| | |  | ICON Fine Art | Home » » The Blue Moment: Miles Davis's Kind of Blue and the Remaking of Modern Music | | | | | | | Description: | | A brilliant, wide-ranging book on how the seminal album revolutionized music and culture in the twentieth century. “It is the most singular of sounds, yet among the most ubiquitous. It is the sound of isolation that has sold itself to millions.” Miles Davis’s Kind of Blue is the best-selling piece of music in jazz history and, for many listeners, among the most haunting works of the twentieth century. It is also, notoriously, the only jazz album many people own. Recorded in 1959 (in nine miraculous hours), there has been nothing like it since. Richard Williams’s “richly informative” (The Guardian) history considers the album within its wider cultural context, showing how the record influenced such diverse artists as Steve Reich and the Velvet Underground.
In the tradition of Alex Ross and Greil Marcus, the “effortlessly versatile” Williams (The Times) “connects these seemingly disparate phenomena with purpose, finesse and journalistic flair” (Financial Times), making masterly connections to painting, literature, philosophy, and poetry while identifying the qualities that make the album so uniquely appealing and surprisingly universal. | | | Features: | |
• ISBN13: 9780393076639
• Condition: New
• Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!
| | | Product Details: | | | Author:
| Richard Williams | | Hardcover:
| 309 pages | | Publisher:
| W. W. Norton & Company | | Publication Date:
| April 12, 2010 | | Language:
| English | | ISBN:
| 0393076636 | | Product Length:
| 8.32 inches | | Product Width:
| 6.68 inches | | Product Height:
| 1.09 inches | | Product Weight:
| 1.06 pounds | | Package Length:
| 8.3 inches | | Package Width:
| 5.9 inches | | Package Height:
| 1.2 inches | | Package Weight:
| 1.05 pounds | | Average Customer Rating:
|  based on 5 reviews |
| | | | Customer Reviews: | |
Average Customer Review:
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12 of 13 found the following review helpful:
'KIND OF BLUE' CONTINUES TO INFLUENCESep 10, 2009
By Stuart Jefferson
Hardcover-278 pages,not including references or index. There are no photographs in this work. It is NOT out of print,but it is limited in availability. Check for sellers on Amazon
This book is not totally about Miles Davis,the making of "Kind of Blue",or the era that spawned this great music. Instead Richard Williams' weaves a sometimes loose,sometimes more focused pattern of various musical genres,that were influenced by the music. The author tells the story of the making of this album quickly-actually informing the reader of other volumes that go into greater detail on this recording,and how it was seen at the time. But he lays enough of a foundation so the reader has a good grounding going into his premise.
This book is concerned with the albums effect on other musicians,and the culture in general,over the past fifty years or so. In this book you will find names such as THE WHO,SOFT MACHINE,John Cale,THE GRATEFUL DEAD,Terry Riley,and others. The author makes a pretty convincing case on how Davis' (and the groups') music influenced a lot of the compositions and,in some cases,the very playing style of other musicians,by showing how "Kind Of Blue" fit in (or not) the culture of the time. He also makes a case for the continuing influence of this album,that shows no let-up.
This book isn't just a general overview of influences. Williams goes into some detail in order to show how the influence of "the most popular jazz recording of all time",has been much more important in the recent past,the present,and its influence into the future. An early chapter even goes into some detail on the title of this album,"Kind Of Blue",telling how 'blue',in its many permutations,was important throughout history. Jazz readers (and listeners) might feel this particular chapter,and others,go to far afield-maybe so,but they do contain some interesting information. Williams has done a great deal of work,in depth,and its evident. He then describes a number of Davis' tracks and albums,setting things up for his major premise-its continuing influence. He also describes the era and the thinking of the time,when jazz such as this,using a modal foundation,was not the norm. Using the above mentioned musicians,and a number of others,(John Coltrane,any number of other then current jazz musicians) he states the sometimes obvious influences,but also places other styles of music (TALKING HEADS,several "minimalist" composers,U2,James Brown,the VELVET UNDERGROUND for example) under this heading most readers/listeners wouldn't immediately think of. Williams has done his research and,taken together,the author makes several valid points,and opens up the reader's mind as to how this great music was assimilated,and to other possible influences.
