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''Kind of Blue'' is a studio album by American
jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a majo ...
trumpeter, composer, and bandleader
Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of musi ...
. It was recorded on March 2 and April 22, 1959, at Columbia's 30th Street Studio in New York City, and released on August 17 of that year by
Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...
. For the recording, Davis led a sextet featuring saxophonists
John Coltrane John William Coltrane (September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967) was an American jazz saxophonist, bandleader and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Born and rai ...
and Julian "Cannonball" Adderley, pianist
Bill Evans William John Evans (August 16, 1929 – September 15, 1980) was an American jazz pianist and composer who worked primarily as the leader of his trio. His use of impressionist harmony, interpretation of traditional jazz repertoire, block ch ...
, bassist Paul Chambers, and drummer
Jimmy Cobb Wilbur James "Jimmy" Cobb (January 20, 1929May 24, 2020) was an American jazz drummer. He was part of Miles Davis's First Great Sextet. At the time of his death, he had been the band's last surviving member for nearly thirty years. He was a ...
, with new band pianist Wynton Kelly appearing on one track – " Freddie Freeloader" – in place of Evans. Influenced in part by Evans, who had joined the ensemble in 1958, Davis departed further from his early
hard bop Hard bop is a subgenre of jazz that is an extension of bebop (or "bop") music. Journalists and record companies began using the term in the mid-1950s to describe a new current within jazz that incorporated influences from rhythm and blues, gosp ...
style in favor of greater experimentation with musical modes, as on his previous album '' Milestones'' (1958). Basing ''Kind of Blue'' entirely on modality, he gave each performer a set of scales that encompassed the parameters of their improvisation and style, and consequently more creative freedom with melodies; Coltrane later expanded on this modal approach in his own solo career. ''Kind of Blue'' is regarded by many critics as Davis's masterpiece, the greatest jazz record, and one of the best albums of all time. Its impact on music, including jazz, rock, and classical genres, has led writers to also deem it one of the most influential albums ever recorded. The album was one of fifty recordings chosen in 2002 by the
Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The librar ...
to be added to the
National Recording Registry The National Recording Registry is a list of sound recordings that "are culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant, and/or inform or reflect life in the United States." The registry was established by the National Recording Preservati ...
, and in 2003 it was ranked number 12 on ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its co ...
'' magazine's list of the
500 greatest albums of all time * Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time * NME's The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" is a 2013 special issue of British magazine '' NME'', available digitally or in newsstands on October 23. The li ...
. In 2019, ''Kind of Blue'' was certified 5× Platinum by the
Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/ ...
(RIAA) for shipments of at least five million copies.


Background

By late 1958, trumpeter
Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of musi ...
employed one of the most acclaimed and profitable
hard bop Hard bop is a subgenre of jazz that is an extension of bebop (or "bop") music. Journalists and record companies began using the term in the mid-1950s to describe a new current within jazz that incorporated influences from rhythm and blues, gosp ...
bands. Bassist Paul Chambers had been with the band from its beginning in 1955; alto saxophonist Julian "Cannonball" Adderley joined in late 1957, and tenor saxophonist
John Coltrane John William Coltrane (September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967) was an American jazz saxophonist, bandleader and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Born and rai ...
returned in early 1958. Drummer
Jimmy Cobb Wilbur James "Jimmy" Cobb (January 20, 1929May 24, 2020) was an American jazz drummer. He was part of Miles Davis's First Great Sextet. At the time of his death, he had been the band's last surviving member for nearly thirty years. He was a ...
replaced Philly Joe Jones in May 1958, and pianist Wynton Kelly replaced
Bill Evans William John Evans (August 16, 1929 – September 15, 1980) was an American jazz pianist and composer who worked primarily as the leader of his trio. His use of impressionist harmony, interpretation of traditional jazz repertoire, block ch ...
in November 1958. The Davis band played a mixture of pop standards, blues, and
bebop Bebop or bop is a style of jazz developed in the early-to-mid-1940s in the United States. The style features compositions characterized by a fast tempo, complex chord progressions with rapid chord changes and numerous changes of key, instrum ...
originals by composers such as
Charlie Parker Charles Parker Jr. (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), nicknamed "Bird" or "Yardbird", was an American jazz saxophonist, band leader and composer. Parker was a highly influential soloist and leading figure in the development of bebop, a form ...
,
Thelonious Monk Thelonious Sphere Monk (, October 10, 1917 – February 17, 1982) was an American jazz pianist and composer. He had a unique improvisational style and made numerous contributions to the standard jazz repertoire, including " 'Round Midnight", ...
, Dizzy Gillespie, Davis, and Tadd Dameron. As with all bebop-based jazz, Davis's groups
improvised Improvisation is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. Improvisation in the performing arts is a very spontaneous performance without specific or scripted preparation. The skills of impr ...
on the
chord Chord may refer to: * Chord (music), an aggregate of musical pitches sounded simultaneously ** Guitar chord a chord played on a guitar, which has a particular tuning * Chord (geometry), a line segment joining two points on a curve * Chord ( ...
changes of a given song.Kahn, pp. 86–87. Davis was one of many jazz musicians growing dissatisfied with bebop, however, and saw its increasingly complex chord changes as hindering creativity. In 1953, the pianist George Russell published his '' Lydian Chromatic Concept of Tonal Organization'', Russell, George. ''Lydian Chromatic Concept of Tonal Organization''. New York: Russ-Hix Music Pub. Co.
Library of Congress Catalog Record available
lccn.loc.gov/unk84111092

