Jazz

Mark Isham Miles Remembered The Silent Way Project

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Long time devotee of Miles Davis, Mark Isham decided to return to the electric sound after an acoustic sojourn of five years. The result was The Silent Way Project, a group comprising of in this incarnation Isham on trumpet with Peter Maunu (guitar), Steve Cardenas (guitar), Doug Lunn (bass) and Michael Barsimanto (drums). The drive for the group's repertoire arose from the excitement of performing pieces like Right Off (Theme Jack Johnson), In A Silent Way, Milestones and Jean Pierre. Captured on this album are live performances taken from 12 concerts comprising 2 sets each, and totally over 30 hours. The resultant 68:25 minutes are a tour-de-force in live Miles Davis' electric music. There is an odd sensation upon first hearing the opening In A Silent Way - Milestones. The musicians actually sound like they know what's coming next! This wasn't the case originally in the studio, but the effect is that the colours and texture of the piece are concentrated, the arrangement more representative of the latter day Davis touring band. The trumpet states the In A Silent Way theme here before segueing smoothly into the exquisitely executed Milestones, a haunting melody layered over a rolling base and poetic guitar lines. Right Off rocks from the outset. Funky over-driven guitar and pounding bass drive the muted trumpet solo high into the upper registers. Two self-penned titles also appear, Internet and Azael. A catchy head opens Internet before launching off into the stratosphere. The band clearly enjoys playing this composition, ripping into the solos and regrouping for the choruses. Again the trumpet screams, phrasings like those found on Bitches Brew. The guitar solos tend to be more contemporary shredding style than that current in the 70's. All Blues gets a gentle and reflective treatment here. Isham finds the full sound needed to put this across, dipping deeply into the lower registers, letting the guitar licks tickle across it's surface. It's About That Time highlights some outstanding bass work, and the guitar tone employed here is more reminiscent of JM's on the original. Two guitars entwine to give that serpentine keyboards feel, before the theme is picked up and forced to the fore. It's the same effect as conjured via Teo Macero's editing, as we are gradually excited from the sublime through to lascivious funk and then thankfully restored by a calming conclusion. Azael is a short but sweet ballad not dissimilar to Mr. Pastorius, reminding us that Isham is also an able composer. Spanish Key is the longest track on the album at 15:26 minutes, giving a protracted study of this piece's nuances, plenty of solo space and solid drumming. The remaining songs stick closer to their originals. Ife regales us with another well executed favourite. A thundering back beat starts Great Expectations and Black Satin has fun with the funk and some outlandish guitar lines. The Miles Davis originals are exemplary and recording these cover versions could never hope to add something new to the music, per se, especially as the tracks can often feel decapitated when dealt with separate to the rest of their respective albums. However, that their memory is maintained through excellent performances as captured on this CD, means that it is still possible to enjoy the music in concert, a luxury otherwise sadly denied us. Isham's trumpet is indistinguishably Miles-like, but his chops sometimes run out of steam in places that defies a simple impersonation of that "crack". At other times he manages such shrill runs it leaves you reaching for the liner notes to make sure your CD player isn't playing tricks. It's funny (funny strange, rather than funny ha ha) how some producers go to great pains, sometimes even introducing audience noises, to make sure that you are fully aware that a recording has been made "live". This album is predominantly clean of audience sounds, although the liner notes inform that the tracks are concert recordings, and do not mention any post-production or overlays, although some synthetic textures are apparent on some tracks, but are possibly guitar effects. Miles Remembered: The Silent Way Project is a personal statement that will strike a chord with any fan of Miles Davis' music since about 1969. If you're not going to dramatically reinterpret the music then emanating the original sound as done here is invaluable when exploring the live performance. The result is an extended virtual repertoire of the Davis live band, promoting our appreciation and comprehension of the music and giving us a thrill en route. Close your eyes and dreammmmmmm...


Personnel: Mark Isham (trumpet); Peter Maunu, Steve Cardenas (guitar); Doug Lunn (bass); Michael Barsimanto (drums). Recorded live at The Baked Potato, North Hollywood, California between January and October 1996.

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