E.S.P. (Miles Davis album)

E.S.P.
Studio album by Miles Davis
Released August 16, 1965[1]
Recorded 20–22 January 1965
Columbia Studios, Hollywood, LA
Genre Jazz, hard bop,[2] post-bop, modal jazz
Length 48:05
Label Columbia
CL 2350 (Mono)
CS 9150 (Stereo)
Producer Irving Townsend
Miles Davis chronology
Seven Steps to Heaven
(1963)		 E.S.P.
(1965)		 Miles Smiles
(1967)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[2]
The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide[3]

Recorded in January 1965, E.S.P. is the first album by what is often referred to as Miles Davis's second great quintet. The quintet comprising Davis, Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter and Tony Williams would be the longest-lived of all Davis's groups.

Composition

Unlike the majority of previous Davis albums, E.S.P. consisted entirely of new compositions written by members of the group. Despite the profusion of new material, only two of the tunes, "Agitation" and "R.J." are known to have appeared in the group's live performances, the latter only appearing in one extant recording. "Agitation", by contrast, was still being performed as late as the fall of 1969.

"Little One" might be best known for being revisited on Hancock's landmark album, Maiden Voyage, recorded a few weeks later. This version is somewhat more embryonic; Carter's bass is halting, and Davis and Shorter state the theme with winding, interlocking contrapuntal lines that evoke Davis and Coltrane's version of "Round Midnight". Hancock's solo on Carter's composition, "Eighty-One", also presages his work on that LP - particularly its title track. This is reflected in the liner notes of the 1999 reissue.

Shortly thereafter, Shorter's compositions would begin to dominate the Quintet's recordings, though here he contributes only two of the seven songs. The title track is reminiscent of Jackie McLean's "Little Melonae", which Davis had recorded with John Coltrane in 1956. "Iris", by contrast, is another Coltrane-like ballad, not too dissimilar to "Infant Eyes" on Shorter's Speak No Evil album.

Ron Carter's piece "R.J." was also recorded by Joe Henderson on Tetragon in 1968, and in 1981 Wynton Marsalis would record it with Hancock, Carter and Williams for his first album. Carter's 1970 album Uptown Conversation (with Hancock) also included versions of "R.J." and "Mood," the latter of which was retitled "Doom."

At over forty-eight minutes, E.S.P. is one of the longest jazz albums of its period. Subsequent Davis recordings would be even longer.

Track listing

Original LP track list

Side 1

  1. "E.S.P." (Wayne Shorter) – 5:27
  2. "Eighty-One" (Ron Carter, Miles Davis) – 6:11
  3. "Little One" (Herbie Hancock) – 7:21
  4. "R.J." (Ron Carter) – 3:56

Side 2

  1. "Agitation" (Miles Davis) – 7:46
  2. "Iris" (Wayne Shorter) – 8:29
  3. "Mood" (Ron Carter, Miles Davis) – 8:50

Reissue CD (Legacy Recordings, 1999) track list

  1. "E.S.P." (Wayne Shorter) – 5:27
  2. "Eighty-One" (Ron Carter, Miles Davis) – 6:11
  3. "Little One" (Herbie Hancock) – 7:21
  4. "R.J." (Ron Carter) – 3:56
  5. "Agitation" (Miles Davis) – 7:46
  6. "Iris" (Wayne Shorter) – 8:29
  7. "Mood" (Ron Carter, Miles Davis) – 8:50

Tracks 1, 4 recorded on January 20; 2 and 3 on January 21; tracks 5, 6 and 7 recorded on January 22, 1965.

Personnel

Production

References

  1. ↑ Miles Davis.com
  2. 1 2 Erlewine, Stephen Thomas E.S.P. review allmusic.com. Retrieved on 2015-11-23.
  3. ↑ Swenson, J. (Editor) (1985). The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide. USA: Random House/Rolling Stone. p. 58. ISBN 0-394-72643-X.
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