''Directions'' is a

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several Performing arts#Performers, performers. If by one artist, then generally the tr ...

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 major ...

musician

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 music ...

, released in 1981 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 ...

. It collects previously unreleased outtakes that Davis recorded between 1960 and 1970. ''Directions'' was the last of a series of compilation albums - mostly consisting of, at that time, previously unreleased music - that Columbia released to bridge Davis' recording hiatus that ended with ''

The Man with the Horn ''The Man with the Horn'' is an album released by Miles Davis in 1981. This was Davis's first new studio album since 1972’s ''On the Corner'', his first recordings of any kind since 1975 and his first activity following a six-year retirement. T ...

'' in July 1981.

Music

''Directions'' is a

double album A double album (or double record) is an audio album that spans two units of the primary medium in which it is sold, typically either records or compact disc. A double album is usually, though not always, released as such because the recording i ...

that features previously unreleased outtakes recorded over a 10-year period by Davis. Apart from "Song of Our Country" from the recording sessions for ''

Sketches of Spain ''Sketches of Spain'' is an album by Miles Davis, recorded between November 1959 and March 1960 at the Columbia 30th Street Studio in New York City. An extended version of the second movement of Joaquín Rodrigo's ''Concierto de Aranjuez'' (1939) ...

'' (1960), a 1961 recording of " 'Round Midnight", and "So Near, So Far" from 1963, the album's songs are from Davis' transitional period during 1967 to 1970, when he was experimenting with a fusion of

and

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

. They feature

sidemen A sideman is a musician who performs live with a band of which they are not a permanent member. Sideman or Sidemen may also refer to: * Sidemen, Bali, a district in the Karangasem Regency of Bali * Sideman (bishop), a 10th-century Bishop of Cred ...

such as saxophonist

Wayne Shorter Wayne Shorter (born August 25, 1933) is an American jazz saxophonist and composer. Shorter came to prominence in the late 1950s as a member of, and eventually primary composer for, Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers. In the 1960s, he joined Miles Dav ...

, guitarist

John McLaughlin John or Jon McLaughlin may refer to: Arts and entertainment * John McLaughlin (musician) (born 1942), English jazz fusion guitarist, member of Mahavishnu Orchestra * Jon McLaughlin (musician) (born 1982), American singer-songwriter * John McLaug ...

, and keyboardists

Herbie Hancock Herbert Jeffrey Hancock (born April 12, 1940) is an American jazz pianist, keyboardist, bandleader, and composer. Hancock started his career with trumpeter Donald Byrd's group. He shortly thereafter joined the Miles Davis Quintet, where he help ...

, Joe Zawinul, and Chick Corea.

Critical reception

Reviewing in

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 databas ...

, critic Scott Yanow believed some of the tracks "rambled on a bit too long" but the music was nonetheless "mostly quite fascinating" and "highly recommendable to collectors with an open ear toward

fusion Fusion, or synthesis, is the process of combining two or more distinct entities into a new whole. Fusion may also refer to: Science and technology Physics *Nuclear fusion, multiple atomic nuclei combining to form one or more different atomic nucl ...

Track listing

All tracks by

except where noted.

Personnel

"Song of Our Country", recorded in New York, March 11, 1960. (Reissued on 1997 CD release of ''

''.) *

– trumpet, flugelhorn *

Gil Evans Ian Ernest Gilmore Evans (né Green; May 13, 1912 – March 20, 1988) was a Canadian–American jazz pianist, arranger, composer and bandleader. He is widely recognized as one of the greatest orchestrators in jazz, playing an important role ...

– arranger, conductor *

Johnny Coles John Coles (July 3, 1926 – December 21, 1997) was an American jazz trumpeter. Early life Coles was born in Trenton, New Jersey on July 3, 1926. He grew up in Philadelphia and was self-taught on trumpet. Later life and career Coles spent his ...

Bernie Glow Bernie Glow (February 6, 1926 – May 8, 1982) was an American trumpet player who specialized in jazz and commercial lead trumpet from the 1940s to 1970s. Glow's early career was on the road with Artie Shaw, Woody Herman and others during the las ...

, Ernie Royal – trumpet *

James Buffington James Lawrence Buffington (born May 15, 1922, Jersey Shore, Pennsylvania; died July 20, 1981, Englewood, New Jersey) was an Americans, American jazz, studio, and classical French horn, hornist. Buffington was a busy studio and jazz player on ...