There is occasionally a bit of technical "music speak"-scales,notes,clustered tones,etc.,but don't let that deter you from picking up this book. Reading this book is a bit like having an intelligent conversation with the author. He continually shares his viewpoint-you can take it or leave it. Even though,at times,the author goes far afield in his thinking,this is a good overview of this album,its influences,and how it was perceived,and the points he makes are both valid and interesting. If you're a Miles Davis fan,a jazz listener,or a music listener in general,this book can (and should) be placed alongside other works concerning this history making recording.
5 of 6 found the following review helpful:
Great info, but long windedMay 18, 2010
By Joshua K. Briley
"somecallmejosh"
OK, I just finished reading an entire chapter devoted to the color blue. It was a bit overkill in its attempt to simultaneously describe the complexities of the color and tying in relevance to the album title. All of the information is great, but the minutia seems to impede momentum.
I am ammending my review of this book...
The first couple of chapters were long winded, but the rest of the book is a gem. You can skip the chapter "The Sound of Blue" and move right in to the nitty gritty of it all. This book is much more than I could of expectected. I've accumulated tons of new material that was referenced in this book. Cool Jazz, Third Stream, Free Form, Simple and Framework based minimalism a'la Terry Riley.
I'm really glad I pressed through the introductory material. From the early inspirations that led up to "Kind of Blue" to the styles and artists who were later influenced by it... this book has taught me a great deal about Jazz.
4 of 6 found the following review helpful:
 Not required readingMay 20, 2010
By lee morgan
Between Ashley Kahn, Jack Chambers, Eric Nisenson et al, the kind of blue story has been told and its impact explored and documented. No matter how much I want to say this is great, essential reading for Miles afficiandos, it isnt. The writing itself is well done but the content isnt new nor does it amplify its subject sufficiently. Ben Ratliff's Coltrane book is a far better example of a book that takes an exhaustivey researched subject (Trane) and breathes new life into it in a compelling way, rife with insight.
 Loved it!Oct 14, 2011
By buckloner
To say the least, i dug this book the most! A really enjoyable read. i had no idea where it was going, but the ride was a lot of fun, interesting, and informative. Like a good improvised solo. The author hit on some key musical influences in my life that i didnt see coming, but had me going, "Yeah." James Brown, Velvet Underground, etc, etc. So What? Why Not?
1 of 3 found the following review helpful:
Thoughts on the Bestselling Jazz Album of All TimeMay 21, 2010
By Stephanie DePue
"The Blue Moment: Miles Davis's Kind of Blue and the Remaking of Modern Music," concerns itself with a record that is the best-selling jazz album of all time, and the only jazz album many people own: Kind of Blue. It is now 50 years old: it was recorded in nine hours, over two days, in a disused Manhattan church, in the spring of 1959, by Miles Davis and six other musicians. And the American Congress has just honored the album as a central part of the American heritage. The book was authored by Englishman Richard Williams, who writes for "The Guardian" on music and sports and has written books on Enzo Ferrari and Bob Dylan, among other subjects. Williams, who lives in London, is a former editor of "Melody Maker" and head of A & R at Island Records.
Other books have covered Davis's life, and the creation of this particular record, but few have done so in the depth Williams does. He looks at the cultural zeitgeist of the late 1950's, and explains how Davis was influenced by the prevailing winds of the time; he examines the influence of the French Impressionist composers, such as Claude Debussy, Gabriel Faure and Maurice Ravel, of whose music Davis was very fond (as am I; they are my favorite composers, but I never knew Davis also particularly liked them.) He then goes on to trace the influence of this seminal record, in jazz; art rock, such as that of John Cale, The Velvet Underground, or Brian Eno; and on the current classical school of minimalism, works written by such composers as Steve Reich and John Adams.
Williams writes well and gracefully, in crisp stylish prose. He's evidently very knowledgeable about music, and has, furthermore, evidently done a lot of research. He's aimed this work at jazz lovers, without doubt, though those who are simply music lovers may also be gratified by the thoroughness with which he treats his subject. However, the book does presuppose a fairly significant technical knowledge of music in its readers. The book also is sometimes repetitive, and the author allows himself the freedom to range pretty far out in his meditations, as, for example, a chapter on the color blue. Finally, it's silly to complain that a book offers too much information, but the general reader may find that the book sometimes outstrips his or her interests. Frankly, it did mine: there's a lot of quite detailed material on subjects that don't much interest me, as, quite simply, I'd about a thousand times prefer spending an evening listening to Debussy than Adams. And, as to listening to The Temptations or The Velvet Underground, I can't even reckon the odds.
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