Guitar tribute fails to hit the mark
Miles Davis was a genius on the trumpet - there are no two ways about this - so I really have my reservations when the press release informs me that 'Fusion for Miles' is 'an inspired guitar tribute'. Unlike a Davis record, the songs are rather short (apart from the last one which is almost ten minutes long). Unfortunately, also unlike a Davis record, the idea of a guitar just doesn't seem to have the same effect.
Having said that, it would be unfair to compare the originals, although it's very hard not to. On tracks such as 'So What', there are some nice touches and the arrangement is very well done for the most part. It takes the chop-and-change nature of many of Davis' records, puts some of that into this version. The start is melancholy, and will send a shiver down anybody's spine. However, the music is just a bit bland and it's all very well experimenting but, with an unnecessary jazz keyboard and over-cheerfulness, it detracts rather than adds to it.
That's not to say that there aren't some decent adaptations - far from it. 'Jean Pierre' is great, and this time, the keyboard really fits in. The melancholy feel is kept, even it does rather miss the trumpet sounds. It's clear that these musicians are very technically gifted, and again the way the song is put together is well done. And just by listening to these two tracks, you can tell that there is definitely a modern, fusion jazz sound to the whole album.
'Spanish Key' too, is sparse, minimal even yet even on this there is a rather modern, fusion feel. Everything fits together better here, but sometimes it feels like they're just trying to recreate the songs with just different instruments. There is the same chaotic melee of the original, despite the much shorter length, and it's definitely one of the better tracks on the album. Likewise, 'Eighty One' has that sparse-yet-filled atmosphere as well as lead sax, but it isn't quite as good as the 'Spanish Key'.
It's on 'Nefertiti' that I realise that the trumpet (and his ability to play them) was really central to Davis' sound. It's evident that without it, a lot of these tributes could quite easily be consigned to hotel dining room jazz status. Half the problem is that damn jazz keyboard, it really makes the songs sound like Spyro Gyra half the time. I can appreciate that these guys did try to put together a tribute album that Davis would've been proud of, but I'm not sure it can be lifted out of the ordinariness that cloaks it.