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Miles Ahead session details

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November 1, 1974 (9 items; TT = 101:01)
Allen Theatre, Cleveland OH
Audience recording (B-)

Miles Davis (tpt, org); Sonny Fortune (ss, as, fl); Pete Cosey (g, perc); Reggie Lucas (g); Dominique Gaumont (g); Michael Henderson (el-b); Al Foster (d); James Mtume Forman (cga, perc)

First set
1 Band warming up 0:08
2 Right Off (M. Davis) 13:19
3 Mtume (M. Davis) 8:35
4 Ife (M. Davis) 10:00

Splice at 4:38
5 Calypso Frelimo (M. Davis) 19:48

Cga/perc solo 17:10-19:48
6 For Dave (incomplete) [Mr. Foster] (M. Davis) 4:37

Cut off at 4:37

Second set
7 Funk [Prelude, part 1] (M. Davis) 14:48
8 Turnaroundphrase (M. Davis) 13:38

"Tune in 5" and "Turnaroundphrase" simultaneously from 4:40-8:00
9 Maiysha (with applause) (M. Davis) 16:08


Recordings of the second set circulate separately, wrongly listed as "Cleveland Smiling Dog Saloon, April 1975." The version issued on a So What CDR is slightly off-speed, about a quarter-tone sharp. Davis was booked at the Smiling Dog Saloon from December 12-15, 1974, but the music on the circulating tape is from this show at the Allen Theatre. Sam Morrison is sometimes listed as the saxophonist on this date, but this is wrong as well. He joined Davis in April 1975, and the group never played in Cleveland while he was a member.

The master tapes for this date are a mess. They are sonically bad; there are numerous dropouts, gaps, and splices; and someone has taped over several segments of the music (e.g. "Mtume" from 2:50-3:00; "Ife" from 3:45-4:40, where fragments of "Calypso Frelimo" are audible, and 5:10-5:20, where fragments of "On the Corner" are audible; "Calypso Frelimo" from 10:58-11:04). I have corrected these errors to the best of my ability using a couple different masters, and the timings listed here reflect these repairs.

The Octet was quite busy during this period: Indiananapolis Convention Center (October 13); Allen Theatre, Cleveland (November 1); Bottom Line Club, New York (November 3-4); Club Etcetera, Washington (November 11-14); Bottom Line Club, New York (November 18); The Stables, East Lansing (December 11); Smiling Dog Saloon, Cleveland (December 12-15). Davis fired Gaumont in late December.

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