by Scott Yanow
This CD reissue features trumpeter Miles Davis with three different pickup recording groups that are full of fellow all-stars. &Tune-Up,& &Miles Ahead,& &When Lights Are Low& (which uses slightly different chord changes than its composer Benny Carter originally intended), and &Smooch& find Davis joined by pianist John Lewis (Charles Mingus plays piano on &Smooch&), bassist Percy Heath, and drummer Max Roach. With pianist Horace Silver, bassist Heath, and drummer Art Blakey offering solid accompaniment, Davis introduces &Four& and performs &Old Devil Moon& and &Blue Haze.& Finally, with altoist Dave Schildkraut, Silver, Heath, and drummer Kenny Clarke, Miles jams through &I'll Remember April.& Although not as essential as the trumpeter's classic Quintet records of 1955-1956, several of the performances (most notably &Tune-Up& and &Four&) are quite memorable, and the straight-ahead playing is of consistently high quality.