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Genre: Jazz Music
Media Format: Compact Disk
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Release Date: 1-AUG-2000

Average Customer Review: ( 88 customer reviews )
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On the Corner was one of the last albums Miles did with his rotating, multi-layered electric bands of the early 70s. The albums after this would delve into avant-rock-funk of the Agharta period, before Davis took his complete hiatus and suffered his mid 70-s breakdown. Assembled for this disc is a typical conglomeration of the jazz-rock stars of the 70s, including Chick Corea and Herbie Hancock on electric pianos, John McLaughlin on guitar, three drummers including both the marvelous Jack Dejohnette and Billy Hart. Along with these luminaries were Dave Liebman and Sonny Fortune on saxes, fat funk grooves by Michael Henderson, Colin Walcott on electric sitar and Badal Roy on tablas. This lineup is probably the most complexly layered group Miles had in the electric period, and the inclusion of Indian instruments gave the album a world music groove that was years ahead of its time.

Most of the criticism that has been lobbed at this album has to do with the fact that, in many people's estimation it's not a "jazz album". What is meant by this is not always clear, and an old refrain that is leveled at just about every album considered a departure from the "tradition". There seems to be some complaint that On the Corner is devoid of improvisation. This is not true. In fact the album is one long improvisatory jam. What it doesn't have is a clear head-solos-head structure. Rather, the rhythm section provides a dense polyrhythmic carpet over which the horns solo in an extended manner. Also, Miles continued his trend toward significant post-production work in the mixing of the album. As a result, much of the improvisation by the band is used as source material for further creative manipulation, through electronics, and through other post-production effects. The result is a mix which is trance-like, hypnotic and a precursor to the trance and techno albums of Aphex Twins and others from the 90s. To jazzers, this post-production work signaled a retreat by Davis from the studio-as-club-date attitude of most traditional jazz sessions. But to my mind, this shows that Miles and company had really thought through the nature of electronic music. Rather than just playing on electric instruments and adding some bleeps, bloops and funk grooves to what was basically a 1960s jazz album, Miles added electronics idiomatically, creating a new art form in the process. Miles' jazz fusion of this period cannot be compared to his work in the 50s or 60s. It's a completely different animal that functions by different rules.

This is not an album that you can speak about in cuts. There are pre-composed pieces, and probably some pieces that were composed after the fact, by splicing together tracks and grooves and giving them shape. But each separate piece tends to blend into the next, prefiguring the DJ jams of the 90s. The result is funky and infectious, but also hypnotic. On the Corner may be demonized by traditionalists, but Miles was saying something here, and it's something that still bears listening to, after thirty years. Miles' music of this period is not dated badly at all and still has implications for younger musicians. Approach this as a sonic experience and not as a jazz album and you will be pleasantly surprised.

32 of 32 found the following review helpful:

ON THE CORNER--An Even Greater Riot Goin' On!Aug 02, 2000
By J. Lund "jazzbrat"
A landmark recording that even several decades later is a struggle for many fans--jazz and pop--to get a grip on. Miles Davis finds a precarious balance between the vital rhythm-oriented advances of the James Brown-originated funk idiom and Stockhausen's manipulation-of-sound concepts...and still manages to bring his jazz-based perspective along for the ride.

High in the top ten all-time jazz-reactionary myopic criticisms: that ON THE CORNER is a sellout to commercialism! If anything--and there's much more to it than this--Davis took the then up-and-coming, hot-selling funk idiom, stripped it of all surface characteristics that could be easily absorbed in one sitting, then rebuilt the style via his own post-modernist approach...and somehow the intoxicating James Brown-via-Sly Stone THERE'S A RIOT GOIN' ON groove survived intact.

The results are marked by deep polyrhythmic grooves that are decidedly left-of-center. Over this solid bottom a variety of keyboards, guitars, sitars, and the like engage in basically free associative textures, anchored by Michael Henderson's less-is-more bass figures (who else can make a repetitive "duh-dut" bassline sound as if adding even one more note would be overkill?).

Holding this all together is what many critics seem to miss, that being significant solo passages particularly by Davis, heard on no less than three extended--and assertive--segments, with the electrified wah-wah pedal used not as a gimmick but for its vocal-like qualities. Also, various guitarists, reeds, and percussion offer compelling statements that alternatively ride over and react within the dense backdrop.

