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August 10, 2005
Forget Seven Steps — he uses all twelve
I started to learn Miles Davis’ solo on “Seven Steps To Heaven” last night. It’s friggin’ hard for me to transcibe, not just because it’s fast, but because it’s hella chromatic. Take a listen:
I hear solos like this and I wonder how on earth he thought of doing something like that. It reminds me a bit of a pointilist painting, in the sense that Miles uses all sorts of chromatic notes and colors that, when examined closely, sound strange or maybe out of place. But when you step back to listen not just to the notes but to the phrases and the whole of the solo, a coherent picture emerges. The effect is tremendously exciting, like a roller coaster that feels about to vear out of control but comes back onto the track just often enough so that you know it knows what it’s doing.
I don’t know what the Seven Steps refer to: can anyone enlighten me?
Posted by alex at August 10, 2005 10:13 AM