, Tony Miranda, Joe Singer –

French horn The French horn (since the 1930s known simply as the horn in professional music circles) is a brass instrument made of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. The double horn in F/B (technically a variety of German horn) is the horn most ...

Frank Rehak Frank Rehak (July 6, 1926, in New York City – June 22, 1987 Badger, California) was an American jazz trombonist. He began on piano and cello before switching to trombone. He worked with Gil Evans and Miles Davis. He also appeared with Davis on ...

, Dick Hixon –

trombone The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the Brass instrument, brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the Standing wave, air column ...

* Bill Barber –

tuba The tuba (; ) is the lowest-pitched musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, the sound is produced by lip vibrationa buzzinto a mouthpiece. It first appeared in the mid-19th century, making it one of the ne ...

* Albert Block, Harold Feldman –

flute The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...

Danny Bank Daniel Bernard Bank (July 17, 1922 – June 5, 2010) was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, and flautist. He is credited on some releases as Danny Banks. He was born on July 17, 1922. Early in his career Bank played with Charlie Barnet ...

–

clarinet The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The instrument has a nearly cylindrical bore and a flared bell, and uses a single reed to produce sound. Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitches ...

* Jack Knitzer –

bassoon The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family, which plays in the tenor and bass ranges. It is composed of six pieces, and is usually made of wood. It is known for its distinctive tone color, wide range, versatility, and virtuo ...

* Romeo Penque –

oboe The oboe ( ) is a type of double reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common oboe plays in the treble or soprano range. A ...

* Janet Putnam –

harp The harp is a stringed musical instrument that has a number of individual strings running at an angle to its soundboard; the strings are plucked with the fingers. Harps can be made and played in various ways, standing or sitting, and in orche ...

Paul Chambers Paul Laurence Dunbar Chambers Jr. (April 22, 1935 – January 4, 1969) was an American jazz double bassist. A fixture of rhythm sections during the 1950s and 1960s, he has become one of the most widely-known jazz bassists of the hard bop era. ...

– bass *

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 Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

Elvin Jones Elvin Ray Jones (September 9, 1927 – May 18, 2004) was an American jazz drummer of the post-bop era. Most famously a member of John Coltrane's quartet, with whom he recorded from late 1960 to late 1965, Jones appeared on such widely celebrate ...

–

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...

"'Round Midnight", recorded live at "The Blackhawk" in San Francisco, April 22, 1961. (Reissued on 2003 CD release of ''

In Person Friday and Saturday Nights at the Blackhawk, Complete ''In Person Friday and Saturday Nights at the Blackhawk, Complete'', also called ''The Complete Blackhawk'', is a 2003 four-disc collection of the 1961 live performances of the Miles Davis Quintet at the Black Hawk nightclub in San Francisco. T ...

'') * Miles Davis – trumpet *

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 descr ...

–

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 th ...

Wynton Kelly Wynton Charles Kelly (December 2, 1931 – April 12, 1971) was an American jazz pianist and composer. He is known for his lively, blues-based playing and as one of the finest accompanists in jazz. He began playing professionally at the age of ...

– piano * Paul Chambers – bass * Jimmy Cobb – drums "So Near, So Far", recorded in Hollywood, Ca., April 16, 1963. (Reissued on the first CD of the 2004 box set '' Seven Steps: The Complete Columbia Recordings of Miles Davis 1963–1964'', as well as on the 2005 CD re-release of ''

Seven Steps to Heaven 7 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 7 or seven may also refer to: * AD 7, the seventh year of the AD era * 7 BC, the seventh year before the AD era * The month of July Music Artists * Seven (Swiss singer) (born 1978), a Swiss recording artis ...

''.) * Miles Davis – trumpet *

George Coleman George Edward Coleman (born March 8, 1935) is an American jazz saxophonist known for his work with Miles Davis and Herbie Hancock in the 1960s. In 2015, he was named an NEA Jazz Master. Early life Coleman was born in Memphis, Tennessee. He was ...

– tenor saxophone *

Victor Feldman Victor Stanley Feldman (7 April 1934 – 12 May 1987) was an English jazz musician who played mainly piano, vibraphone, and percussion. He began performing professionally during childhood, eventually earning acclaim in the UK jazz scene as ...

– piano * Ron Carter – bass * Frank Butler – drums "Limbo", recorded in Hollywood, Ca., May 9, 1967. (Reissued on the 1998 CD re-release of '' Sorcerer'', as well as on the second CD of 1998 box set release '' The Complete Studio Recordings of The Miles Davis Quintet 1965–1968'') * Miles Davis – trumpet *

– tenor saxophone *

–

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 keyboa ...