''Lydian Chromatic Concept of Tonal Organization'' website located
www.lydianchromaticconcept.com

Author George Russell's website located
www.georgerussell.com
/span>
which offered an alternative to improvisation based on chords. Abandoning the traditional major and minor key relationships, his concept introduced the idea of chord/scale unity and was the first theory to explore the vertical relationship between chords and scales, and the only original theory to come from jazz. These insights helped lead the way to
modal jazz Modal jazz is jazz that makes use of musical modes, often modulating among them to accompany the chords instead of relying on one tonal center used across the piece. Although precedents exist, modal jazz was crystallized as a theory by compose ...
. Influenced by Russell's ideas, Davis implemented his first modal composition with the title track of his studio album '' Milestones'' (1958). Satisfied with the results, Davis prepared an entire album based on modality. Evans, who had studied with Russell but had left the Davis group to pursue his career, was drafted back into the project.


Recording

''Kind of Blue'' was recorded on three-track tape in two sessions at
Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...
' 30th Street Studio in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...
. On March 2, 1959, the tracks "
So What So What may refer to: Law * Demurrer, colloquially called a "So what?" pleading Music Albums * ''So What'' (Anti-Nowhere League album) or the 1981 title song (see below), 2000 * '' So What?: Early Demos and Live Abuse'', by Anti-Nowhere League ...
", " Freddie Freeloader", and " Blue in Green" were recorded for side one of the original LP, and on April 22 the tracks " All Blues" and "Flamenco Sketches" were recorded, making up side two. As was Davis's penchant, he called for almost no rehearsal and the musicians had little idea what they were to record. As described in the original liner notes by pianist Bill Evans, Davis had only given the band sketches of scales and melody lines on which to improvise. Once the musicians were assembled, Davis gave brief instructions for each piece and then set to taping the sextet in studio. While the results were impressive with so little preparation, the persistent legend that the entire album was recorded in one pass is untrue. Only "Flamenco Sketches" yielded a complete take on the first try. That take, which is not the master, was added to the 1997 CD reissue of the album as a bonus track. The five master takes issued were the only other complete takes; an insert for the ending to "Freddie Freeloader" was recorded, but was not used for release or on the issues of ''Kind of Blue'' prior to the 1997 reissue.Khan, Ashley. ''Kind of Blue: The Making of the Miles Davis Masterpiece''. New York: Da Capo Press, 2000; p. 111. Pianist Wynton Kelly may not have been happy to see the man he replaced, Bill Evans, back in his old seat. Perhaps to assuage the pianist's feelings, Davis had Kelly play instead of Evans on the album's most blues-oriented number, "Freddie Freeloader". The live album '' Miles Davis at Newport 1958'' documents this band. However, the
Newport Jazz Festival The Newport Jazz Festival is an annual American multi-day jazz music festival held every summer in Newport, Rhode Island. Elaine Lorillard established the festival in 1954, and she and husband Louis Lorillard financed it for many years. They hi ...
recording on July 3, 1958, reflects the band in its hard bop conception, the presence of Bill Evans only six weeks into his brief tenure in the Davis band notwithstanding, rather than the modal approach of ''Kind of Blue''.


