz albums elevated it in my mind.
A dense and energetic album, that has added to my snowballing desire to delve more deeply into the world of Jazz. Two things stand out to my extremely untrained jazz-listening ears. The musical agility of each performer is incredible. My hands and lungs ache just thinking about the endurance and precision of movement and breath involved to play these parts. This stands out clearly in the tracks 'Move', 'Budo' and more subtly in 'Israel'. The band is cohesive and perfectly aligned with one another. Their level of collective coordination, even amongst the most frenetic parts of the songs, reveals their dedication to the craft. I can't really point to anyone track as showcasing this more than any other, as I feel like it's evident at all points, in all tracks.
Who knew Miles Davis released music in 1957? Looking at discography, his 1st album was in 1951. Just did not know it was that old. Great background jazz. Nothing like what is cut nowadays, but found to be soothing and top notch. B
i think the album's title defines it, no? it's beautiful, and so smooth. the trumpet, the drums... it's magnificent! this is good to listen to at the end of the day, or during the work day! i quite enjoyed it. perhaps the only draw back of the album is "darn that dream"! when the vocals begin, it's quite shocking for an otherwise entirely instrumental album.
**5/18/2022 - ALBUM #111** https://open.spotify.com/album/3wG8DcAJVgr7sbWNvKanzS?si=VUbVk0vsSq-0NBq-Brktcg Today's Album: "Birth Of The Cool" by Miles Davis - Miles Davis is just one of those names you hear all the time if you've ever been part of a jazz band, and it's for damn good reason. His jazz arrangements are some of the cleanest, most stylish, and smoothest sounding in my opinion. Plus, his trumpet playing; what could I possibly say about his trumpet playing other than he will probably always sit as one of the top 10 best trumpet players of all time. The production on this album is absolutely stellar for being from the late 50s and it really gives me a perspective of just what was possible back then sonically. The band are really all in tune with each other while still maintaining this very loose feel to each track. There are some minor biffs and cracks from both the saxophones and trumpets, but I actually think it adds a really live feel to it and the mistakes feel simply human. Not every track stands out as an absolute banger or anything, but every good Jazz album will have downtime to add to the flow of the project and this record does it very well. Overall, this is a really great album and it deserves to be in anyone's background-music rotation. There's a reason Miles Davis's music is so celebrated and this album displays exactly what that is. Listen to this one if you like some nice Jazz to have on in the background and don't care too much about, "perfection" in the performances. Highlights: Move, Jeru, Venus De Milo, Budo, Boplicity, Rocker, Isreal, Score: 7.5/10 Great trumpet-focused jazz
Amazing album. Considering the time it was recorded, it is a ground breaker. Opening the jazz to new sounds and styles. It really transport me to an incredible peace on mind.
A wonderfully flowing jazz album that can be played at any time of the day or the night, it will always be good. For me, it's not a jazz essential, but definitely a must for any Miles Davis fans.
I'm not the biggest Jazz connoisseur, but I'm rarely disapoint when I listen to a classic album, especially when it come to Miles Davis.