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'The '''Miles Davis Quintet''' was an [[United States|American]] [[jazz band]] from 1955 to early 1969 led by [[Miles Davis]]. The quintet underwent frequent personnel changes toward its metamorphosis into a different ensemble in 1969. Most references pertain to two distinct and relatively stable bands: the '''First Great Quintet''' from 1955 to 1958; and the '''Second Great Quintet''' from late 1964 to early 1969, Davis being the only constant throughout. ==First Great Quintet/Sextet (1955-58)== In the summer of 1955, Davis performed a noted set at the [[Newport Jazz Festival]], and had been approached by [[Columbia Records]] executive [[George Avakian]], offering a contract with the label if he could form a regular band.<ref>[[Richard Cook (journalist)|Richard Cook]]. ''It's About That Time: Miles Davis On and Off Record.'' New York: Oxford University Press, 2005. ISBN 978-0-19-532266-8, pp. 44-45.</ref> Davis assembled his first regular quintet to meet a commitment at the [[Café Bohemia]] in July with [[Sonny Rollins]] on [[tenor saxophone]], [[Red Garland]] on [[piano]], [[Paul Chambers]] on [[double bass|bass]], and [[Philly Joe Jones]] on [[drums]].<ref>Cook, p. 45.</ref> By the autumn, Rollins had left to deal with his [[heroin]] addiction, and later in the year would join the [[hard bop]] quintet led by [[Clifford Brown]] and [[Max Roach]].<ref>[[Lewis Porter]]. ''John Coltrane: His Life and Music''. [[Ann Arbor, Michigan|Ann Arbor]]: The University of Michigan Press, 1999. ISBN 0-472-10161-7, p. 98.</ref> At the recommendation of drummer Jones, Davis replaced Rollins with [[John Coltrane]], beginning a partnership that would last five years and finalizing the Quintet's first line-up.<ref>Cook, p. 46.</ref> Expanded to a sextet with the addition of [[Cannonball Adderley]] on [[alto saxophone]] in 1958, the First Great Quintet would be one of the definitive hard bop groups along with the Brown-Roach Quintet and the [[Jazz Messengers]], recording the Columbia albums ''[[Round About Midnight]]'', ''[[Milestones (Miles Davis album)|Milestones]]'', and the marathon [[recording session|sessions]] for [[Prestige Records]] resulting in five albums collected on ''[[The Legendary Prestige Quintet Sessions]]''. In mid-1958, [[Bill Evans]] replaced Garland on piano and [[Jimmy Cobb]] replaced Jones on drums, but Evans only lasted about six months, in turn replaced by [[Wynton Kelly]] as 1958 turned into 1959.<ref>Cook, pp. 93-95, 110.</ref> This group backing Davis, Coltrane, and Adderley, with Evans returning for the recording sessions, would record ''[[Kind of Blue]]'', considered "one of the most important, influential and popular albums in jazz".<ref>[http://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/500-greatest-albums-of-all-time-20120531/miles-davis-kind-of-blue-20120524 "500 Greatest Albums of All Time"] ''[[Rolling Stone]]''. Retrieved 2 June 2013.</ref> Adderley left the band in September 1959 to pursue his own career, returning the line-up to a quintet.<ref>Cook, p. 123.</ref> Coltrane departed in the spring of 1960, and after interim replacements [[Jimmy Heath]] and [[Sonny Stitt]], Davis plus Kelly, Chambers, and Cobb continued through 1961 and 1962 with [[Hank Mobley]] on tenor sax.<ref>Cook, pp. 128-30.