Production credit

''Kind of Blue'' was produced by
Columbia Columbia may refer to: * Columbia (personification), the historical female national personification of the United States, and a poetic name for America Places North America Natural features * Columbia Plateau, a geologic and geographic region in ...
staff producer Irving Townsend. However, over the years there has been confusion, with Davis's subsequent producer
Teo Macero Attilio Joseph "Teo" Macero (October 30, 1925 – February 19, 2008) was an American jazz saxophonist, composer, and record producer. He was a producer at Columbia Records for twenty years. Macero produced Miles Davis' '' Bitches Brew'', and ...
getting partial or full credit. "In the case of ''Kind of Blue'' there were two producers: Teo Macero and Irving Townsend", said jazz historian Eric Nisenson. "Macero's role, however, was clearly that of an apprentice and observer." The recording session was also cited by Nisenson as Macero's first experience with "the highs and lows of working with Miles." From Macero's own recollection, his involvement in the recording included "box ngeveryone in so that there would be a physical closeness among the musicians, not like today when the musicians are spread all over the place." According to '' High Fidelity'', "though his role in ''Kind of Blue'' has been disputed", the recording was "made under the auspices" of Macero. However, it is Townsend's voice heard on the session tapes, who became Davis's producer after the departures of George Avakian and
Cal Lampley Cal Lampley (March 4, 1924 – July 6, 2006) was an American composer and record producer. Lampley was born in Dunn, NC. as the second child of Hettie Marina and William Lorenzo Lampley, and had a brother named William Elwood. He graduated with ...
. Macero did not produce Davis until after Townsend took over West Coast production duties for Columbia Records, when Macero took his place. Macero's first Davis production was his next record, '' Sketches of Spain''. The original LP did not credit a producer.''Kind of Blue''. Columbia LP CL 1355, 1959. The first release with a producer credit was the 1987 CD, which credited only Macero. However, this was in error; Macero only produced that reissue, not the sessions for the original album. The 1997 MiniDisc reissue credited both Townsend and Macero, but the subsequent 1997, 1999, 2004, 2008, and 2015 reissues all correctly credit only Townsend.


Composition

''Kind of Blue'' is based entirely on modality, diverging from Davis's earlier
hard bop Hard bop is a subgenre of jazz that is an extension of bebop (or "bop") music. Journalists and record companies began using the term in the mid-1950s to describe a new current within jazz that incorporated influences from rhythm and blues, gosp ...
style of jazz with its complex
chord progression In a musical composition, a chord progression or harmonic progression (informally chord changes, used as a plural) is a succession of chords. Chord progressions are the foundation of harmony in Western musical tradition from the common practice ...
and
improvisation Improvisation is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. Improvisation in the performing arts is a very spontaneous performance without specific or scripted preparation. The skills of impr ...
. The entire album was a series of ''modal sketches'', with each performer given a set of scales that encompassed the parameters of their improvisation and style. This recording style contrasted with the typical preparation of providing musicians with the complete score or, for improvisational jazz, providing the musicians with a
chord progression In a musical composition, a chord progression or harmonic progression (informally chord changes, used as a plural) is a succession of chords. Chord progressions are the foundation of harmony in Western musical tradition from the common practice ...
or series of
harmonies In music, harmony is the process by which individual sounds are joined together or composed into whole units or compositions. Often, the term harmony refers to simultaneously occurring frequencies, pitches ( tones, notes), or chords. Howeve ...
. Modal jazz was not unique to this album. Davis himself had previously used the same method on his 1958 '' Milestones'' album, the '''58 Sessions'', and ''
Porgy and Bess ''Porgy and Bess'' () is an English-language opera by American composer George Gershwin, with a libretto written by author DuBose Heyward and lyricist Ira Gershwin. It was adapted from Dorothy Heyward and DuBose Heyward's play ''Porgy'', its ...
'' (1958), on which he used modal influences for collaborator Gil Evans's third stream compositions. Modal composition, with its reliance on scales and modes, represented, as Davis called it, "a return to melody." In a 1958 interview with Nat Hentoff of '' The Jazz Review'', Davis elaborated on this form of composition in contrast to the chord progression predominant in bebop, stating
No chords ... gives you a lot more freedom and space to hear things. When you go this way, you can go on forever. You don't have to worry about changes and you can do more with the elodyline. It becomes a challenge to see how melodically innovative you can be. When you're based on chords, you know at the end of 32 bars that the chords have run out and there's nothing to do but repeat what you've just done—with variations. I think a movement in jazz is beginning away from the conventional string of chords ... there will be fewer chords but infinite possibilities as to what to do with them.
Bill Evans wrote in the LP liner notes, "Miles conceived these settings only hours before the recording dates."Palmer (1997), pp. 4–7. Evans continued with an introduction concerning the modes used in each composition on the album. "
So What So What may refer to: Law * Demurrer, colloquially called a "So what?" pleading Music Albums * ''So What'' (Anti-Nowhere League album) or the 1981 title song (see below), 2000 * '' So What?: Early Demos and Live Abuse'', by Anti-Nowhere League ...
" consists of two modes: sixteen measures of the first, followed by eight measures of the second, and then eight again of the first. " Freddie Freeloader" is a standard
twelve-bar blues The 12-bar blues (or blues changes) is one of the most prominent chord progressions in popular music. The blues progression has a distinctive form in lyrics, phrase, chord structure, and duration. In its basic form, it is predominantly based on ...
form. " Blue in Green" consists of a ten-measure cycle following a short four-measure introduction. " All Blues" is a twelve-bar blues form in time. "Flamenco Sketches" consists of five scales, which are each played "as long as the soloist wishes until he has completed the series". The liner notes list Davis as author of all compositions, but many scholars and fans believe that Bill Evans wrote part or the whole of "Blue in Green" and "Flamenco Sketches". Bill Evans assumed co-credit with Davis for "Blue in Green" when recording it on his ''
Portrait in Jazz ''Portrait in Jazz'' is an album by American jazz pianist Bill Evans, released in 1960. It is the first of only two studio albums to be recorded with his famous trio featuring bassist Scott LaFaro and drummer Paul Motian. History Eight months ...
'' album and the Davis estate acknowledged Evans' authorship in 2002.


