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68-614: In the summer of 1955, after Davis performed at the Newport Jazz Festival , he was approached by Columbia Records executive George Avakian , who offered him a contract if he could form a regular band. 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 bass , and Philly Joe Jones on drums . By

136-430: A 4 jazz ride pattern while Carter continues the 8 bass line. Three of the album's compositions made it to Davis' live "book". "Dolores" is known from a single recording in the spring of 1967. "Ginger Bread Boy" and "Footprints" were played much more frequently. Early live versions of "Ginger Bread Boy" (from the spring and summer of 1966) retained the melody of Heath's original version. The melody on

204-649: A jazz jam session hosted by organist Jimmy Smith and featuring, among others, Art Blakey , Hampton Hawes , Sonny Stitt , and Howard McGhee . Friday afternoon featured a rock-oriented bill featuring the jazz-fusion group Blood, Sweat & Tears , eclectic jazz saxophonist Rahsaan Roland Kirk , and the rock acts The Jeff Beck Group , Ten Years After , and Jethro Tull . Saturday's schedule mixed jazz acts, such as Dave Brubeck and Miles Davis , with rock, blues and R&B artists such as John Mayall , Sly & The Family Stone , Frank Zappa and his band The Mothers of Invention , and O. C. Smith . Sunday's bill featured

272-667: A lineup entirely of jazz performers, including McCoy Tyner , Dexter Gordon , Miles Davis, Dave Brubeck, Dizzy Gillespie, and Art Blakey. The festival was immediately successful upon returning to Newport, although no longer quite the draw it had been in its first years, owing to shifting interests and to the proliferation of competing festivals. Future installments in the 1980s and 1990s also predominantly featured jazz performers, although acts in other genres continued to appear sporadically, including return performances by B.B. King and Ray Charles in 1984, and blues rock guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan and his band Double Trouble in 1985. In 1988,

340-469: A more touching ballad than 'Circle'?" Allmusic editor Stephen Thomas Erlewine praised the quintet's compositions as "memorable, yet open-ended and nervy, setting (and creating) standards for modern bop that were emulated well into the new century". Erlewine viewed that the quintet "really began to hit their stride, delving deeper into the more adventurous, exploratory side of their signature sound ... all their strengths are in full bloom", and elaborated on

408-540: A morning performance of Brubeck's oratio The Light in the Wilderness , an afternoon set by James Brown , and an evening finale headlined by the British rock band Led Zeppelin , jazz keyboardist Herbie Hancock , blues guitarists B. B. King and Johnny Winter , and jazz drummer Buddy Rich and his orchestra. Davis remarked that the various artists involved were highly encouraging to each other and that he enjoyed

476-484: A number of jazz musicians but was financially unsuccessful. Bernstein announced that he would not seek to return to Newport in 1962. In 1962, the Newport Jazz Festival resumed at Freebody Park. Wein did not resurrect the extinct not-for-profit organization which had run the Newport Jazz Festival through 1960; instead, he freshly incorporated the festival as an independent business venture of his own. He

544-415: A number of notable jazz musicians, including Billie Holiday , and were emceed by Stan Kenton . The festival was hailed by major magazines and newspapers, and some 13,000 people attended between the two days. In general, the festival was regarded as a major success. In 1955, organizers were planning a second year for the festival but needed to find a new venue. The Newport Casino would not again host

612-475: A quintet consisting of Chick Corea on piano, Wayne Shorter on tenor saxophone, Dave Holland on bass, and Jack DeJohnette on drums. It became known retrospectively as the "Lost Quintet" because the group never released a studio album. In 2013, Columbia Records released " Live in Europe 1969: The Bootleg Series Vol. 2 ", uncovering live concerts featuring the group's tour in Europe. Prior to their appearances on

680-460: A riot, to announce that the Sunday evening Led Zeppelin appearance was cancelled. That show was allowed to go forward as initially scheduled after much of the overflow crowd had left the city, following the cancellation announcement. The 1970 festival was three days instead of the usual four with an estimated attendance of 40,400. Promoter George Wein reverted to an all-jazz policy after he stated

748-491: A trend of using the "Newport Jazz Festival" name outside of Newport, as in the Newport Jazz Festival in Madarao , Japan, from 1982 to 2004. During the 1970s, the Newport Jazz Festival pioneered corporate sponsorship of music festivals. Working with Schlitz and KOOL , the festival changed its name based on what company was sponsoring. In 1981, George Wein brought the Newport Jazz Festival back to Newport, partly to preserve

