I own enough oddball vinyl records to have never ditched my turntable. Having heard people praise the quality of high end pressings such as MFSL over the years, I decided to do a little experiment with this one. I played this 180 gram Bitches Brew record track by track with the CD reissue to see if there really was a difference.
To tell you the truth, the difference was astonishing. It sounded like the band were in the room with me at times with the vinyl version. Those remarkable sustained notes that Miles is so famous for seem to hang in the air forever. I guess I’ll have to stop putting those audiophile snobs down after hearing this.
The original liner notes by the great Ralph J. Gleason are reprinted in the gatefold cover as well, and they are remarkably prescient. This vinyl reissue of Bitches Brew is no mere marketing scam, the sound really is noticeably improved. On a record as uniformly great as this one, it is a welcome addition to the Miles Davis library.
Article comments
1 - JANK
You know, I love Bitches Brew but you lost me when you dissed In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida and Creams blues jams. Un-listenable? Why must you disparage some works? I could go on about the merits and energy of the above works in conjuction with Miles. All are good. All have their moment. Hmmph.