A must have is Mile's "Round Midnight" album. Only available in mono ... and when you hear it on a good system, you'll be asking yourself ... "who needs stereo??"
Best Miles Davis Mono LPs to Start a Collection
My wife has had, I think, some sort of a mid-life crisis, a female version of male menopause, I suppose, and has suddenly turned into a complete jazz freak. It's all about jazz with her, now. And, God, in this new universe of hers, is Miles Davis. Although she has CDs of his, she has nothing on vinyl. (And why should she? I'm the one with the turntable.) Since I don't, currently, own a CD player, I would like to give her a collection of some of his albums. But, there are several parameters the collection needs to meet.
They must all be in mono. They should, together, comprise a retrospective of his many styles and groupings over the time period commencing in 1949 and ending, well, ending whenever they stopped issuing mono releases. You tell me. Lastly, they must all be, relatively, affordable. (The emphasis being on the "relatively", as I'm aware that these things don't come cheap.) Perhaps, there are some good sounding, more affordable reissues out there, for instance, or releases whose prices havn't been driven up by collectors.
I've already got some, though. These are:
1) The Miles Davis Tad Dameron Quintet in Paris International of Jazz may, 1949: Columbia AL-38804
2) Bags' Groove: Prestige 71095
3) Milestones Columbia CL-1193
4) Porgy and Bess: Columbia CL-1274
5) Sketches of Spain: Columbia CL-1480
6) Miles Davis: United Artists UAS 9952
All, of course, are mono.
So, what should I get, next?
They must all be in mono. They should, together, comprise a retrospective of his many styles and groupings over the time period commencing in 1949 and ending, well, ending whenever they stopped issuing mono releases. You tell me. Lastly, they must all be, relatively, affordable. (The emphasis being on the "relatively", as I'm aware that these things don't come cheap.) Perhaps, there are some good sounding, more affordable reissues out there, for instance, or releases whose prices havn't been driven up by collectors.
I've already got some, though. These are:
1) The Miles Davis Tad Dameron Quintet in Paris International of Jazz may, 1949: Columbia AL-38804
2) Bags' Groove: Prestige 71095
3) Milestones Columbia CL-1193
4) Porgy and Bess: Columbia CL-1274
5) Sketches of Spain: Columbia CL-1480
6) Miles Davis: United Artists UAS 9952
All, of course, are mono.
So, what should I get, next?
12 responses Add your response
To keep things from getting very pricey, I agree that you should look for mono OJC releases and two-fers from the 70s. Usually great sounding. The two-fers usually had a new album title but inside was 2 earlier LPs in their entirety. Open the two-fer up and look to see where the tracks originally came from. Don't recall how many of these are going to be mono, and be aware that at a certain point many mono releases were fold downs made from the stereo tracks. |
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I see, good plan. As for mono, I have no problem with that. What many of us try to achieve with our stereos; pinpoint imaging, width and depth of soudstage, etc. simply does not exist with most live performances. You also have a ton of tremendous music recorded during that period so if she likes Miles she has quite an adventure ahead. I would also suggest she read his autobiography to gain some perspective and his take on many of the recordings. Then get her started on Art Pepper. A true genius with quite a few recordings available. That autobiography is also very interesting. Do you have a mono system? Mono cartridge and single channel with one speaker? |
Why buy vinyl for my wife when she can't listen to it on her CD-only system? Easy. So she can listen to it on mine, with me. See, she's, also, a budding audiophile who, like me, thinks music just sounds better on vinyl. It's certainly more collectable This way we can share my hobby, together, while we listen to my system--around which the entire living room is arranged. And, also, well, I guess I'm just one of those crazy "mono sounds more real" guys. Perhaps, if I heard wax cylinders, I'd prefer them. Thanks a lot, as well, you guys for letting me know what I should look out for. |
Volume 1 and Volume 2 on Blue Note collect a number of sides originally issued on 10" LPs. Japanese reissues of these can be had at reasonable prices. The Birth Of The Cool on Capitol, also collects a number of sides originally released as 10 inchers. Reissues of this one do not include a vocal track issued on only the original release, but you won't be missing anything. I would also second Workin' and Steamin' on Prestige. There was a nice Fantasy 2LP set of both works that is dirt cheap with excellent sonics. |
I have to ask, why mono only? And why are you collecting vinyl for your wife when she has only CDs and you have only a turntable? Start here for an excellent summary of his work. The first stereo records were in 1958. I believe Porgy and Bess was the first Miles available in stereo. It was released in mono CL1274 and stereo CS8085, They continued releasing both for some time and I'm not sure when they started stereo only, but I believe late 60's. There are also several complete discographies of his work on the internet if you google it. |
Keep looking for Columbia CL (not CS, which means "stereo"): Kind of Blue, Miles Ahead, Round About Midnight, Quiet Nights, Someday my Prince Will Come, Saturday Night at the Blackhawk, etc. On Prestige, look for the OJC reissues: Cookin', Steamin', Workin', Walkin', Collectors' Items, Miles, Bags' Groove, The Musing of Miles, etc. Davis also made two albums for Blue Note (but you may have them on United Artists). Good luck. |