Denial – Miles Davis
Denial is Miles' clever antonym title for his "improvised contrafact" on the chord progression of Charlie Parker's Confirmation.
- Recording: Miles Davis - Dig
- Recorded on: October 5, 1951
- Label: Prestige (LP 7012)
- Concert Key: F
- Style: Swing (uptempo)
- Trumpet - Miles Davis
- Alto Sax - Jackie McLean
- Tenor Sax - Sonny Rollins
- Piano - Walter Bishop, Jr.
- Bass - Tommy Potter
- Drums - Art Blakey
This track is Miles' improvisation on the changes of Confirmation. The first chorus of Miles' improvised solo is the melody chorus. This chorus, and the rest of his solo, is a real workout in what defines the Miles Davis sound. It's full of the type of chromatically winding and wriggling lines that Miles always used, through all the stylistic changes of his career. Notable articulations and phrase marks are shown in our lead sheet.
Charlie Parker wrote Confirmation in 1945, which is also the year that Miles and Charlie Parker started to officially record together. Parker did not record a studio version of Confirmation until July 1953, which is also the last year they recorded together. The only listing we've found of Miles ever playing the title Confirmation is a broadcast of the Miles Davis All Stars from "Birdland" (May 2, 1952) without Parker.
The Denial track was recorded on the third small-group recording session with Davis as the leader, and his second for the Prestige label. It was also Jackie McLean's first jazz recording session; he had previously recorded with r&b saxophonist Charlie Singleton. McLean and Sonny Rollins never otherwise recorded together.
Denial was first released on Prestige EP 1361, before it came out on the compilation album "Dig."
The Denial track was recorded on the third small-group recording session with Davis as the leader, and his second for the Prestige label. It was also Jackie McLean's first jazz recording session; he had previously recorded with r&b saxophonist Charlie Singleton. McLean and Sonny Rollins never otherwise recorded together.
Denial was first released on Prestige EP 1361, before it came out on the compilation album "Dig."
- Recording: Don Sickler - Reflections
- Recorded on: March 27, 2000
- Label: HighNote (7062)
- Concert Key: F
- Style: Swing (uptempo)
- Trumpet - Don Sickler
- Flute - Bobby Porcelli
- Piano - Ronnie Mathews
- Bass - Peter Washington
- Drums - Ben Riley
The melody, adapted from Miles' original first solo chorus, is here played in octaves by flute and muted trumpet. In the out head, the last line is altered to ascend and end on the 9th for a final chord, instead of rising to the tonic and falling to the 3rd. There is no intro and no two-horn harmonies.
The lead sheets work for both recordings.
The lead sheets work for both recordings.
Galvanized by Don Sickler's week celebrating trumpet players at New York's Jazz Standard jazz club, producer/owner Joe Fields of High Note Records insisted that Don record the tribute album at the Van Gelder Recording Studio .
As Don recalled after their performances at the Jazz Standard, "the audience gave us rousing applause, so I felt the arrangements worked."
Here's the flyer from the gig, which featured special artists:
As Don recalled after their performances at the Jazz Standard, "the audience gave us rousing applause, so I felt the arrangements worked."
Here's the flyer from the gig, which featured special artists:
Miles Davis
May 26, 1926 – September 28, 1991
Miles Davis was without question among the most influential musicians in all of jazz history. As both soloist and bandleader, he defined the vanguard of jazz throughout his career and set the standard for nearly every major new development in the music for over forty years. His trumpet, open or with a Harmon mute, is one of the most instantly recognizable jazz sounds; his eloquent, economical style was quite unlike any trumpeter before him. Read more...