Miles Davis - Ascenseur Pour L’Échafaud (2024 Remaster)

Contradictory accounts of Miles Davis' creation of the soundtrack to Louis Malle's film noir Ascenseur pour l'Échafaud have all become part of its legend. Rarely has a soundtrack been so decisive. Nearly 70 years on, beyond the myth, this taut, feverish recording, imbued with extreme dramatic tension, remains one of the Miles' finest records.

The basic outline remains: Jean-Paul Rappeneau suggested to Malle asking Miles Davis to create the film's soundtrack who agreed to record the music after attending a private screening. Davis was performing at the Club Saint-Germain in Paris in November 1957 and on December 4, he brought his four sidemen to the recording studio without having had them prepare anything. Davis only gave the musicians a few rudimentary harmonic sequences he had assembled in his hotel room, and, once the plot was explained, the band improvised without any precomposed theme, while edited loops of the musically relevant film sequences were projected in the background.

Heavyweight vinyl produced by Decca in 2024. Deluxe gatefold tip-on jacket with Boris Vian's original liner notes and Jean-Pierre Leloir's iconic studio photo of Miles and Jeanne Morea. Also includes an essay on the circumstances that led to this out-of-the ordinary music by Franck Bergerot.

TRACKLISTING:

1. Générique
2. L'Assassinat de Carala
3. Sur l'autoroute
4. Julien dans l'ascenseur
5. Florence sur les Champs-Élysées
6. Dîner au motel
7. Évasion de Julien
8. Visite du Vigile
9. Au bar du Petit Bac
10. Chez le photographe du motel