Miles Electric: A
Different Kind Of Blue
(Documentary)
Picture: C+
Sound: B- Extras: C+ Main Program: B
How much of a genius and innovator was Miles Davis? Consider how complex Jazz is, then consider
that he created a giant step forward for the genre by using electronic sound
radically like nothing anyone had heard before. Miles Electric: A Different Kind Of Blue is another solid
Eagle Eye DVD release, which takes a bunch of new in-depth interviews with
Herbie Hancock, Carlos Santana, Joni Mitchell, Chick Corea, Dave Liebman and
Keith Jarrett among others and combines them with various stills, facts and
footage with and about Davis. In the
middle of all of this is a 33-minutes-long sequence of Davis and company
playing the Isle Of Wight Festival in 1970.
Not only is that a highlight and exceptionally impressive,
we get a history of Davis taking Jazz to that electric level, form a 1964
performance captured on black and white videotape to the release and
controversy over the landmark Bitches Brew album. There are so many Davis albums out on CD,
plus DVD-Audio and SACD, but this is a very welcome DVD-Video that event he
most hardcore fans will want to own.
Those who do not know anything about Davis should consider this
mandatory viewing, especially if they claim to know anything about music. True music lovers will really appreciate its
intelligence, and the music itself is still incredible decades later.
The full frame 1.33 X 1 image varies throughout, but is
cleaner than documentary programs like this usually are, mixing newly taped
interviews with a great wealth of classic and archival footage. The sound is available in PCM 2.0 Stereo
with some Pro Logic surround activity, Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS 5.1, all of
which are not bad, but the DTS shows the limits of the varied music sources
throughout. This is just one of those
cases more than usual where you will have to listen to all of them before
making a choice that suits you, though the PCM is the purest version. Extras include a DVD-ROM only Sessionography
on the beginning of his “electric” period of 1967 - 1975 and additional
interviews for the main program that did not make the 90-miinutes-long
cut. This lasts about a half-hour in
total. There is also a nice foldout
poster with text on the other side of a monochrome image of Davis in boxing
shorts, seated in a boxing ring.
- Nicholas Sheffo