Reception and legacy

Since its release on August 17, 1959, ''Kind of Blue'' has been regarded by critics as Davis's greatest work. It is his most acclaimed album, and became, along with Davis's 1970 album '' Bitches Brew'', his best-selling record, cementing him as one of the most successful jazz artists in history. Music writer Chris Morris cited ''Kind of Blue'' as "the distillation of Davis's art."Morris, Chris
Review: ''Kind of Blue''
Yahoo! Music Yahoo! Music was a brand under which Yahoo! provided a variety of music services, including Internet radio, music videos, news, artist information, and original programming. Previously, users with Yahoo! accounts could gain access to hundreds o ...
. Retrieved July 20, 2009.
Cobb said the album "must have been made in heaven". ''Kind of Blue'' has been lauded as one of the most influential albums in the history of jazz. One reviewer has called it a "defining moment of twentieth century music." Several of the songs from the album have become jazz standards. ''Kind of Blue'' is consistently ranked among the greatest albums of all time. In a review of the album,
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the dat ...
senior editor
Stephen Thomas Erlewine Stephen Thomas Erlewine (; born June 18, 1973) is an American music critic and senior editor for the online music database AllMusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for AllMusic, as well as a freelance writer, oc ...
stated: In 1958, the arrival of
Ornette Coleman Randolph Denard Ornette Coleman (March 9, 1930 – June 11, 2015) was an American jazz saxophonist, violinist, trumpeter, and composer known as a principal founder of the free jazz genre, a term derived from his 1960 album '' Free Jazz: A Col ...
on the jazz scene via his fall residency at the Five Spot club, consolidated by the release of his '' The Shape of Jazz to Come'' LP in 1959, muted the initial impact of ''Kind of Blue'', a happenstance that irritated Davis greatly. Though Davis and Coleman both offered alternatives to the rigid rules of bebop, Davis would never reconcile himself to Coleman's
free jazz Free jazz is an experimental approach to jazz improvisation that developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s when musicians attempted to change or break down jazz conventions, such as regular tempos, tones, and chord changes. Musicians dur ...
innovations, although he would incorporate musicians amenable to Coleman's ideas with his great quintet of the mid-1960s, and offer his own version of "free" playing with his
jazz fusion Jazz fusion (also known as fusion and progressive jazz) is a music genre that developed in the late 1960s when musicians combined jazz harmony and improvisation with rock music, funk, and rhythm and blues. Electric guitars, amplifiers, and key ...
outfits in the 1970s. The influence of ''Kind of Blue'' did build, and all of the sidemen from the album went on to achieve success on their own. Evans formed his influential jazz trio with bassist Scott LaFaro and drummer Paul Motian; "Cannonball" Adderley fronted popular bands with his brother
Nat Nat or NAT may refer to: Computing * Network address translation (NAT), in computer networking Organizations * National Actors Theatre, New York City, U.S. * National AIDS trust, a British charity * National Archives of Thailand * National ...
; Kelly, Chambers and Cobb continued as a touring unit, recording under Kelly's name as well as in support of Coltrane and
Wes Montgomery John Leslie "Wes" Montgomery (March 6, 1923 – June 15, 1968) was an American jazz guitarist. Montgomery was known for an unusual technique of plucking the strings with the side of his thumb and his extensive use of octaves, which gave him a dist ...
, among others; and Coltrane went on to become one of the most revered and innovative of all jazz musicians. Even more than Davis, Coltrane took the modal approach and ran with it during his career as a leader in the 1960s, leavening his music with Coleman's ideas as the decade progressed. One of the most acclaimed records of all-time, ''Kind of Blue'' frequently appears on professional listings of the greatest albums. In 1994, it was ranked number one in Colin Larkin's '' Top 100 Jazz Albums''. Larkin described it as "the greatest jazz album in the world". In 2002, it was one of 50 recordings chosen that year by the
Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The librar ...
to be added to the
National Recording Registry The National Recording Registry is a list of sound recordings that "are culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant, and/or inform or reflect life in the United States." The registry was established by the National Recording Preservati ...
. In selecting the album as number 12 on its 2003 list of the 500 greatest albums of all time, maintaining the rating in a 2012 revised list, ''Rolling Stone'' magazine stated: "This painterly masterpiece is one of the most important, influential and popular albums in jazz". The rating descended to number 31 in ''Rolling Stone's'' revised list in 2020. On December 16, 2009, the
United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together the ...
passed a resolution honoring the 50th anniversary of ''Kind of Blue'' and "reaffirming jazz as a national treasure".Jarenwattananon, Patrick
The U.S. Congress and the 'Kind of Blue' Blues
NPR. Retrieved December 22, 2009.
It is included in the 2005 book '' 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die'', described by reviewer Seth Jacobson as "a genre-defining moment in twentieth-century music, period.". It was voted number 14 in Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums 3rd Edition (2000). ''
The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings ''The Penguin Guide to Jazz'' is a reference work containing an encyclopedic directory of jazz recordings on CD which were (at the time of publication) currently available in Europe or the United States. The first nine editions were compiled by ...
'' lists the album as part of its suggested “core collection”, and also awards it a crown, indicating a recording of particular merit. Based on such honors and listings, the aggregate website
Acclaimed Music Acclaimed Music is a website created by Henrik Franzon, a statistician from Stockholm, Sweden in September 2001. Franzon has statistically aggregated hundreds of published lists that rank songs and albums into aggregated rankings by year, dec ...
ranks ''Kind of Blue'' as the 29th most acclaimed album in history. ''Kind of Blue'' remains popular with listeners. Between 1991 (when
Nielsen SoundScan Luminate (formerly Nielsen SoundScan, Nielsen Music Products, and MRC Data) is a provider of music sales data. Established by Mike Fine and Mike Shalett in 1991, data is collected weekly and made available every Sunday (for albums sales) and eve ...
started tracking sales) and 2016, the album sold 3.6 million copies in the US. In 2019, the
Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/ ...
(RIAA) certified the album five-times platinum, indicating five million units recorded there.


