Conception

Performer: Miles Davis
Artist: Gerry Mulligan; Art Blakey; Al Haig; Roy Haynes; J.J. Johnson; Max Roach; Sonny Rollins; Zoot Sims
Engineer: Rudy Van Gelder
Producer: Bob Weinstock
Distributor: Fantasy (distributor)

Notes: /Stan Getz/Lee Konitz. Personnel: Miles Davis (trumpet); Sonny Rollins, Zoot Sims (tenor saxophone); Stan Getz, Lee Konitz, Charlie Kennedy, Gerry Mulligan (saxophone); J.J. Johnson, Kai Winding (trombone); Walter Bishop, Sal Mosca, Al Haig, Tony Aless (piano); Billy Bauer (guitar); Tommy Potter, Arnold Fishkin, Gene Ramey, Chubby Jackson (bass); Art Blakey, Roy Haynes, Max Roach, Stan Levey, Don Lamond (drums); Chubby Jackson's Orchestra. Recorded at the Van Gelder Studio, Hackensack, New Jersey between June 21, 1949 and October 5, 1951. Includes liner notes by Ira Gitler. Digitally remastered by Phil De Lancie (Fantasy Studios, Berkeley, California). Personnel: Miles Davis (trumpet); Billy Bauer (guitar); Gerry Mulligan, Lee Konitz, Stan Getz (saxophone); Jackie McLean, Charlie Kennedy (alto saxophone); Sonny Rollins, Zoot Sims (tenor saxophone); J.J. Johnson , Kai Winding (trombone); Tony Aless, Walter Bishop, Al Haig, Sal Mosca, Walter Bishop, Jr. (piano); Don Lamond, Max Roach, Roy Haynes, Art Blakey, Stan Levey (drums). Liner Note Author: Ira Gitler. Recording information: New York, NY (10/05/1951). Unknown Contributor Roles: Chubby Jackson; Gerry Mulligan; J.J. Johnson ; Walter Bishop; Kai Winding; Max Roach; Roy Haynes; Art Blakey; Sonny Rollins; Tommy Potter; Zoot Sims; Charlie Kennedy. A unique all-star set recorded in various combinations between 1949 and 1951, Conception is an underappreciated masterpiece of cerebral cool jazz. Although Miles Davis gets top billing, he appears on only half the album and then most often as a sideman with only occasional solos. Saxophonists Lee Konitz, Stan Getz, and Gerry Mulligan are the true stars of the album, with Konitz particularly shining. His two duets with guitarist Billy Bauer, a relaxed take on Victor Herbert's standard "Indian Summer" and his own "Duet for Saxophone and Guitar," are outstanding examples of cool jazz as the term was originally understood before it came to signify new age-leaning elevator music; Konitz's solos in "Indian Summer" disassemble the melody entirely while remaining accessibly tonal, and Bauer's filigree guitar lines stay clear of the uninspired comping of so many jazz guitarists while never sounding overly busy. Of the full-band pieces, Davis' solo spotlight on George Shearing's "Conception" finds the trumpeter in transition from the still soundscapes of the Birth of the Cool sessions to the more aggressive playing of his Riverside sets, and Stan Getz's two showcases, the originals "Prezervation" and "Intoit," feature the saxophonist in his early role as a committed Lester Young disciple, fronting a solid rhythm trio featuring the underrated pianist Al Haig. An excellent album featuring some outstanding and varied tracks, Conception is well worth seeking out. ~ Stewart Mason CONCEPTION collects seven 1949-51 sessions by some of the musicians who were transforming bop into cool jazz. Half the album features Konitz-led sessions, with the leading alto player of his day (backed with Davis and drummer Max Roach) setting cerebral, abstract interpretations of standards like "Indian Summer" alongside Konitz's fluid original "Hibeck" and his gorgeously lyrical "Duet for Saxophone and Guitar." This is essential music that sounds as forward-looking today as it must have at the time. The album's second half features two tracks apiece by Davis, Getz and Mulligan. "Conception" and "My Old Flame" find Davis edging from his Nonet's cool sophistication into the earthier feel of his later Prestige sides, with then-unknown Sonny Rollins contributing some Bird-like licks. Getz's lovely, intimate quartet sessions sit somewhat uneasily beside Mulligan's large bands, but the disparity only emphasizes the varied directions in which these four exceptional talents were expanding contemporary jazz.

Few musicians have managed to change the course of music--trumpeter Miles Davis did it several times. An early disciple of Charlie Parker, Davis created an austere, understated approach that became the model for cool. His superb albums in the 1950s made him a star, and in the following decade, he brought small-group jazz to the limit before he unapologetically (and, for some, unforgivably) took on jazz-rock. After a break, he re-emerged in the '80s with a mixture of pop and dense, bristling funk. All the while, his refusal to follow anyone but his own muse made him both a hero and an enigma--either way, he was one of the most magnetic, influential figures in American music.

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