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816-643: Is an album by the jazz musician Miles Davis . It was released on February 16, 1967 through Columbia Records . It was recorded by Davis and his second quintet at Columbia 30th Street Studio in New York City on October 24 and October 25, 1966. It is the second of six albums recorded by Davis' second great quintet , which featured tenor saxophonist Wayne Shorter , pianist Herbie Hancock , bassist Ron Carter , and drummer Tony Williams . Miles Smiles showcases Davis' deeper exploration of modal performance with looser forms , tempos, and meters . Although

884-506: Is an annual American multi-day jazz music festival held every summer in Newport, Rhode Island . Elaine Lorillard established the festival in 1954, and she and husband Louis Lorillard financed it for many years. They hired George Wein to organize the first festival and bring jazz to Rhode Island. Most of the early festivals were broadcast on Voice of America radio, and many performances were recorded and released as albums. In 1972,

952-591: Is often held in the same month as the Newport Folk Festival . In 1954, the first Newport Jazz Festival (billed as the "First Annual American Jazz Festival") was held at Newport Casino , in the Bellevue Avenue Historic District of Newport, Rhode Island . It incorporated academic panel discussions and featured live musical performances. The live performances were set outdoors, on a lawn. These performances were given by

1020-518: Is warm and accessible—it just never acts that way. No matter how accessible this is, what's so utterly brilliant about it is that the group never brings it forth to the audience. They're playing for each other, pushing and prodding each other in an effort to discover new territory. As such, this crackles with vitality, sounding fresh decades after its release. Down Beat complimented its "simpler, drier, more austere sound" and stated "the unrehearsed, rough Miles Smiles holds up so well simply because it

1088-575: The Duke Ellington Orchestra's lengthy 1956 performance of " Diminuendo and Crescendo in Blue ", featuring a 27-chorus saxophone solo by Paul Gonsalves . A reconstructed Ellington at Newport , from his 1956 performance, was re-issued in 1999. Aside from the actual festival performance of " Diminuendo and Crescendo in Blue ", including the distant-sounding Gonsalves solo, the original album used re-creations, note for note, of some of

1156-628: The Gigi Gryce - Donald Byrd Jazz Laboratory and the Cecil Taylor Quartet featuring Steve Lacy were released on At Newport (1958). The performance of Count Basie was issued as Count Basie at Newport in 1958. The notable film Jazz on a Summer's Day was made from footage of the 1958 Newport Jazz Festival featuring such performers as Louis Armstrong, Anita O'Day and Mahilia Jackson. The film and its soundtrack have been widely released on VHS, DVD, Vinyl and CD. Performances at

1224-559: The Mahavishnu Orchestra ; Hancock and Bennie Maupin to Headhunters ; and Chick Corea , Airto Moreira and Lenny White to Return to Forever . Columbia/Legacy Recordings released Freedom Jazz Dance: The Bootleg Series Vol. 5 , a collection of previously unreleased tracks recorded by the Second Great Quintet between 1966 and 1968. Following the dissolution of the Second Great Quintet, Davis enlisted

1292-654: The VHS video cassette, offered a sponsorship package, and Kool agreed to withdraw its sponsorship for financial reasons. That year the event was renamed the JVC Jazz Festival. That year's lineup reflected a shift away from an almost exclusive focus on mainstream jazz, and introcuded blues, soul, and experimental jazz performers. Performers included Charles, Gillespie, Davis, Ron Carter, and Flora Purim. Coverage in The Providence Journal characterized

1360-549: The rock , 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 . Davis would continue his innovations into jazz fusion with the album Bitches Brew and his work in

1428-541: The 1960 festival by Muddy Waters and Nina Simone were released as the albums At Newport 1960 and Nina Simone at Newport (1960). The 1962 Festival is documented in a film released by Storyville Records . Among the performers are Lambert, Hendricks & Bavan , the Oscar Peterson Trio, Roland Kirk , Duke Ellington , and the Count Basie Orchestra featuring Jimmy Rushing , at

