Paul's Mall. Boston September 1972

This is from one of my favorite periods of Miles. It’s got good sound, and Miles is ON!

Historic, But sound leaves something to be desired.

Not the greatest sound quality (it’s a bit muffled & distorted in places), which is a little disappointing considering the sound quality of previous public domain concert “Live in Tokyo 1975” (which was also released by Hi Hat), the CD isn’t unlistenable it’s just distracts a bit from a great show, although Hi Hat does apologise for this in the CD's liner notes.As for the music, it’s a great mix of styles, “Black Stain” & “Honky Tonk” are very melodic, rhythmic & laid back, whereas “Rated X” & “Right off” are a more up tempo freak out.It goes without saying you should buy the official “Philharmonic Hall” CD first (it was recorded in the same month), but there’s enough in this Boston show to worth adding to your collection; it’s just a shame it wasn’t a little cheaper.This was the first of four show that Davis performed at Paul’s Mall in Boston, so I’m guessing that there are going to be quite a few of these concert released over the next few years.

Great music but the sound is flat. Very little dynamic range.

La Rubia, my long-suffering significant other, casts a weary eye over the playlist of this latest Miles Davis live recording to clunk through the postbox. She’s seen these names somewhere before, she knows, though not as often as she’s seen stuff like Directions.1972 live recordings of Miles are rare – this is only my second. The other is a Columbia double CD, Live at the Philharmonic, which plays for about an hour and a half. The Paul’s Mall recording is just over fifty minutes, but an awful lot happens in that time. While the underlying groove of the various tunes are recognisable, and therefore enable identification, what’s happening over the top is, as so often, completely different from what you’ve heard before, no matter how much Miles you have. The concert is a live musical experiment; Paul’s Mall the sorcerer’s laboratory where the ingredients are stirred, mashed and refined. There are some intriguing trills, bumps and snorts mixed in to once again create a new experience.In the spoken Introduction, the radio announcer sets the scene and lists the performers. As he does so he recounts a conversation in which Miles claimed he did not know who was in the band; the announcer admits he only knows himself because he reads Downbeat magazine. Miles was always in transition. This is a document of a particular stage in that transition which had no precedent and would never be repeated.La Rubia knows the score. The names are the same; the contents vary on a daily and even hourly basis. I get away with another one.

This album fills a gap in the Miles Davis canon as, after "In Concert" recorded 15 days later, this is only the second live release from the "On The Corner" era. Eminating from a WBCN-FM radio broadcast of 14th September, 1972 Miles is immediately throwing curve balls at an unsuspecting audience with a band that includes Indian instrumentation and who only played together for the first time in the studio eight days earlier when recording 'Rated X', the second track here. That track wasn't released in studio form until "Get Up With It" in November 1974 , so following a chaotic set opener 'Black Satin' which made the cut of October 1972's 'On The Corner' the audience probably didn't know what was going on. Owing to the newness of the nonet, playing only their second live concert the sound is raw around the edges - no hint of the polish heard on "In Concert" with the band clearly breaking in. Live favourite 'Honky Tonk' is up next, but again this wasn't released in studio form again until "Get Up With It" so audience members would only know it from viewing other live concerts. The set finally becomes familiar with 'Right Off' released in February 1971 on "Jack Johnson" and closing with just 18 seconds of 'Sanctuary' from "Bitches Brew", released March 1970.This is an uncompromising set list, hitting the audience with what would be at the time considered a baffling new direction. With hindsight this is some great work, showing Miles moving fast and ever restless. Sound quality is B- to B, a little shrill in places and the performance is raw, but nonetheless fascinating. Hi Hat should be commended for putting out new material from this very under represented period.Track List:1. Spoken Radio Introduction (1:20)2. Black Satin (10:22)3. Rated X (15:18)4. Honky Tonk (9:43)5. Right Off (13:43)6. Sanctuary (0:18)Band:Miles Davis - TrumpetCarlos Garnett - SaxophoneReggie Lucas - guitarKhalil Balakrishna - sitarCedric Lawson - keyboardsMichael Henderson - bassAl Foster - drumsBadal Roy - tablaMtume - percussion

Not the greatest sound quality (it’s a bit muffled & distorted in places), which is a little disappointing considering the sound quality of previous public domain concert “Live in Tokyo 1975” (which was also released by Hi Hat), the CD isn’t unlistenable it’s just distracts a bit from a great show, although the Hi Hat does apologise for this in the CD's liner notes.As for the music, it’s a great mix of styles, “Black Stain” & “Honky Tonk” are very melodic, rhythmic & laid back, whereas “Rated X” & “Right off” are a more up tempo freak out.It goes without saying you should buy the official “Philharmonic Hall” CD first (it was recorded in the same month), but there’s enough in this Boston show to worth adding to your collection; it’s just a shame it wasn’t a little cheaper.This was the first of four show that Davis performed at Paul’s Mall in Boston, so I’m guessing that there are going to be quite a few of these concert released over the next few years.

I rarely write reviews but was so impressed by this rather uninteresting looking release that it seemed good to draw attention to it for other '70s Miles fans. It's a much wilder performance than the official Live In Concert CD from the same year. Also the recording is more immediate, doesn't have the rather subdued quality of the official release. The material is mostly from On The Corner, but doesn't sound much like it, replacing the pinpoint precision of that album with a crazy patchwork of rhythms and solos. Things happen more quickly than on the later Agharta and Pangaea - it's less stately, more manic. The keyboard work is very unusual for a Miles band - halfway between the Velvet Underground and Hawkwind. In fact there are several passages that remind me of Sister Ray or live This Heat. It's a long way from Miles' professed influences of Sly, James Brown and Jimi Hendrix, though there is a very wild electric sitar solo and the Stockhausen influence is clearly audible from time to time. My only sonic qualm is that Carlos Garnett's sax is quiet to begin with - it does get louder later on, but in any case what's he's playing is mostly textural, in the Nick Turner (!) tradition. The sound of this nine-piece band solidifies as the music continues and by the end is truly overwhelming.

The blue vinyl version on rainbowed records sounds much more natural, clear and unmuddled. The CD seems to have been the victim of an incompetent "remastering" job