Influence

The album's influence has reached beyond jazz, as musicians of such genres as rock and classical have been influenced by it, while critics have written about it as one of the most influential albums of all time. Many improvisatory rock musicians of the 1960s referred to ''Kind of Blue'' for inspiration, along with other Davis albums, as well as Coltrane's modal records '' My Favorite Things'' (1961) and '' A Love Supreme'' (1965). Guitarist Duane Allman of
the Allman Brothers Band The Allman Brothers Band was an American rock band formed in Jacksonville, Florida in 1969 by brothers Duane Allman (founder, slide guitar and lead guitar) and Gregg Allman (vocals, keyboards, songwriting), as well as Dickey Betts (lead guit ...
said his soloing on songs such as '' In Memory of Elizabeth Reed'', "comes from Miles and Coltrane, and particularly ''Kind of Blue''. I've listened to that album so many times that for the past couple of years, I haven't hardly listened to anything else."
Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philosophical lyrics an ...
keyboardist Richard Wright said that the chord progressions on the album influenced the structure of the introductory chords to the song " Breathe" on the album ''
The Dark Side of the Moon ''The Dark Side of the Moon'' is the eighth studio album by the English rock band Pink Floyd, released on 1 March 1973 by Harvest Records. The album was primarily developed during live performances, and the band premiered an early version of ...
'' (1973). In his book ''Kind of Blue: The Making of a Miles Davis Masterpiece'', writer
Ashley Kahn Ashley Kahn is an American music historian, journalist, and producer. Kahn graduated from Columbia University in 1983. In 2014, Kahn co-authored the autobiography of Carlos Santana, titled ''The Universal Tone: Bringing My Story To Light''. To dat ...
wrote "still acknowledged as the height of hip, four decades after it was recorded, ''Kind of Blue'' is the premier album of its era, jazz or otherwise. Its vapory piano introduction is universally recognized".Kahn, p. 19. Producer
Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (born March 14, 1933) is an American record producer, musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and film and television producer. His career spans 70 years in the entertainment industry with a record of 80 Grammy Award n ...
, one of Davis's longtime friends, wrote: "That 'Kind of Blue''will always be my music, man. I play ''Kind of Blue'' every day—it's my orange juice. It still sounds like it was made yesterday". Pianist
Chick Corea Armando Anthony "Chick" Corea (June 12, 1941 – February 9, 2021) was an American jazz composer, pianist, keyboardist, bandleader, and occasional percussionist. His compositions "Spain", "500 Miles High", "La Fiesta", "Armando's Rhumba", and " ...
, one of Miles's acolytes, was also struck by its majesty, later stating "It's one thing to just play a tune, or play a program of music, but it's another thing to practically create a new language of music, which is what ''Kind of Blue'' did."
Gary Burton Gary Burton (born January 23, 1943) is an American jazz vibraphonist, composer, and educator. Burton developed a pianistic style of four-mallet technique as an alternative to the prevailing two-mallet technique. This approach caused him to be h ...
, of
Berklee College of Music Berklee College of Music is a private music college in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern American music, it also offers college-level cou ...
, noted the consistent innovation present throughout the album, stating: "It wasn't just one tune that was a breakthrough, it was the whole record. When new jazz styles come along, the first few attempts to do it are usually kind of shaky. Early Charlie Parker records were like this. But with ''Kind of Blue''
he sextet He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' in ...
all sound like they're fully into it." Along with ''