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1496-551: The 1967 festival was released as part of the Holy Ghost: Rare & Unissued Recordings (1962–70) box set (2004). An Ella Fitzgerald performance from Carnegie Hall in July 1973 was documented on the album Newport Jazz Festival: Live at Carnegie Hall (1973). Past performers at the Newport Jazz Festival include: 41°28′38″N 71°20′22″W  /  41.47722°N 71.33944°W  / 41.47722; -71.33944 Miles Smiles Miles Smiles

1564-466: The 1970s. As a result, the Second Quintet came to an end, though Hancock would contribute to subsequent sessions with Miles and appear on Jack Johnson , On the Corner , and Get Up with It . 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 and Billy Cobham to

1632-500: The Davis Quintet also gained attention in their own right. 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 solo debut of Wayne Shorter , as well as backing Wes Montgomery on Full House and Smokin' at

1700-562: The Festival would be cancelled. Poet Langston Hughes , on the grounds, wrote an impromptu lyric called "Goodbye Newport Blues" and brought it to Muddy Waters , who was headlining the Sunday blues presentation. They announced a spontaneous performance of the piece with pianist Otis Spann leading the band. Likewise the Nashville All-Stars retreated to their rented mansion and recorded a live album on its porch, called After

1768-873: The First Great Quintet was 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 , and the marathon sessions for Prestige Records resulting in four 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 remained for about six months, in turn replaced by Wynton Kelly as 1958 turned into 1959. This group backing Davis, Coltrane, and Adderley, with Evans returning for

1836-544: The Half Note . The Kelly-Chambers-Cobb trio also backed Art Pepper on the album Gettin' Together , which included trumpeter Conte Candoli . 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 Tony Williams on drums. Initially with George Coleman or Sam Rivers on tenor sax,

1904-482: The Jazz Futures ensemble of young jazz musicians that also featured Roy Hargrove and Antonio Hart . In 2016, McBride was selected as the festival's artistic director and lineup curator. In early 2007, Newport Jazz Festival producer George Wein sold his Festival Productions company to Festival Network, a company operated by former Shoreline Media executive Chris Shields. Festival Networked owned and operated

1972-537: The Newport Jazz Festival legacy and to protect his interest in the Newport Jazz Festival name. Arrangements with the title sponsor of the Newport Jazz Festival-New York had seen that festival promoted as the "Kool Jazz Festival". The revived festival took place at Fort Adams State Park, where it has remained since. Newport, now quite keen to tourism, was extremely receptive to the resumption of its Newport Jazz Festival. The 1981 bill featured

2040-577: The Newport Jazz Festival was moved to New York City. In 1981, it became a two-site festival when it was returned to Newport while continuing in New York. From 1984 to 2008, the festival was known as the JVC Jazz Festival; in the economic downturn of 2009, JVC ceased its support of the festival and was replaced by CareFusion . The festival is hosted in Newport at Fort Adams State Park . It

2108-421: The Newport Jazz Festival with Wein in a senior position. Starting in 2007, the Newport festival began serving beer and wine at Fort Adams State Park. Wein began running the festival again in 2009 after the company that owned the event experienced financial difficulty. In 2011, Wein established the non-profit Newport Festivals Foundation, which has operated the jazz and folk festivals since. The 2020 festival

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2176-540: The Riot at Newport . On Monday the 4th the last two days of the festival were indeed cancelled. The 1960 event was also notable for the presence of a rival jazz festival that took place at the Cliff Walk Manor Hotel, just a few blocks away. This was organized by musicians Charles Mingus and Max Roach in protest against the festival paying less to jazz innovators, compared to more mainstream performers;

2244-475: The album "accentuated the quintet's connections to both the hard bop tradition and the avant-garde ." On three tracks from this album—"Orbits", "Dolores", and "Ginger Bread Boy"— pianist Herbie Hancock takes the unusual liberty of dispensing with left-hand chords and playing only right-hand lines. "Freedom Jazz Dance" has more conventional accompaniment from the piano, although the quintet altered Eddie Harris ' composition by inserting additional bars between

2312-540: The album did not follow the conventions of bop , neither did it follow the formlessness of free jazz . According to musicologist Jeremy Yudkin, Miles Smiles falls under the post-bop subgenre, which he defines as "an approach that is abstract and intense in the extreme, with space created for rhythmic and coloristic independence of the drummer—an approach that incorporated modal and chordal harmonies, flexible form, structured choruses, melodic variation , and free improvisation ." Music theorist Keith Waters writes that