As if all this weren't enough of a challenge, the "tunes" lack identifiable melodies except for BLACK SATIN. Then again, are the bass lines the melodies? Or the percussion patterns? Or what? If you like seeing a string of "what is jazz" paradigms shattered with one stunning blow, ON THE CORNER is your heavyweight champion of the world. This album DEFINITELY has a purpose!

37 of 38 found the following review helpful:

Maybe by 2012...Sep 14, 2004
By Ashurra
In 1973, Miles Davis was fuming. He had released On the Corner a year before to negative reviews and an apathetic public; and now, his sideman Herbie's fusion record Headhunter's was on its way to becoming the bestselling jazz album of all time. In his autobiography, he whines about how Columbia doomed the record by not promoting it correctly. Personally, I don't think Miles has a leg to stand on. Even if Columbia had put massive amounts of money behind it there's no way it could've stuck in 1972. Columbia had only one hope: Hire a team of brilliant scientists who would build a time machine, and drop this album on the public 40 years in the future. That's right, 10 years from now. We STILL aren't ready for On The Corner...

There are so many dismissive complaints leveled at this album- it's repetitive! there's barely any melody! It's not even Jazz! You hardly every even HEAR miles! I have no counter argument; these are all facts. However, there have been a few things that have been missed by its critics:

Miles had a vision with this record. This wasn't just a street record, this was intended to be THE street record. The ultimate black-power world-encompassing fusion call-to-arms. He intended to reach his black audience- the world's black audience. When you hit play on this record, you are on EVERY dang corner in the world: Los Angeles, Dakar, Nairobi, New Orleans, Havana... This is THE fusion album.

The album is thoroughly immersive. I can't think of a denser album, or an album that rewards repeat journeys better than this. At first it's entirely impenetrable and almost hostile to the listener, but once you find a way in there's a world of details and fascinating characters to discover. Take the first 30 seconds; when you hit "play" you seem to have been dropped into the middle of a muddled fusion stew. It almost seems sloppy; but listen close and you'll realize you do have a proper introduction- the first 30 seconds are an inversion of the following minute, Miles in front, Liebman in back. Then at 30 seconds, the wall of drums hits, and you get the exact same scene again, only inverted- Miles has been thrown to the back and Liebman is right in front of your speakers. Very clever; Stockhausen would be proud of this tape manipulation. It tells the listener: here, time folds in on itself; Miles will NOT be the star; you'll have to pay REALLY close attention...You've entered a parallel world...

And, finally, the best argument for the enduring genius of this album- there is nothing that sounds like On the Corner in the canon of recorded music before or since. Nothing so bewilderingly experimental yet funky, or that fuses different cultural musics into such a seamless whole. The density and layering of this album is relentless, the solos enigmatic. It exists outside of classification. That is quite a recommendation- To this day, On the Corner stands completely alone. Give it a chance- it can take you places that no other album has gone!

7 of 7 found the following review helpful:

Miles was always ahead of his timeSep 06, 2006
By Jeffrey J.Park
This 1972 release is intense. Period. And don't let the cover art fool you - the cartoon images on the front cover have nothing to do with the seething fury that lurks within the CD case. In fact, come to think of it, a Jackson Pollock would have been more far more appropriate as cover art and is certainly more in keeping with the music. Editorial comments aside, this is yet another remarkable Miles album and was his most controversial.

Alongside Miles (electronically altered trumpet) is a large ensemble including: John McLaughlin and David Creamer (electric guitar); Herbie Hancock and Harold Williams Jr. (electric organ, possibly moog synthesizer); Jack DeJohnette (drums); Don Alias and James Mtume (percussion); Michael Henderson (electric bass guitar); David Leibman and Carlos Garnett (tenor saxophone); Teo Macero (saxophone); William Hart (drums and percussion); Badal Roy (tabla); and Colin Walcott (sitar).

This particular iteration of the Miles Davis band had an unbelievably disciplined rhythm section. In fact, the machine-gun like and staccato bursts on the drums and the endless ostinato on the bass guitar seemed to draw the most fire from critics when the album was released. I happen to like the approach quite a bit because it reminds me somewhat of the meditative drones that minimalist composers like Terry Riley were writing at the time. The soloists are also excellent (of course) and weave their parts seamlessly into the hypnotic trance set up by the rhythm section. Unfortunately, you do not hear too much of Miles - this was another thing the critics harped on. The synthesizer textures are pretty interesting as are the tabla and percussion parts (the sleigh bells come to mind) - they add a very interesting dimension to the music.