Time Out Time-out, Time Out, or timeout may refer to: Time * Time-out (sport), in various sports, a break in play, called by a team * Television timeout, a break in sporting action so that a commercial break may be taken * Timeout (computing), an enginee ...
'' by the
Dave Brubeck Quartet David Warren Brubeck (; December 6, 1920 – December 5, 2012) was an American jazz pianist and composer. Often regarded as a foremost exponent of cool jazz, Brubeck's work is characterized by unusual time signatures and superimposing contrasti ...
(1959) and Coltrane's '' Giant Steps'' (1960), ''Kind of Blue'' has often been recommended by music writers as an introductory jazz album, for similar reasons: the music on both records is very melodic, and the relaxed quality of the songs makes the
improvisation Improvisation is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. Improvisation in the performing arts is a very spontaneous performance without specific or scripted preparation. The skills of impr ...
easy for listeners to follow, without sacrificing artistry or experimentation. Upon the release of the 50th anniversary collector's edition of the album, a columnist for ''
All About Jazz ''All About Jazz'' is a website established by Michael Ricci in 1995. A volunteer staff publishes news, album reviews, articles, videos, and listings of concerts and other events having to do with jazz. Ricci maintains a related site, ''Jazz Near ...
'' stated "''Kind of Blue'' heralded the arrival of a revolutionary new American music, a post-bebop modal jazz structured around simple scales and melodic improvisation. Trumpeter/band leader/composer Miles Davis assembled a sextet of legendary players to create a sublime atmospheric masterpiece. Fifty years after its release, ''Kind of Blue'' continues to transport listeners to a realm all its own while inspiring musicians to create to new sounds—from acoustic jazz to post-modern ambient—in every genre imaginable."Jazz News: Miles Davis – Kind of Blue: 50th Anniversary Collectors Edition Coming in September
. All About Jazz. Retrieved September 20, 2008.
Renowned hip-hop artist and rapper Q-Tip reaffirmed the album's reputation and influence when discussing the significance of ''Kind of Blue'', stating "It's like the
Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts o ...
—you just have one in your house." The singer Bilal names it among his 25 favorite albums and "an important record" for him. The 2014 album ''Blue'' by Mostly Other People Do the Killing is a note-for-note reproduction of ''Kind of Blue''. The ''Kind of Blue'' musicians appeared together in further recorded ventures through the 1960s. Davis had made a rare post-1953 sideman appearance in 1958 on Adderley's '' Somethin' Else'' album; Evans and Adderley collaborated on the latter's LP '' Know What I Mean?'' from 1961. Kelly and Chambers backed
Hank Mobley Henry "Hank" Mobley (July 7, 1930 – May 30, 1986) was an American hard bop and soul jazz tenor saxophonist and composer. Mobley was described by Leonard Feather as the "middleweight champion of the tenor saxophone", a metaphor used to des ...
on '' Soul Station'' in 1960, and Evans and Chambers played on the sessions for '' The Blues and the Abstract Truth'' by
Oliver Nelson Oliver Edward Nelson (June 4, 1932 – October 28, 1975) was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, arranger, composer, and bandleader. His 1961 Impulse! album '' The Blues and the Abstract Truth'' (1961) is regarded as one of the most signifi ...
in 1961. The rhythm section of Kelly, Chambers, and Cobb backed Coltrane for '' Coltrane Jazz'' and one track on his landmark ''Giant Steps'', which featured Chambers throughout. That trio stayed with Davis for the recordings ''
Someday My Prince Will Come "Someday My Prince Will Come" is a song from Walt Disney's 1937 animated movie ''Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs''. It was written by Larry Morey (lyrics) & Frank Churchill (music), and performed by Adriana Caselotti (Snow White's voice in the mo ...
'' and the live sets at the Blackhawk and at Carnegie Hall.


