Miles Davis: Bemsha Swing
Track
Bemsha Swing
Group
Miles Davis (with Thelonious Monk)
CD
Miles Davis and the Modern Jazz Giants (Prestige OJCCD-347-2)
Musicians:
Miles Davis (trumpet), Milt Jackson (vibes), Percy Heath (bass), Kenny Clarke (drums), Thelonious Monk (piano).
Recorded: Hackensack, N.J., December 24, 1954
Rating: 97/100 (learn more)
Miles Davis’s Christmas Eve 1954 session was the one where, legend had it, Miles instructed Monk to “lay out” while the trumpeter soloed. It’s hard to believe – really, if Miles was offended by Monk’s playing, why would he hire him for the date? But that’s not the point. This may be Miles’s record, but “Bemsha Swing” is Monk’s song (well, Monk’s and Denzil Best’s). Monk comps like a yeoman while the others solo, but when it comes his turn to solo he turns in a beauty – faithful to the composition, faithful to Miles’s desires, but Monkish all the way in its off-kilter rhythmic feel and contrapuntal notes. A rare, wonderful glimpse at Monk as sideman.
Reviewer: Steve Greenlee
If you liked this track, also check out
- Thelonious Monk: In Walked Bud
- Thelonious Monk: 'Round Midnight (1947 version)
- Medeski, Martin & Wood: Bemsha Swing / Lively Up Yourself
Tags: 1950s jazz · bemsha swing · prestige
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