2380-489: The autumn, Rollins had left to deal with his heroin addiction, and later in the year joined the hard bop quintet led by Clifford Brown and Max Roach . 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. Expanded to a sextet with the addition of Cannonball Adderley on alto saxophone in 1958,

2448-423: The band's. Gonsalves' performance so excited the audience that the festival sponsors feared that the crowd was on the verge of rioting. The 1957 festival was well documented by Verve Records , which released 12 albums of recorded performances. The 1957 performances of Ella Fitzgerald , Billie Holiday , and Carmen McRae were released on the album Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday at Newport (1958). Those by

2516-422: The closing. Part of the appearances by John Coltrane and Archie Shepp from the 1965 Festival appeared on the album New Thing at Newport . A set by Herbie Mann featuring Chick Corea , at that same year's festival, was released on the album Standing Ovation at Newport . Mann also released an album, mostly recorded at that performance, titled New Mann at Newport (1967). Albert Ayler 's performance at

2584-430: The documentary film Jazz on a Summer's Day the following year. In 1960, local papers on July 1 noted a string of violent, but minor, incidents in town on the opening Friday. Saturday was much worse, with thousands of people unable to enter the sold-out shows roaming the city streets and battling police. Some 200 people were arrested, a town record. The National Guard was called in. By Sunday word circulated that

2652-606: The established pattern of having the group leader and then the backing musicians perform unrelated solos. This band recorded the albums E.S.P. , Miles Smiles , Sorcerer , 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

2720-443: The fact that the innovators were mostly black and the mainstream performers mostly white was also an aggravating factor. In 1961, presentation of the official Newport Jazz Festival was disallowed, due to the difficulties associated with the previous year's festival. In its place, another festival, billed as "Music at Newport", was produced by Sid Bernstein in cooperation with a group of Newport businessmen. That festival included

2788-479: The festival began also hosting annual concerts at the Newport Casino , where the first festival was held in 1954, with performers such as Tony Bennett , Mel Tormé , Illinois Jacquet , k.d. lang , Diana Krall , Ray Charles, Harry Connick Jr. , and Wynton Marsalis . JVC became the primary sponsor of the festival in 1984; Wein stated that the audio-visual equipment company, which had recently developed

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2856-478: The festival more than ever before. He also noticed and appreciated the spirited nature of the younger audience. But some clashes did occur. Excess crowds, estimated at 50,000, who had been unable to obtain tickets filled an adjacent hillside, and the weekend was marred by disturbances, including fence crashing and crowd surging, during the most popular performances. Saturday evening's disturbances were particularly significant, prompting producer George Wein, who feared

2924-420: The festival since its lawn and other facilities did not stand up well to such a large event. Festival backer Elaine Lorillard , with her husband, purchased " Belcourt ", a large estate which was available locally, in hopes of hosting the festival there. However, the neighborhood disallowed that plan, citing concerns about potential disturbance. Consequently, the workshops and receptions were held at Belcourt, while

2992-409: The final member of the quintet arrived in late 1964 when saxophonist Wayne Shorter joined. 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. This allowed the five musicians to simultaneously contribute to the group as equals at times, rather than to always follow

3060-482: The ground of four main beats is maintained throughout the piece. The bass switches to 4 at 2:20. Carter’s 4 figure is known as tresillo in Afro-Cuban music and is the duple-pulse correlative of the 8 figure. This may have been the first overt expression of systemic, African-based cross-rhythm used by a straight ahead jazz group. During Davis’ first trumpet solo, Williams shifts to

3128-493: The incandescent performance level attained by his colleagues, he is inspired by them to deliver some of his most inventive playing on records so far." Hentoff cited the quintet as Davis' "most stimulating rhythm team so far" and concluded with a discourse on its potential significance, writing that: [ Miles Smiles ] is certain to remain an important part of the Davis discography, both for the trumpeter's persistent brilliance and for

3196-508: The jazz-fusion groups Chase , Soft Machine , and Weather Report . Many more fans were drawn than Festival Field could accommodate. On the second night, after the recording of what would become The Dave Brubeck Quartet featuring Gerry Mulligan – The Last Set at Newport , over 12,000 people on the adjacent hillside crashed the fence during Dionne Warwick 's performance of " What the World Needs Now Is Love ". The festival

