1967 · Album
Miles Smiles
Recorded 1965–1966 · Columbia Records · Produced by Teo Macero
The Second Great Quintet Arrives
Miles Smiles captures a band at absolute peak, playing like they share one mind across five instruments.
By the mid-1960s, Miles Davis had already reinvented himself several times over, but Miles Smiles (1966) marks the moment when his Second Great Quintet—featuring Wayne Shorter on saxophone, Herbie Hancock on piano, Ron Carter on bass, and Tony Williams on drums—fully crystallized into something genuinely special. This wasn't a group still finding its footing. These musicians had played together long enough to develop an almost telepathic understanding, and it shows in every note. The album opens with "Orbits," a Shorter composition that feels simultaneously structured and utterly free, with Williams' drumming pushing forward while everyone else orbits around him in subtle counterpoint. What makes this record distinct from Miles Davis' earlier work isn't some radical departure—it's the sheer conversational ease between players. Hancock had recently switched from acoustic to electric piano, and his touch here is light and inventive, never stepping on Miles' space. Carter' bass lines are architectural without being obvious, and Shorter' tenor saxophone voice is one of the most distinctive in jazz, angular and searching where other players might settle for prettiness.
The best way to hear this album is to start with "Dolores" and "Petrofunkstep," where the band's interplay becomes almost playful. Miles himself sounds rejuvenated, his trumpet lines spare but incredibly precise. He wasn't the type to fill every space with notes, and by this point in his career, his restraint had become his greatest strength. "Hand Jive" swings hard without ever sounding like a throwback, while "e.S.P." builds slowly, letting tension accumulate across nearly eight minutes. This is mature, confident playing from everyone involved.
If you've heard Kind of Blue (1959) and want to explore what Miles Davis was doing after that landmark record, Miles Smiles (1966) is exactly where to go next. It's not easier to digest than his earlier work, but it's more rewarding if you let it sit with you. This is peak stuff, plain and simple.
Who's playing
Ron Carterdouble bass
Herbie Hancockpiano
Wayne Shortertenor saxophone
Miles Davistrumpet
Tony Williamsdrums
Where next?
More by Miles Davis
All 59 albums →
The musicians on this record
The Egg 1968
Herbie Hancock
plays piano here
plays piano here
The All Seeing Eye 1966
Wayne Shorter
plays tenor saxophone here
plays tenor saxophone here
Uptown Conversation 1969
Ron Carter
plays double bass here
plays double bass here
Believe It 1966
Tony Williams
plays drums (drum set) here
plays drums (drum set) here