* Buster Williams; bass * Tony Williams – drums "Water on the Pond", recorded in New York, December 28, 1967. (Reissued on the fourth CD of the 1998 box set release '' Miles Davis Quintet 1965–'68'') * Miles Davis – trumpet * Wayne Shorter – tenor saxophone * Herbie Hancock –

Wurlitzer The Rudolph Wurlitzer Company, usually referred to as simply Wurlitzer, is an American company started in Cincinnati in 1853 by German immigrant (Franz) Rudolph Wurlitzer. The company initially imported stringed, woodwind and brass instruments ...

electric piano *

Joe Beck Joe Beck (July 29, 1945 – July 22, 2008) was an American jazz guitarist who was active for over 30 years. Biography Born in Philadelphia, Beck moved to Manhattan in his teens, playing six nights a week in a trio setting, which gave him an opp ...

– guitar * Ron Carter – bass * Tony Williams – drums "Fun", recorded in New York, January 11, 1968. (Reissued on the fourth CD of the 1998 box set release '' Miles Davis Quintet 1965–'68'') * Miles Davis – trumpet * Wayne Shorter – tenor saxophone * Herbie Hancock –

electric piano *

Bucky Pizzarelli John Paul "Bucky" Pizzarelli (January 9, 1926 – April 1, 2020) was an American jazz guitarist. He was the father of jazz guitarist John Pizzarelli and double bassist Martin Pizzarelli. He worked for NBC as a staffman for Dick Cavett (1971) ...

– electric guitar * Ron Carter – bass * Tony Williams – drums "Directions I & II" and "Ascent", recorded in New York, November 27, 1968. (All three tracks were reissued on the second CD of the 2001 box set release of '' The Complete In a Silent Way Sessions'') * Miles Davis – trumpet * Wayne Shorter – soprano saxophone * Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea – electric piano * Joe Zawinul – organ *

Dave Holland David “Dave” Holland (born 1 October 1946) is an English jazz double bassist, composer and bandleader who has been performing and recording for five decades. He has lived in the United States for over 40 years. His extensive discography r ...

– double bass * Jack DeJohnette – drums "Duran", recorded in New York, March 17, 1970. (Reissued as "Duran (Take 6)" on the second CD of 2003 box set release ''

The Complete Jack Johnson Sessions ''The Complete Jack Johnson Sessions'' were recorded in April 1970 by Miles Davis, and released in September 2003. These sessions formed the basis for the 1971 album '' Jack Johnson'', as well as some of the studio portions of '' Live-Evil''. Tra ...

'') * Miles Davis – trumpet *

– soprano saxophone * Bennie Maupin –

bass clarinet The bass clarinet is a musical instrument of the clarinet family. Like the more common soprano B clarinet, it is usually pitched in B (meaning it is a transposing instrument on which a written C sounds as B), but it plays notes an octave bel ...

– electric guitar * Dave Holland – electric bass *

Billy Cobham William Emanuel Cobham Jr. (born May 16, 1944) is a Panamanian–American jazz drummer who came to prominence in the late 1960s and early 1970s with trumpeter Miles Davis and then with the Mahavishnu Orchestra. He was inducted into the ''Mode ...

– drums "Konda", recorded in New York, May 21, 1970. (The unedited version of the track was issued on disc 4 of the 2003 box set release ''

''.) * Miles Davis – trumpet * Keith Jarrett – electric piano * John McLaughlin – electric guitar *

Airto Moreira Airto Guimorvan Moreira (born August 5, 1941) is a Brazilian jazz drummer and percussionist. He is married to jazz singer Flora Purim, and their daughter Diana Moreira is also a singer. Coming to prominence in the late 1960s as a member of the ...

– percussion "Willie Nelson", recorded in New York, February 27, 1970. (Reissued on the first CD of the 2003 box set release ''

'') * Miles Davis – trumpet * Steve Grossman – soprano saxophone * John McLaughlin – electric guitar * Dave Holland – electric bass * Jack DeJohnette – drums

References

Bibliography

* *

External links

*
''Directions''
on Jazzdisco.org {{DEFAULTSORT:Direction 1981 compilation albums Miles Davis compilation albums Albums produced by Teo Macero Columbia Records compilation albums Legacy Recordings compilation albums Albums recorded at CBS 30th Street Studio