For me, the period 1973-75 is the most richly creative and important part of Miles Davis' career. This music is still little understood and appreciated, but in many ways it feels like Miles final gift to the listener: his guide to the 21st century.
A proper understanding of this music is only possible by seeking out the large quantity of bootleg recordings of Davis' band from 1970 to 1975, as the official Columbia releases can seem impenetrable on their own. 'Pangaea' is one such official release, and is a live recording of the second concert given on February 1st, 1975 by Davis' band, in Osaka, Japan. The first concert is presented on the companion album 'Agharta'.
There are a number of reasons for the impenetrability of these official releases. Firstly, the track lists for these albums give no clue as to their musical contents. Compare the monolithic track list for this album with the actual set list. This difference enhances the mystery of the music presented, but it does not help the listener to decode the contents.
In part though, this monolithic quality stems from the barely stated transitions from one piece of music to the next. In Davis' earlier work the themes, or the identifying tune, for each piece would be clearly stated prior to the start of the improvisation. Gradually during the modal jazz period of his career the improvisation became more detached from, and began to engulf, the theme. This process had reached such an extent by the mid 1970's that the theme has been reduced to an opening bass line, a time signature, and an opening phrase played by Davis, often on the organ instead of the trumpet. The rest of the piece would then be improvised, sometimes drawing on the spirit of the opening bass line and signature, and sometimes going in an entirely different direction.
The music is also characterised by periods of silence or extreme quiet. Sometimes the backing band cuts out when a soloist is playing leaving just a single instrument to carry the music. These breaks were orchestrated by Davis, who would stand in front of the band and bring his arm down in a cutting motion when he wanted the band to stop playing. This confused audiences who would mistake the silence for the end of one piece of music and the beginning of another. However, the breaks are meant as dramatic pauses; a cessation of the groove to enhance its appreciation on its return.