Like a lot of Miles output during this period, the pieces are long: Tracks 1-4 comprise a 20 minute or so suite, while Helen Butte clocks in at 16'07". Musically, the pieces incorporate elements of German avant-garde composer Karlheinz Stockhausen, some free jazz, and American minimalism, although influences taken from James Brown and other soul/funk musicians can be heard as well. I have to admit though - this is unlike any funk I have ever heard before. In fact, it lurches along in fits and starts and quite frankly, is about as funky as a seizure. Or a sneezing fit.

Well I could easily go on and on raving about this album and the enormous contribution Miles made to music but I won't. This is supposed to be a review after all. If you enjoyed On the Corner, you might also like Live at the Fillmore East (March 1970); Bitches Brew (1970); Live Evil (1971); and A Tribute to Jack Johnson (1971). This is all simply amazing stuff.

6 of 6 found the following review helpful:

The Nefertiti Concept RebornApr 12, 2006
By Michael Hardin
For those not familiar with Miles's Second Great Quintet of the mid to late 1960s, there is an undisputed masterpiece performance which redefined the development of a piece of jazz. This was the title track of "Nefertiti." Instead of playing the head, followed by solos and then the head out, Miles and Wayne Shorter play the melody with slight variations over and over again, while the rhythm section shifts the beat, the accents, the harmonic implications, and every other subtle element of "background." To the uneducated or unhip listener, the performance sounds like it goes nowhere. However, the dynamic changes and developments in the rhythm section constitute the subtle direction for the piece, while the melody is the thread that holds it together, as opposed to a walking bass line and constant chord changes that are generally the thread in jazz pieces. Another reviewer from this site described it aptly as being like "time lapse photography," where the subject is the same but the hues are slightly different.

"On the Corner," the most controversial album Miles ever made, revisits this concept of time lapse photography, albeit in a way that is most offensive to jazz purists but probably the best way to implement the concept. Instead of using the melody as the thread, he uses the basic rhythm of the drums and the bass line. This may seem unremarkable in how traditional it is on the surface. But the groove of bass and drums is SO consistent and unchanging that the thread or continuity has the maximum effect. From there, Miles adds layer by layer, including various percussion instruments, different chord colors from keyboards and guitar, and then the soloist, but he does it so slowly that each level gets insinuated into the listener's consciousness; we begin to vibrate with the insistence of the music, and just as we get used to it, another layer is subtly introduced, taking the stream of consciousness to a new level. In fact, the thread of bass and drums remains more or less the same, repeating the same figure, for the last three tunes, or the majority of the album. The mastery of this album is how everything else grows around it, from the slightest alterations of the drums or the wah of the bass to the sinister chords from Herbie Hancock's rhodes barely audible but profoundly felt as something different. Funk in and of itself may not be particularly subtle, but what Miles does with it and how this album moves from level to level is more subtle than even "Nefertiti." There isn't even much dynamic change in the traditional sense; it never really gets louder or softer, only thicker and more complex. Brilliant.

Not surprisingly, Miles alumni were profoundly affected by the concept of this album. Herbie Hancock's "Sextant" is quite similar in feel to "On the Corner" and one could argue that the entire improvisational concept of Weather Report was based on this concept of layering and repetition, with no one instrument more important than any other, though the best example is "Sweetnighter," Weather Report's third album. Neither subsequent album was as successful as "On the Corner" at this particular concept, though.

A warning (or maybe instructions) to listeners: this album only makes sense if you have the fifty minutes to listen and feel it the whole way through. I suppose in this way it's not particularly easy to listen to, and it's not a good place to start with Miles nor is it a good bridge from rock into jazz. If the sonic and psychological experiment of this album sounds interesting to you, a basic understanding of Miles's second great quintet on albums like "Nefertiti," "Miles Smiles," and "Miles in the Sky" is required to appreciate its depth, and be sure to check out "Bitches Brew" and "Live Evil" to get used to the sometimes abrasive sound of the music.

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