Miles Davis Monterey 1963: The Quintet That Almost Never Was

Why is Monterey Jazz Festival 1963 considered an essential Miles Davis live document?

Recorded on September 20, 1963, this album captures Miles Davis unveiling his revolutionary "second great quintet" - George Coleman on tenor sax, Herbie Hancock on piano, Ron Carter on bass, and a 17-year-old Tony Williams on drums. With a want-to-have ratio of 32:146 on Discogs and a hard bop aesthetic that bridged the modal experiments of Kind of Blue with the freer explorations to come, this is the sound of Miles rebuilding his band after Coltrane's departure. It's also one of the most accessible entry points into live Miles from the early '60s, available on vinyl for collectors who don't need to mortgage their house.

Why does this pressing matter to vinyl collectors today?

This 2015 Icelandic pressing on Destination Moon Records is labeled "Unofficial Release" - which means it exists in the grey market that serious collectors approach with equal parts curiosity and caution. But here's the thing: it's affordable ($34.50 at Miles Waxey), it's listenable, and it documents a performance that didn't see official release until Sony Legacy dropped it in 2007. For those who want the sound of the '63 quintet without dropping hundreds on a sealed original, this is your wax. Just know what you're buying. The Discogs community rates it 3.43/5 across seven reviews - not a slam dunk, but not a disaster either.

Quick Stats

Tracklist

Side A:
1. Waiting For Miles
2. Autumn Leaves
3. Stella By Starlight

Side B:
1. So What
2. Walkin'
3. The Theme

Start the stream. Let the Pacific air and Monterey twilight settle before we look at the wax.

The Needle Drop: September 20, 1963, in Your Living Room

You slide the record out. The jacket's thin - this is a budget reissue, not a gatefold art piece. The vinyl itself? Lightweight. You can feel it. This isn't 180-gram audiophile stock. It's functional. Utilitarian. The kind of pressing that says, "I'm here to deliver the performance, not win a beauty contest."

But when you drop the needle on "Waiting For Miles," something shifts. The quintet locks in with a patience that's rare in live jazz. Tony Williams - barely old enough to vote - is already playing like he invented time. Herbie's comping is spare, modal, almost geometric. And Miles? He's got that tone. That burnished, lonely, 3 a.m. horn sound that makes you pour something dark and think about choices.

The tempo here is a steady 78 BPM. Not a burner. It's the heartbeat of someone walking slowly through fog. Pair this with: a heavy pour of rye whiskey, low lights, and zero distractions. This is not background music. This is the kind of record that asks you to sit still and pay attention.

The Nerd Sheet: Statistical Proof That This Band Was Lightning in a Bottle

Let's talk numbers. The Discogs master release page shows 146 collectors own this, with 32 actively hunting it. That's not grail territory - that's smart buy territory. The median price hovers around $12-15, with this Miles Waxey copy priced at $34.50 because it's in clean, ready-to-play condition.

Now, here's where it gets interesting. According to Wikipedia, this performance sat in the vaults for 44 years before Sony Legacy released it officially in 2007. That means for four decades, the only people who heard this set were the folks who were actually there - standing on the Monterey fairgrounds, listening to a teenage drummer redefine what polyrhythm could be.

The quintet you hear on this record - George Coleman, Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter, and Tony Williams - only recorded together for about two years. Coleman left in 1964, replaced by Wayne Shorter, and the "classic" quintet was born. But this lineup? It's the bridge. The transitional moment. The sound of Miles searching for the next thing.

And "So What"? That track has been sampled 12 times according to WhoSampled, with hip-hop producers like Madlib and 9th Wonder lifting that iconic bassline. You might not know this album, but you've heard its DNA in a dozen boom-bap beats.

The Educational Deep Dive: The Quintet That Almost Never Was

By 1963, Miles Davis was in rebuild mode. John Coltrane had left to lead his own revolutionary quartet. Cannonball Adderley was gone. The sextet that recorded Kind of Blue was history. Miles needed new blood - young musicians who could keep up with his restless, forward-moving mind.