Davis in retrospect

Late in his life, from the electric period on, Davis repeatedly disregarded his earlier work, such as the music of '' Birth of the Cool'' or ''Kind of Blue''. In Davis's view, remaining static stylistically was the wrong option. When Shirley Horn insisted, in 1990, that Davis reconsider playing the gentle ballads and modal tunes of his ''Kind of Blue'' period, he demurred: "Nah, it hurts my lip."


Release history

''Kind of Blue'' was released as a 12-inch
vinyl record A phonograph record (also known as a gramophone record, especially in British English), or simply a record, is an analog sound storage medium in the form of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove. The groove usually starts near ...
, in both
stereo Stereophonic sound, or more commonly stereo, is a method of sound reproduction that recreates a multi-directional, 3-dimensional audible perspective. This is usually achieved by using two independent audio channels through a configuration ...
and mono. There have been multiple reissues of ''Kind of Blue'', with additional pressings throughout the vinyl era. On some editions, the label switched the order for the two tracks on side two, "All Blues" and "Flamenco Sketches". The album has been remastered many times during the
compact disc The compact disc (CD) is a digital optical disc data storage format that was co-developed by Philips and Sony to store and play digital audio recordings. In August 1982, the first compact disc was manufactured. It was then released in Octo ...
era, including in 1982 by CBS/Sony Japan catalog number 35DP 62 and the 1986 Columbia ''Jazz Masterpieces'' reissue.Discogs.com – Search: Miles Davis – Kind Of Blue
Discogs. Retrieved on August 11, 2008.
The significant 1992 remaster corrected the original recording speed for side one, which had caused all prior releases to be slightly off- pitch. The 1997 reissue added the alternative take of "Flamenco Sketches". In 2005, a
DualDisc The DualDisc is a type of double-sided optical disc product developed by a group of record companies including MJJ Productions Inc., EMI Music, Universal Music Group, Sony BMG Music Entertainment, Warner Music Group, and 5.1 Entertainment Group a ...
release included the original album, a digital remastering in
5.1 Surround Sound 5.1 surround sound ("five-point one") is the common name for surround sound audio systems. 5.1 is the most commonly used layout in home theatres. It uses five full bandwidth channels and one low-frequency effects channel (the "point one"). Dolb ...
and LPCM Stereo, and a 25-minute documentary ''Made in Heaven'' about the making and influence of ''Kind of Blue''.
Kind Of Blue (Dual Disc)
', Sony, 2005.
''Kind of Blue'' was re-issued on a rare 24-carat gold CD collectors version. A two-disc CD
box set A box set or (its original name) boxed set is a set of items (for example, a compilation of books, musical recordings, films or television programs) traditionally packaged in a box and offered for sale as a single unit. Music Artists and bands ...
"50th Anniversary Collector's Edition" was released on September 30, 2008, by Columbia and Legacy. "Kind of Blue 50th Anniversary Collector's Edition" All Music. Retrieved November 23, 2008. The album was released in other audio formats, which are only available second hand. * Two-track open-reel tape (US only), Columbia GCB 60, from which "Freddie Freeloader" and "Flamenco Sketches" were omitted to reduce cost. This release was on the market less than a year and was discontinued some time after July 1961, after ''Sketches of Spain'' had been released as four-track only. Sonically, it was reportedly better than the four-track counterpart that replaced it. The rumor that the two-track version was the only one to be issued at correct speed for the tracks from the first album side is false.From Columbia tape catalogs at the time It was not issued at the correct speed.The speed error is explained in the booklet with the post-1997 remaster: the off-speed master was used for all prior releases. * Four-track open-reel tape (US only), Columbia CQ 379, as the complete five-track album. This release replaced the two-track release and remained in the Columbia catalog for a few years. Some tracks are available on other reel tapes issued current at the time of or following the original release of the album, as by Various Artists. None issued were at the correct speed. "All Blues" is included on the ''Greatest Hits'' album. * Armed Forces Radio and Television Service 16-inch transcription discs. These are monaural and the track on side P-6925 marked "Flamenco Sketches" actually holds "All Blues". None issued were at the correct speed. * Philips
Compact Cassette The Compact Cassette or Musicassette (MC), also commonly called the tape cassette, cassette tape, audio cassette, or simply tape or cassette, is an analog magnetic tape recording format for audio recording and playback. Invented by Lou Otten ...
versions of the original album prior to the Jazz Masterpiece remaster, and of the 1987 Jazz Masterpiece remaster. Neither are at the correct speed. * MiniDisc, Columbia CM 40579 (US) from a master prior to 1997, but not the Jazz Masterpiece remaster. It was unavailable by the end of the 1990s when production of Jazz Masterpiece series had ceased. It was not issued at the correct speed.


