Herbie Hancock Wayne Shorter Ron Carter Wallace Roney & Tony Williams - 1994 "A Tribute To Miles"

A Tribute to Miles is a tribute album by four of the five members of the Miles Davis quintet: Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Tony Williams, Ron Carter. Taking over for Davis was trumpeter Wallace Roney.

This Miles Davis tribute album brings back four-fifths of his second classic quintet with Wallace Roney the logical choice to fill in for the late trumpeter. Roney comes across as a sideman and is not as forceful here as one would have hoped. Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter and Tony Williams had all grown with time and this reunion has Hancock and Williams taking on more prominent leadership roles than in the earlier days. With the exception of the drummer's "Elegy," all of the music "("So What," "RJ," "Little One," "Pinocchio," "Eighty One" and "All Blues") was regularly performed by the quintet back in the '60s. In general this reunion is a success even if it contains no new revelations. It is particularly nice to hear Wayne Shorter in this setting again.

This Grammy-winning jazz recording is as much a tribute to the trumpeter's greatest band as a testament to Miles Davis himself. But Miles was not given to sentimental gestures, and while he cherished the band's work during the revolutionary '60s, he rarely looked back after disbanding the unit.

But jazz fans could never let go, because Shorter, Hancock, Carter and Williams redefined the freedom principle of the late 1960s, and built daring new melodic structures upon a bedrock of sophisticated harmony and complex rhythmic interaction. As a result, in one form or another--usually billed as VSOP--the quintet would hit the road and recording studios with stunt doubles as notable as Freddie Hubbard and Wynton Marsalis occupying the director's chair.

However, on A TRIBUTE TO MILES the trumpeter is the young Philadelphian anointed by Miles himself after their triumphant 1991 performance at the Montreux Jazz Festival--Wallace Roney (Miles even presented him with his horn). And on the basis of the long harmonic elisions and Davis-like ornaments Roney displays on the live renditions of Davis standards "So What" and "All Blues," the elder's respect is more than justified. There are many highlights throughout this set, from Carter's "RJ," with its brisk tempo and roaring rhythmic exchanges, through Hancock's moody waltz "Little One" and the Spanish-tinged backbeats of "Eighty One." Roney particularly inspires Shorter who responds with a keening soprano solo on his classic tune "Pinnochio," abstracting the melody, fragmenting his line and moving up the scale until the drummer is ready to bust.

 Wallace was mentored by Miles Davis after Miles heard him in 1983 at his birthday gala performance in Carnegie Hall. Their association peaked when Miles chose Wallace to share the stage at his historic performance in Montreux in 1991. After Davis died, Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter, Wayne Shorter, Tony Williams and Roney banded together and toured the world in tribute.

This is, quite possibly, the best jazz CD ever made. If I had to take only one jazz CD to a desert island, this would be it. Oh, the Miles purist might wince, but Herbie and his mega talented crew of some of the finest talent in the business, have done him an honorable justice in this nearly 60 or minutes of virtuosity and rendition. I love the upbeat tempo of "So What", and the rest, well, just get this one. if you haven't already. And buy more than one for gifting. Your friends will thank you many times over. Enjoy!

I have owned this album since shortly after it was released, and it has been in steady rotation in my collection ever since I purchased it. I have always been amazed that it is not more widely recognized and celebrated. The 5 studio tracks are very good, but by far the highlights of the album are the live versions of All Blues and So What. All five of the musicians on this album are legendary, and hearing them all together again is a treat.

Tony Williams' brilliant performance on All Blues is worth the price of admission alone, and when you add Herbie Hancock and the other musicians on this terrific CD, you've got the makings of a classic release. There are not many things that I can recommend wholeheartedly, but I guarantee you will not be disappointed if you pick up this hidden gem.

This album won all five men the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Individual or Group at the 37th Annual Grammy Awards. This was Hancock's third Grammy Award.

Track listing:

"So What" (Live) (Miles Davis) - 10:19
"RJ" (Carter) - 4:04
"Little One" (Hancock) - 7:20
"Pinocchio" (Shorter) - 5:45
"Elegy" (Williams) - 8:43
"Eighty One" (Davis, Carter) - 7:29
"All Blues" (Live) (Davis) - 15:17

Personnel:

Herbie Hancock – piano, calliope
Wayne Shorter – tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone
Wallace Roney – trumpet
Ron Carter – bass
Tony Williams – drums