3264-548: The lesson by Williams and Carter in how the functions—and the dynamic range—of the jazz rhythm section are being explored and changed. Martin Williams , writing for the Saturday Review , called it "an exceptional recital, Davis' best album in some time, and clear evidence of his continuing dedication as an improvising musician", while stating that it is "directly in the tradition of the 'experimental' Davis recordings,

3332-780: The lineup as "the most exciting in at least five years." The festival drew a varied crowd of 7,000 that year. The festival continued to take place annually at Fort Adams through the 1990s and 2000s. Along with established jazz performers such as Wynton Marsalis and George Benson, the festival also featured contemporary jazz musicians, as well as appearances from artists who performed other, related genres. These included: Tito Puente and Celia Cruz (1990), Tower of Power (1992), Thomas Chapin (1995), Medeski Martin & Wood (1997), Femi Kuti , Cassandra Wilson , John Zorn , and Maceo Parker (2000), Isaac Hayes (2002), Pat Metheny (2003), and Dr. John (2006). Bassist Christian McBride made his Jazz Festival debut in 1991 as part of

3400-615: The melodic phrases of the piece, as well as performing the piece at a slightly faster tempo. Wayne Shorter's composition "Footprints" was first recorded for his album Adam's Apple , but on Miles Smiles , the correlation between African-based 8 (or 8 ), and 4 is playfully explored. Drummer Tony Williams freely moves from swing, to the three-over-two cross rhythm —and to its 4 correlative. The rhythmic approach of Williams, and bassist Ron Carter, strongly suggests compound quadruple meter ( 8 ), rather than triple meter ( 4 ), because

3468-542: The mood and [Carter] has a sure feel for the note that underlines the swirl of chords". Reviewing the record's 1992 CD reissue, Q called Miles Smiles "essential...one of the quintet's best albums" and cited "Footprints" and "Dolores" as "all-time great jazz compositions". Musician cited Miles Smiles as one of "the great quintet albums" and wrote that it "has lost none of its cutting edge ... Has any band ever grooved harder than Miles and company do on 'Orbits', 'Dolores' or 'Ginger Bread Boy'--and has Miles ever penned

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3536-436: The music was presented at Freebody Park, an arena for sports located a block behind the casino. Some Newport residents were opposed to the festival. Jazz appreciation was not common within the established upper-class community, and the festival brought crowds of younger music fans to Newport. Many attendees were students who, in the absence of sufficient lodging, slept outdoors wherever they could, with or without tents. Newport

3604-408: The music's accessibility: It's not just the fast, manic material that has an edge—slower, quieter numbers are mercurial, not just in how they shift melodies and chords, but how the voicing and phrasing never settles into a comfortable groove. This is music that demands attention, never taking predictable paths or easy choices. Its greatest triumph is that it masks this adventurousness within music that

3672-630: The next years, but Wein missed the outdoors of Newport which the venues of New York City failed to duplicate. In 1977, Wein worked with the city of Saratoga Springs, New York , to move the festival to the Saratoga Performing Arts Center during the following year. He established the Newport Jazz Festival-Saratoga and remained in New York City, retaining the Newport Jazz Festival-New York in what amounted to an expansion. The Saratoga addition began

3740-508: The night. The festival concluded on Sunday with performances from Roberta Flack , Gene McDaniels , Buddy Rich and Ella Fitzgerald . For 1971, the festival booked the rock group The Allman Brothers Band alongside an otherwise predominantly jazz and soul-oriented bill that included performances by Aretha Franklin , Ray Charles , Duke Ellington , Roberta Flack, Charles Mingus , Ornette Coleman , Dionne Warwick , Dave Brubeck, King Curtis , Dizzy Gillespie , and Herbie Mann , as well as

3808-480: The previous year had "maybe too much rock." On the first day there was a tribute to Louis Armstrong featuring Dizzy Gillespie , Bobby Hackett , Joe Newman , Wild Bill Davison , Jimmy Owns , and Ray Nance . Mahalia Jackson made a rare festival appearance to pay respects to Armstrong. Saturdays performers included Nina Simone and the Herbie Mann Quintet with Ike & Tina Turner closing out

3876-528: The recording sessions, recorded Kind of Blue , considered "one of the most important, influential and popular albums in jazz". Adderley left the band in September 1959 to pursue his own career, returning the line-up to a quintet. 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. The two rhythm sections from