</ref> The two rhythm sections from the Davis Quintet would also achieve fame on their own. Garland, Chambers, and Jones recorded as a unit on ''[[Art Pepper meets The Rhythm Section]]'' and Sonny Rollins' ''[[Tenor Madness]]'', while Kelly, Chambers, and Cobb toured and recorded as a trio under Kelly's name, in addition to appearing on the albums ''[[Coltrane Jazz]]'' and the [[Introducing Wayne Shorter|solo debut of Wayne Shorter]], as well as backing [[Wes Montgomery]] on ''[[Full House (Wes Montgomery album)|Full House]]'' and ''[[Smokin' at the Half Note]]''. The Kelly-Chambers-Cobb trio also backed [[Art Pepper]] on the album ''[[Gettin' Together (Art Pepper album)|Gettin' Together]]'', which included trumpeter [[Conte Candoli]]. ==Second Great Quintet (1964-68) == Mobley, Kelly, Chambers, and Cobb all left Davis by the end of 1962, and during 1963 he struggled to maintain a steady line-up. By the late spring, he had hired the core of the Second Quintet with [[Herbie Hancock]] on piano, [[Ron Carter]] on bass, and ''wunderkind'' [[Tony Williams (drummer)|Tony Williams]] on drums.<ref>Cook, pp. 145-149.</ref> Initially with [[George Coleman]] or [[Sam Rivers]] on tenor sax, the final piece of the puzzle would arrive in late 1964 with saxophonist [[Wayne Shorter]]. The performance style of the Second Great Quintet was often referred to by Davis as "time, no changes", incorporating elements of [[free jazz]] without completely surrendering to the approach, allowing the five men to contribute to the group as equals rather than as a leader and sidemen peeling off unrelated solos.<ref>Cook, p. 168.</ref> This band recorded the albums ''[[E.S.P. (Miles Davis album)|E.S.P.]]'', ''[[Miles Smiles]]'', ''[[Sorcerer (Miles Davis album)|Sorcerer]]'', ''[[Nefertiti (Miles Davis album)|Nefertiti]]'', ''[[Miles in the Sky]]'', and ''[[Filles de Kilimanjaro]]'', and the live set considered by ''[[The Penguin Guide to Jazz]]'' to be their crowning achievement, ''[[The Complete Live at the Plugged Nickel 1965]]''. When Davis began to become more interested in the [[rock music|rock]], [[soul music|soul]], and [[funk]] music of the late 1960s, the Second Quintet unraveled. Carter departed during the sessions for ''Filles de Kilimanjaro'', and Williams left in early 1969 to start his own band, the [[Tony Williams Lifetime]], staying on with Davis to record the groundbreaking ''[[In A Silent Way]]''.<ref>Cook, p. 197, 203.</ref> Davis would continue his innovations into [[jazz fusion]] with the album ''[[Bitches Brew]]'' and his work in the 1970s. As a result, the Second Quintet came to an end. Players on ''In A Silent Way'' and ''Bitches Brew'' would go on to form the core jazz fusion bands of the 1970s away from Davis: Shorter and [[Josef Zawinul]] to [[Weather Report]]; [[John McLaughlin (musician)|John McLaughlin]] and [[Billy Cobham]] to the [[Mahavishnu Orchestra]]; Hancock and [[Bennie Maupin]] to [[The Headhunters|Headhunters]]; and [[Chick Corea]] and [[Lenny White]] to [[Return to Forever]]. ==Personnel== ===First great quintet (1955-58)=== * [[Miles Davis]] — [[trumpet]] * [[John Coltrane]] — [[tenor saxophone]] * [[Red Garland]] — [[piano]] * [[Paul Chambers]] — [[double bass|bass]] * [[Philly Joe Jones]] — [[drum kit|drums]] :''increased to Sextet in 1958 with'' [[Cannonball Adderley]] — [[alto saxophone]] ===Second great quintet (1964-69)=== * [[Miles Davis]] — trumpet * [[Wayne Shorter]] — tenor saxophone * [[Herbie Hancock]] — piano * [[Ron Carter]] — bass * [[Tony Williams (drummer)|Tony Williams]] — drums * [[Marshall Hawkins (musician)|Marshall Hawkins]] – bass ==References== {{reflist}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Davis Quintet, Miles}} [[Category:Cool jazz ensembles]] [[Category:Bebop ensembles]] [[Category:Miles Davis]] [[Category:John Coltrane]] [[Category:American jazz ensembles]] [[Category:Hard bop ensembles]] [[Category:Musical groups established in 1955]]'