Enter George Coleman, a Memphis-born tenor player with a hard, aggressive tone. Herbie Hancock, a 23-year-old piano prodigy who could comp like Ahmad Jamal and solo like Bud Powell. Ron Carter, a bassist with classical training and a sound so clean you could hear every note. And Tony Williams, a 17-year-old from Boston who played drums like he was conducting a conversation in three languages at once.

The "happy accident" of this set? It almost didn't happen. According to liner notes from the 2007 official release, Miles was late to the gig. The band vamped on "Waiting For Miles" - literally a tune they created on the spot to kill time. That opener became one of the most hypnotic stretches of the entire performance. A 10-minute groove that feels like it could go on forever.

By the time Miles hit the stage, the band was warm. And you can hear it. "Autumn Leaves" unfolds with a bittersweet lyricism. "Stella By Starlight" gets a reading that's both tender and searching. And when they hit "So What" on Side B, it's not a nostalgic throwback - it's a reclamation. This quintet is making the tune their own.

Grab this exact pressing from Miles Waxey's curated collection: Miles Davis - Monterey Jazz Festival 1963.

The Technical Scrutiny: What You're Actually Buying

Let's be honest: this is an unofficial release. That means no RVG stamp. No Van Gelder magic. No meticulous mastering chain documentation. What you're getting is a transfer of a live recording, pressed in Iceland in 2015, distributed by a label that specializes in grey-market jazz documents.

The deadwax? Minimal info. No matrix etchings from legendary engineers. This is functional, not precious. And that's okay - if you know what you're paying for.

The sound itself is warm, a little compressed, with some tape hiss that reminds you this was recorded in 1963 with field equipment. The soundstage is narrow - you're not getting the holographic separation of a studio session. But the energy is there. You can hear the crowd rustle. You can hear Tony Williams' ride cymbal shimmer in the left channel. You can hear Miles' breaths between phrases.

Is this the best-sounding Miles live recording ever? No. That honor probably goes to the 2015 Music Matters reissue of Four & More. But for $34.50, this is a document - a snapshot of a band in transition, caught on a California night when the fog rolled in and the music stayed warm.

Mood: Late-night introspection. Post-midnight drives. Sitting alone in a room with good speakers and bad memories.
Drink: Rye whiskey, neat. Or a dark rum, slow-sipped.
Time of Day: 11 p.m. to 2 a.m. - the witching hours.
Best Pairing: A biography of Miles. Or silence.

Context & Afterlife

Miles Davis was 37 when he played Monterey in 1963. He'd already recorded Kind of Blue, toured Europe, weathered addiction, and emerged as the most influential figure in modern jazz. He wouldn't die until 1991, at age 65, from pneumonia and respiratory failure - a quiet end for someone who spent a lifetime playing loud.

The cultural afterlife of this performance? It's quieter than the studio albums, sure. But producers and diggers know. That bassline from "So What" has been sampled and replayed in enough hip-hop tracks to ensure its immortality. And for those who want to hear the second great quintet before Wayne Shorter arrived, this is essential listening.

Collector's Corner: The Final Audit

Here's the truth: if you want the official release of this performance, hunt down the 2007 Sony Legacy CD or the digital remaster. It'll have liner notes, better mastering, and the full archival treatment.

But if you're a vinyl purist who wants this music on wax without spending three figures? This Icelandic pressing is your move. It's not a grail. It's not going to appreciate. But it'll play - and sometimes, that's all that matters.

The Audit: Skip the $200 imports. This $34.50 copy is 85% there, and you can actually afford to play it without guilt.

Grab one of our curated copies at Miles Waxey: Miles Davis - Monterey Jazz Festival 1963.

Community Prompt: What's in Your Runouts?

Do you own this pressing? How does it sound on your setup? Are you Team Official Release or Team Grey Market? Drop your thoughts in the comments. Tell us what you're spinning this week. Tell us if Tony Williams still blows your mind.

And if you're hunting more Miles, more live recordings, more transitional moments caught on tape - start here.