3944-485: The road, the band performed in the Village Gate , a club rented by Davis formerly on Bleecker Street in New York, NY. The Lost Quintet represents his transition into jazz fusion music with electronic instruments , and the members of the quintet would go on to collaborate with Davis in future projects such as " Bitches Brew ", which was released in 1970. Newport Jazz Festival The Newport Jazz Festival

4012-573: The set's highlights, which were re-recorded in the studio. The new set restored the original festival performance after a recording from the Voice of America (which broadcast the performance) was discovered and, among other things, the odd timbre of the Gonsalves performance. Gonsalves, it turned out, stepped up to the wrong microphone to play his legendary solo; he stepped up to the VOA's microphone and not

4080-586: The studio version is somewhat different (presumably changed by Davis), and ensuing versions often retain this change. "Ginger Bread Boy" was played as late as the summer of 1969. "Footprints" appears on Live in Europe 1967: The Bootleg Series Vol. 1 , 1969 Miles: Festiva de Juan Pins , Live in Europe 1969: The Bootleg Series Vol. 2 , and unofficial live recordings from the Fillmore West in April 1970. Miles Smiles received critical acclaim in 1967, and

4148-485: The tradition established by Kind of Blue in 1959—an album whose implications jazz musicians are still exploring—and continued by ESP of 1965—an album which seemed to me much less successful". Williams viewed each player as in their best form, particularly Williams and Carter, noting "their superb contributions are beyond the words I could muster for so brief an account as this one". Time similarly complimented both musicians and stated "Williams expertly helps build

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4216-544: The way they anticipate each other, push each other, support each other, and phrase together - all this without a sign of strain - is really amazing". He cited the Davis-penned "Circle" as the album's highlight and wrote that the composition "defines the excellence of the group... a masterpiece". Nat Hentoff of Stereo Review called Tony Williams and Ron Carter "prodigious technicians and restless", while noting "Though tenor saxophonist Wayne Shorter does not quite reach

4284-470: Was a music festival pioneer and would run many festivals besides the Newport Jazz Festival during his career. The 1964 festival was the last at Freebody Park, since the event had outgrown that venue also. Festival organizers saw a need to move the festival outside of the downtown area, since the festival-caused gridlock there was a contentious point in the community. A suitable site, actually a simple but ample field, which would become known as Festival Field ,

4352-463: Was at first not accustomed to this. Traffic gridlock and other contention near the downtown venue were legitimate concerns. Moreover, many of the musicians and their fans were African American. Racist attitudes were probably a factor in some residents' opposition to the festival too as it commonly was across the country at that time. Nonetheless, the festival continued annually and increased in popularity, aided in part by 1958 concert footage released as

4420-516: Was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic crisis. Booked artists were invited to return in 2021. Citing his advancing age and the pandemic, founder George Wein was unable to attend the 2021 Newport Jazz Festival; it was only the third time he was not in attendance since the event's founding in 1954. Wein died on September 13, 2021. Two of the most famous performances in the festival's history are Miles Davis ' 1955 solo on " 'Round Midnight " and

4488-516: Was halted after the stage was rushed and equipment destroyed. The festival would not return to Newport in 1972. In 1972, festival producer George Wein transplanted the festival to New York City, calling it the Newport Jazz Festival-New York. An expanded format involved multiple venues, including Yankee Stadium and Radio City Music Hall , and comprised 30 concerts with 62 performers including Dave Brubeck , Ray Charles , Duke Ellington , Roberta Flack, and Dizzy Gillespie. This format continued for

4556-485: Was identified, and the move was completed for the 1965 festival. Frank Sinatra played the festival that year, and new attendance records were set. Festival Field remained the venue for the jazz festival until 1971. The festival's 1969 program was an experiment in fusing jazz, soul, and rock music, and their respective audiences. The Thursday evening set featured performances by jazz musicians Sun Ra , Bill Evans , George Benson , Freddie Hubbard , and Anita O'Day , and

4624-472: Was praised for its original compositions, the quintet's chemistry and playing, and Davis' phrasing . CODA editor John Norris praised the quintet's "mastery of sensitive interaction" and wrote that they "must be one of the most beautifully integrated groups ever to play jazz". Norris noted that "Every man is listening intently at all times, responding sensitively to mutual hints and directions", and stated "The empathy between Carter, Williams and Hancock,

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