Miles Davis :The Complete Miles Davis at Montreux (3)

THE SECRET HISTORY OF MILES DAVIS IN THE 1980s
(Continued)

The band's live performances had come together nicely between 1986 and 1989, but there is sometimes a feeling of sameness that permeates the recordings and offers the impression that Miles' shows had become very middle-of-the-road, with little risk taking or newness. He had been playing essentially the same style of music since his comeback in 1981, meaning that he had not really changed anything that drastically in eight years, a very long time for Davis. Of course, he made some changes that makes it possible to break his 1980s work into different periods; for example, the change in studio technique with Tutu and subsequent work with Marcus Miller, but overall, Miles' music remained an amalgam of funk, rock, and blues, with his trumpet providing straight-ahead jazz improvisations at times. There are certainly moments of interest in the 1990 Montreux performance captured on Discs 17 and 18, but you also get the sense that Miles is coasting a bit and that he had no real idea of what direction he might take next. But he clearly still loved playing trumpet and interacting with other musicians, and recent biographies point out that Miles was either making music or painting at almost all times during the last four years of his life. The 1990 performance is important, though, in that it marks the return of saxophonist Kenny Garrett and lighter keyboard work, as well as the very tight rhythm section of bassist Richard Patterson and drummer Ricky Wellman. Prior to this set, the only recorded evidence of this band was the album Live Around the World.

Disc 19 of the set features the only material previously released; it is the July 8, 1991 retrospective featuring Miles Davis performing suites of his classic Gil Evans tunes from the 1950s with an orchestra under the direction of Quincy Jones. There has been a lot of controversy over the performance and whether it should have been done. Miles had once said "If I ever look back I'll die." Those words proved to be prophetic as Miles passed away some twelve weeks after this performance. There is a video of the concert as well, and Miles definitely looks thin and drawn, and trumpet protégé Wallace Roney sits at his side throughout, ready to stand in for Miles at a moment's notice. The orchestra is too large to really play the delicate Evans arrangements and Miles' playing is not what it was on the original recordings, but we do get a real glimpse of how the music was created in the first place, and there is a certain fulfillment in hearing Davis performing this music; Herbie Hancock admitted to crying upon seeing the video and pointed out that Miles well below his best was still something that had "a sound and an honesty that attracts." Since Davis had always declined to look back and perform music from prior periods in his development, there has been much speculation on why he decided to do this concert. One reason may have been the death of Gil Evans himself in March of 1988. Davis described Evans as his best friend, and may have wanted to pay his respects in this way. Then there is the fact that Miles himself was dying. According to Jo Gelbard, his companion and artistic collaborator in the last years of his life, Miles knew that he was approaching the end of his life and this affected many of the things he did toward the end. In Paul Tingen's book Miles Beyond she is quoted as saying that "Miles didn't like doing Montreux, he was very unhappy there. Why did he do it? I talked him into it. Miles was tired, and he was dying, but Montreux gave good money and it was supposed to be his retirement money. You know, we were also in denial, thinking that maybe he won't die after all, and maybe we'll get another five years and buy a ranch and live together." Two days later a retrospective of Miles' music was held in Paris, in which many associates from his career of music making joined his working band. The two events do seem to have rejuvenated him, and he had plans for the future, including the completion of the rap-influenced album Doo-Bop.

Miles Davis' last public performance was on August 25, 1991 at the Hollywood Bowl. It seems likely that it will be released at some point in the future, but for now it remains in the vaults. The final disc of The Complete Miles Davis at Montreux does feature a performance recorded in Nice on July, 17, 1991, just about a month before Davis' final performance. As former keyboard player Adam Holzman points out, the group is smaller, with no second keyboard player and no additional percussionist. The group is very tight, and again Patterson and Wellman demonstrate what a formidable rhythm section they had become. Beause the Nice Festival was on a tight schedule, the group performs only the first five songs from their normal set before launching into a brief, very focused version of "Wrinkle." The lengthy rendition of "New Blues" features a really hot Kenny Garrett solo, and much of the slickness that had been encroaching on the group's live performances seems to have disappeared on this set. The version of "Time After Time" here is slow, thoughtful, and laced with melancholy, yet somehow also triumphant. This final performance is a lovely coda to a formidable collection of music from one of the greatest musicians in any genre.

It is understandable that some of Miles' first efforts at a comeback in the early 1980s were judged inferior and an unfitting conclusion to a glorious career. By the middle of the decade, though, it should have been apparent that Davis was playing near the top of his form, and that he had melded several strands of music into a whole that was very much more than the sum of its parts. And certainly critics, many of whom had the opportunity to hear the Davis band live during these years or heard some of the many bootlegs available, should have been able to discern that the action was in these live performances rather than the studio albums. Still, I can't help but feel that eventually Decoy, You're Under Arrest, Tutu, and Amandla will take their rightful place in the pantheon of Davis' recorded work. The Complete Miles Davis at Montreux is an embarrassment of riches, though some may question the necessity of hearing the various '80s groups playing much of the same material for most of the decade. But to anyone with an open mind and a love of music, there is a lot here that demonstrates the care and vision that Miles was putting into his music up until the very end. This important document will help set the record straight on the most misunderstood part of a mercurial and controversial artist's career. The naysayers have had their day. Now it's time for Miles, as usual, to have the last word.