Miles Davis - Agharta - 2 x 180g Vinyl LPs

2025

David Liebman left the group in the spring of 1974. He was replaced by Sonny Fortune whose alto sends us back to bop phrasing rather than to Liebman’s layers of Coltrane, at times leading the rhythm section toward a more traditional kind of jazz.

But the rest of the time, the music is busier than ever, and jazz critics became increasingly hostile, reproaching Miles for his attitude, his electric trumpet, and his synthesizer. In Japan, Miles nonetheless was greeted enthusiastically during a three-week tour that included Osaka, where Sony technicians awaited him to record the two concerts of February 1, 1975.

The first was released on the double album Agharta. The music has a radiance and an edginess that stretches out over long sections, practically without any reference points other than the abrupt pauses characteristic of the “on-off” method. An unexpected shuffle rhythm, in the style of the Chicago Blues, appears in the middle of “Interlude,” preceding the psychedelic finale in which the music unravels slowly.

Original issue: CBS/Sony LP (J) 28AP 2167/68 in 1975 in Japan
Producer: Teo Macero
Engineer: Tomoo Suzuki

All compositions by Miles Davis

Agharta was recorded on the afternoon in 1975, at one of two concerts Miles Davis performed at the Osaka Festival Hall in Japan. He performed with his septet—flautist and saxophonist Sonny Fortune, bassist Michael Henderson, drummer Al Foster, percussionist James Mtume, guitarist Reggie Lucas, and Pete Cosey, who played guitar, synthesizer, and percussion. Produced and recorded by Teo Macero, the album's four seemingly unstructured segments emphasize the playing of Davis' sidemen rather than his own trumpet. It eschews both melody and harmony in favor of a combination of riffs, crossing polyrhythms, and Funk-oriented grooves for soloists to improvise throughout. The album has received retrospective acclaim as an important and influential Jazz-Rock record. Its abrasive music and Cosey's innovative playing influenced a generation of young musicians, including those in the British Jazz scene.

Agharta is available as a 50th anniversary edition of 2000 numbered copies on translucent blue coloured vinyl and comes in a gatefold sleeve finished with linen laminate.