Track listing

* Sides one and two were combined as tracks 1–5 on CD reissues.


Personnel

Credits are taken from the album's
liner notes Liner notes (also sleeve notes or album notes) are the writings found on the record sleeve, sleeves of LP record albums and in booklets that come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for cassettes. Origin Liner n ...
. *
Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of musi ...
trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standar ...
* Julian "Cannonball" Adderleyalto saxophone except on "Blue in Green" and bonus disc track "So What" *
John Coltrane John William Coltrane (September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967) was an American jazz saxophonist, bandleader and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Born and rai ...
tenor saxophone The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (while ...
*
Bill Evans William John Evans (August 16, 1929 – September 15, 1980) was an American jazz pianist and composer who worked primarily as the leader of his trio. His use of impressionist harmony, interpretation of traditional jazz repertoire, block ch ...
piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a musica ...
except on "Freddie Freeloader" and bonus disc track "So What" * Wynton Kelly
piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a musica ...
on "Freddie Freeloader" and bonus disc track "So What" * Paul Chambers
double bass The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or #Terminology, by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched Bow (music), bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox addit ...
*
Jimmy Cobb Wilbur James "Jimmy" Cobb (January 20, 1929May 24, 2020) was an American jazz drummer. He was part of Miles Davis's First Great Sextet. At the time of his death, he had been the band's last surviving member for nearly thirty years. He was a ...
drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair of matching drumsticks ...


Charts


Weekly charts


Year-end charts


Certifications


See also

* 1959 in jazz *
Bebop Bebop or bop is a style of jazz developed in the early-to-mid-1940s in the United States. The style features compositions characterized by a fast tempo, complex chord progressions with rapid chord changes and numerous changes of key, instrum ...
* Third Stream


References


Bibliography

* * * * * *


External links


Miles Davis: 'Kind of Blue' program
in
National Public Radio National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from othe ...
's '' Jazz Profiles'' series
''Kind of Blue'' at MILESTONES: A Miles Davis Collector's Site

Kind of Blue: How Miles Davis Changed Jazz
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kind Of Blue 1959 albums 2008 compilation albums Albums produced by Cal Lampley Albums produced by Irving Townsend Albums produced by Michael Cuscuna Albums recorded at CBS 30th Street Studio Columbia Records albums Columbia Records compilation albums Concept albums Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients Instrumental albums Instrumental compilation albums Legacy Recordings compilation albums Miles Davis albums Modal jazz albums United States National Recording Registry recordings United States National Recording Registry albums