In A Silent Way

...as soon as you listen to it once, you're going to want the Complete Sessions boxset! :)

Listening to Miles Davis has made a jazz lover out of me. I was never crazy about jazz, but after I listened to In a Silent Way I was hooked on all of Miles Davis' music. I also love Kind of Blue, and a lot of his other music. In a Silent Way is jazz at its very best. The kind that touches the soul.

"In a Silent Way" is a pretty unbalanced record-- consisting of two sidelong tracks with a fantastic band (Wayne Shorter- sax, Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock, Joe Zawinul- keys, John McLaughlin- guitar, Dave Holland- bass, and Tony Williams- drum), the material represents beginnings of experimentation by Miles, full embracing of electronic instruments, and the first really concrete experiments in composition by tape splicing from products Teo Macero. The result is both compelling and in many ways of mixed success.

"Shhh/Peaceful" opens and closes with what is actually a solo by Miles, but of such coherence of form and fine shaping that it sounds like it could have been composed-- in the middle, fantastic playing by McLaughlin and Shorter follow, but what really matters is the vibe-- three keyboards swirl and create this sort of haze that keeps the affair relatively low key, and yet at around 18 minutes, the piece maintains interest.

The second track is a bit less interesting, Zawinul's "In a Silent Way" theme is a bit lifeless and opens and closes this, but the bridge, with its driving rhythms is superb.

This is a man whose music is very clearly in transition-- better things would come, better things had past, but there's enough magic here to make this one worth it.

'In a silent way' has the most relaxed and beautiful feel about it. The record itself just seems to amble along, with each musician subtly weaving their solos into the background of this album; creating something inexplicably warm and welcoming. It's like musical meditation. As other reviewers have mentioned, 'In a Silent Way' would be perfect for those late hours at night when the listener needs something subdued and soothing. That doesn't mean that this record is boring, however. There's an understated, unassuming brilliance about this record that makes it subtle and the height of cool. Deliciously hypnotic!

Miles' playing is beautiful and effortless, which makes it the perfect backdrop for this chilled out masterpiece. It's the spaces he leaves between the notes that makes every note he actually plays all the more significant.

This is an absolutely beautiful piece of music.

These days in music, I see white boys screaming into microphones with eye shadow on...
...Yeah... well back in '68-'69, we had real music and here is one of the prime examples of it. One of the most beautiful albums music has ever seen features Miles Davis with his new band-first up is the best of the best keyboard trio of the new guy-Chick Corea, the returning champion Herbie Hancock, and the beast from the east, Joe Zawinul-the dream team, the crem de la crem and we are just getting started! On the bass is another European genius- Briton Dave Holland who anchored the band and drove them into the cosmos. The second British guy is another fusion giant-Mr. John McLaughlin before the Tony Williams Lifetime and before Mahavishnu Orchestra, when he was another new guy, in his swan song with Miles, the Greatest Drummer who ever lived-Tony Williams(1945-1997), and last but not least, the prince of darkness, the king of cool, the baddest cat around, Miles Davis!
The first side on the album is God himself taking a podium and speaking to us. Side two is God saying how much he loves us.
That's really all you need to know folks, best album Miles ever recorded and this one is really the one he should be remembered for. Yes, Kind of Blue was also a masterpiece, but this one has a more out of this world, surreal beauty.
It is the voice of God himself...When you pray, you speak to God and In a Silent Way is one of the most beautiful ways in which he responds...
Miles Davis 1926-1991