The Compositions Of Al Cohn

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The Compositions Of Al Cohn
MilesPlaysAlCohn.jpg
Studio album by Miles Davis
Released 1953
Recorded February 19, 1953
Beltone Studios, New York City
Genre Jazz
Length19:16
Label Prestige
Producer Bob Weinstock
Miles Davis chronology
Blue Period
(1953) Blue Period1953		The Compositions Of Al Cohn
(1953)		 Miles Davis Volume 2
(1953) Miles Davis Volume 21953

The Compositions Of Al Cohn (PRLP 154) is a 1953 10 inch LP album by Miles Davis. [1] It is his third album as leader for Prestige, [2] [3] and fourth altogether, following 1952's Young Man with a Horn for Blue Note. The four tracks were recorded at New York's Beltone Studios on February 19, 1953. [4]

Miles Davis American jazz musician

Miles Dewey Davis III was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th century music. Davis adopted a variety of musical directions in a five-decade career that kept him at the forefront of many major stylistic developments in jazz.

Prestige Records American jazz record label

Prestige Records is a jazz record company and label founded in 1949 by Bob Weinstock in New York City. The company recorded hundreds of albums by many of the leading jazz musicians of the day, sometimes issuing them under subsidiaries. In 1971, the company was sold to Fantasy, which was later absorbed by Concord.

<i>Young Man with a Horn</i> (Miles Davis album) album by Miles Davis

Young Man with a Horn is the second studio album of Miles Davis, released as a 10-inch mono LP recorded and released by the Blue Note label in 1952. The album title is presumably a reference to the 1950 film Young Man with a Horn.

Contents

Background

All the tunes were written by tenor saxophonist, composer and arranger Al Cohn. Ira Gitler's liner notes explain the desire to return to arranged music, along the lines of the Birth of the Cool sessions, following three albums focused more on soloing. "...it was felt that Miles needed a change of pace for his next recording date; compositions and arrangements which would suit him and result in a happy combination of arranged music and solo work ... Three of the pieces, "Willie The Wailer", "Floppy", and "For Adults Only" were written for this session. "Tasty Pudding" had been written before but Al arranged it specially for Miles and this date." [5]

Al Cohn American saxophonist

Al Cohn was an American jazz saxophonist, arranger and composer. He came to prominence in the band of clarinetist Woody Herman and was known for his longtime musical partnership with fellow saxophonist Zoot Sims.

Ira Gitler was an American jazz historian and journalist. The co-author of The Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz with Leonard Feather—the most recent edition appeared in 1999—he wrote hundreds of liner notes for jazz recordings since the early 1950s and is the author of dozens of books about jazz and ice hockey, two of his passions.

<i>Birth of the Cool</i> Miles Davis album

Birth of the Cool is a compilation album by American jazz musician Miles Davis, released in 1957 on Capitol Records. It compiles eleven tracks recorded by Davis's nonet for the label over the course of three sessions during 1949 and 1950.

In his autobiography, Davis suggests Bob Weinstock had pressured him to record a more disciplined album with more "respectable" musicians, following the debacle of the incomplete session with Charlie Parker attempted earlier that year (released in 1956 as Collectors' Items (PRLP 7044)). [6]

Charlie Parker American jazz saxophonist and composer

Charles Parker Jr., also known as Yardbird and Bird, was an American jazz saxophonist and composer.

<i>Collectors Items</i> album by Miles Davis

Collectors' Items is a 1956 studio album by Miles Davis. There are two sessions collected on the album with largely different musicians. The first 1953 session is "Compulsion", "The Serpent's Tooth" and "'Round About Midnight". The second 1956 session is "In Your Own Sweet Way", "Vierd Blues" and "No Line". The personnel for the first session were Davis, Sonny Rollins and Charlie Parker on tenor saxes, Walter Bishop on piano, Percy Heath on bass and Philly Joe Jones on drums. For the second session, the tenor sax was Rollins alone, the piano was Tommy Flanagan, the bass Paul Chambers and Art Taylor on drums.

After the 10" LP format was discontinued, the four tracks were all included on the 12" album Miles Davis and Horns (PRLP 7025).

<i>Miles Davis and Horns</i> album

Miles Davis and Horns is an album by jazz trumpeter Miles Davis, released by Prestige Records in 1956.

Track listing

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Tasty Pudding" Al Cohn 3:20
2."Floppy"Al Cohn6:00
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
3."Willie the Wailer"Al Cohn4:26
4."For Adults Only"Al Cohn5:33
Total length:19:16

Personnel

Trumpet musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family

A trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group contains the instruments with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpet-like instruments have historically been used as signaling devices in battle or hunting, with examples dating back to at least 1500 BC; they began to be used as musical instruments only in the late 14th or early 15th century. Trumpets are used in art music styles, for instance in orchestras, concert bands, and jazz ensembles, as well as in popular music. They are played by blowing air through nearly-closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound that starts a standing wave vibration in the air column inside the instrument. Since the late 15th century they have primarily been constructed of brass tubing, usually bent twice into a rounded rectangular shape.

Zoot Sims jazz musician

John Haley "Zoot" Sims was an American jazz saxophonist, playing mainly tenor but also alto saxophone. He first gained attention in the "Four Brothers" sax section of Woody Herman's big band, afterward enjoying a long solo career, often in partnership with fellow saxmen Gerry Mulligan and Al Cohn, and the trombonist Bob Brookmeyer.

Sonny Truitt was an American jazz trombonist, pianist, and composer. He was best known for his work with Miles Davis.

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References

  1. ↑ The Compositions Of Al Cohn, Discogs.com, accessed July 4, 2014
  2. ↑ The Compositions Of Al Cohn, the Jazz Discography Project, accessed May 20, 2014
  3. ↑ The Compositions Of Al Cohn, Miles Ahead: A Miles Davis Website, accessed May 20, 2014
  4. ↑ February 19, 1953 Session Details, Miles Ahead: A Miles Davis Website, accessed May 21, 2014
  5. ↑ The Compositions Of Al Cohn liner notes Miles Ahead: A Miles Davis Website, accessed May 20, 2014
  6. ↑ "Miles: the Autobiography", Miles Davis with Quincy Troupe, 1989, pg.161
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