Cheap Nefertiti (Music) (Miles Davis) Price

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Customer Reviews of Nefertiti

Amazing melodies, nice playing, superb Miles Davis set.
This album is definitely one of the more progressive Miles Davis efforts. It was the last "straight-ahead" jazz album he made before experimenting with electric bass and keyboards in his rhythm section on Miles In The Sky and Filles De Killemanjaro (both released the following year, in 1968). Nefertiti showcases Wayne Shorter's great compositions once again, and Herbie Hancock also contributes a couple pieces. Tony Williams also composed a piece. This album is painfully under-appreciated compared to Miles Davis's other classic releases, although all the real Miles listeners know about Nefertiti. Every track is pulsed by Ron Carter's exquisite basslines and the drumming battery of Tony Williams. "Nefertiti", a Shorter composition, has the melody repeated for about seven and a half minutes, but it's repeated in a different way each time. The moods of the piece change distinctively throughout. There are no solos, and the hypnotic melody will get to you over time. "Fall" is a mysterious, lilting ballad which comes out to be a true gem. Another piece by Wayne Shorter, the abstract setting makes the piece sound like it could speed up at any second, but it remains a beautiful, slow piece. Miles and Wayne both take excellent solos here, and Herbie takes a nice solo here as well showing how much he has grown as a musician. "Hand Jive" is a Tony Williams piece, and Miles takes a solo full of cool ideas and his usual sweet sound on the trumpet. Everyone gets a chance to really stretch out on this track. In fact, it wouldn't really sound out of place on Miles Smiles, a Miles album made the previous year. "Madness" has more of a straight feel, although there are still many tempo changes, especially in Herbie's piano solo. Here, Miles really gets into his solo and shines brightly. The theme is cool, almost sounding like a play on horror movie, but it's in a playful manner. "Riot" is a piece Herbie Hancock recorded outside of Miles's group and is being remade here. Everyone takes a relatively short solo on this track, which almost gives the listener a bit of a break from the previous four pieces, which are all pretty long. "Pinocchio", is my favorite track on the album though. The theme is so cool, it almost sounds like a voice. The whole piece has a timeless, energetic feel to it. The theme stays stuck in my head for a while, and this is the only track on the album I will put on repeat for a long period of time, except for maybe "Fall". Miles and Wayne both take awesome solos and Herbie makes a great contribution as well. Tony Williams adds the real fire behind this tune with his great, percussive drumming. Usually my favorite track on an album is not the last one, so this is yet another unusual aspect of Nefertiti.

Overall, this is a great album for any Miles Davis fan. Every single track is amazing. Not the type of album you would call a guilty pleasure. Unfortunately, I have a digitally remastered version but I don't have the one Amazon[.com] has here. Mine is just the original: six beautiful tracks. I will have to check out this new version with alternate takes although I recommend the original version if you can find it just for the ability to hear the album the way Miles originally intended for it to be released. An outstanding album, get it!

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Miles and his Quintet at their best! Wonderful.
This album shows why Miles was one of the greatest trumpet players and also a supreme master of time and space. Not only that, with such a great band to work with, amazing things are bound to happen! Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter and Tony Williams. Each one of these guys went on to have prolific solo careers on their own after playing with Miles, and that's no surprise. They're legends and in 1967 were legends in the making. The band tries something new on the title track, repeating a theme with various rhythmic changes which keeps the interest rate up. On the beautiful ballad "Fall" (another classic Shorter composition), the band plays beautifully in relaxing mode and there is some great soloing, especially from Miles, who is at his poignant best. The pace speeds back up again for Tony's composition "Hand Jive", which is a speedy hard bop tune and one great thing about the soloing is Miles's tone sounds absolutely beautiful, but he still expresses clarity of thought throughout this fast pace. "Madness" and "Riot" are both Herbie compositions and have some interesting rhythmic changes throughout the themes (especially in "Riot" which almost reminds me of a zombie with the chords Herbie plays). The album ends with a great song, the snappy "Pinocchio" (I think this is another Shorter composition, go figure! The guy is a genius!). Miles and company really delivered on this album, one of the best! An interesting thing I noticed once was I was watching VH-1 (not on purpose, I PROMISE!) and Joni Mitchell named this album as one of her all-time favorites. An unlikely influence, this album was a classic in 1967 and still is one in 2003.

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As fresh as the day it was recorded
The music of Miles' second quintet is complex, ethereal and haunting. Miles Smiles which preceded this by a year heralded something very new and that spirit is continued here. First Wayne Shorter's compositions were/are just stunning. Second, the device of having the horns repeat a rthymic figure over the polyrthymic drumming of Tony Williams gives the music these men were producing during this period another worldly quality that in my opinion is unmatched anywhere in jazz. The musicians are all so well known that their virtuosity is a given. Miles' musical vision matched with Shorter's is a highlight and turning point in the history of jazz that should not be missed by anyone who hasn't heard this yet. Miles Smiles and Nefertiti are two of my all time favorites and I cannot recommend them highly enough.