Merci Miles! Live at Vienne
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2025}}
{{Infobox album
| name = Merci Miles! Live at Vienne
| type = live
| artist = Miles Davis
| cover = Miles Davis - Merci Miles! Live at Vienne.jpg
| alt =
| released = June 25, 2021
| recorded = July 1, 1991
| venue = Jazz à Vienne, Vienne, France
| genre = Jazz
| length = 80:21
| label = * Rhino
| producer = * Ashley Kahn
- Florence Joelle Halfon
- Vince Wilburn, Jr.
| prev_title = Rubberband
| prev_year = 2019
| next_title = Turnaround
| next_year = 2023
| misc = {{Extra chronology
| artist = Miles Davis live
| type = live
| prev_title = Miles in Paris
| prev_year = 1989
| title = Merci Miles! Live at Vienne
| year = 1991
| next_title = Miles & Quincy Live at Montreux
| next_year = 1991
}}
}}
Merci Miles! Live at Vienne is a live album by American jazz trumpeter Miles Davis, released on Rhino and Warner Records in 2021. It was recorded in 1991 at the Jazz à Vienne festival.{{cite web |url=https://www.allaboutjazz.com/merci-miles-live-at-vienne |title=Miles Davis: Merci Miles! Live At Vienne |last=Patterson |first=Ian |date=28 October 2021 |website=All About Jazz |access-date=12 February 2022}}
The album was released as part of Rhino's celebration of Black Music Month.{{cite web |last1=Yoo |first1=Noah |title=One of Miles Davis' Final Live Performances Is Being Released for the First Time |url=https://pitchfork.com/news/one-of-miles-davis-final-live-performances-is-being-released-for-the-first-time/ |website=Pitchfork |access-date=13 February 2022}}{{cite web |title=Album of the Day: Merci Miles! Live at Vienne! |url=https://www.rhino.com/aod/merci-miles-live-at-vienne-miles-davis |website=Rhino |access-date=13 February 2022}}
Recording
The album was recorded at the Théâtre antique de Vienne on July 1, 1991, the opening night of the Jazz à Vienne festival.{{cite web |title=Programmation Jazz à Vienne de 1980 à 2019 |url=https://www.jazzavienne.com/sites/jazzavienne/files/atoms/files/programmation_jazz_a_vienne_1980_2019.pdf |page=22 |website=Jazz à Vienne |access-date=13 February 2022}} The set included interpretations of songs by pop musicians Michael Jackson, Cyndi Lauper, and Prince. Davis died less than three months later, making this one of his final live performances.
Critical reception
{{Music ratings
| rev1 = AllMusic
| rev1score = {{Rating|3.5|5}}
| rev2 = All About Jazz
}}
Reviews for the album have been largely positive. Writing for AllMusic, Thom Jurek noted "While none of this music is revelatory, it is intuitive and energetic," and described Davis's playing as "surprisingly muscular" despite the proximity to his death.{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/merci-miles%21-live-at-vienne--mw0003522147 |title=Merci Miles! [Live at Vienne] |last=Jurek |first=Thom |website=AllMusic |access-date=12 February 2022}} Tom Moon considered it a quality late-era performance in Davis's career, writing "Where some late Davis performances tended to wander, this one is all show-biz discipline" in his JazzTimes review.{{cite web |last1=Moon |first1=Tom |title=Miles Davis: Merci Miles! Live at Vienne (Rhino) |url=https://jazztimes.com/reviews/albums/miles-davis-merci-miles-live-at-vienne-rhino/ |website=JazzTimes |access-date=13 February 2022}} In All About Jazz, Ian Patterson noted problems with the sound quality and mixing, but compared Davis's "brooding, melancholy and quite gorgeous" phrasing positively to his performance on Ascenseur pour l'échafaud.
Track listing
{{Track listing
| headline = Disc 1
| title1 = Hannibal
| writer1 = Marcus Miller
| length1 = 15:58
| title2 = Human Nature
| writer2 = {{hlist | Steve Porcaro | John Bettis}}
| length2 = 18:10
| title3 = Time After Time
| writer3 = {{hlist | Cyndi Lauper | Rob Hyman}}
| length3 = 10:16
| title4 = Penetration
| writer4 = Prince
| length4 = 9:10
}}
{{Track listing
| headline = Disc 2
| title1 = Wrinkle
| writer1 = {{hlist | Miles Davis | Zane Giles | Randy Hall | Wayne Linsey}}
| length1 = 8:35
| title2 = Amandla
| writer2 = Marcus Miller
| length2 = 6:08
| title3 = Jailbait
| writer3 = Prince
| length3 = 5:55
| title4 = Finale (Band Only)
| writer4 = Ricky Wellman
| length4 = 6:09
}}
Personnel
Credits taken from the album's liner notes.{{cite AV media notes |title=Merci Miles! Live at Vienne |publisher=Warner Records/Rhino |id=603497844616/R2 653962}}
- Miles Davis – trumpet
- Kenny Garrett – saxophone
- Deron Johnson – keyboard
- Foley – lead bass
- Richard Patterson – bass
- Ricky Wellman – drums
Charts
| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
|+ Chart performance for Merci Miles! Live at Vienne ! scope="col"| Chart (2021) ! scope="col"| Peak |
| {{Album chart|Wallonia|131|artist=Miles Davis|album=Merci Miles! Live at Vienne|refname="Ultratop Wallonia"|access-date=13 February 2022|rowheader=true}} |
| {{Album chart|France|99|artist=Miles Davis|album=Merci Miles! Live at Vienne|refname="French Albums"|access-date=13 February 2022|rowheader=true}} |
| {{Album chart|Germany4|72|artist=Miles Davis|album=Merci Miles! Live at Vienne|id=480432|refname="German Albums"|access-date=13 February 2022|rowheader=true}} |
| {{Album chart|Portugal|34|artist=Miles Davis|album=Merci Miles! Live at Vienne|refname="Portuguese Albums"|access-date=13 February 2022|rowheader=true}} |
| {{Album chart|Switzerland|25|artist=Miles Davis|album=Merci Miles! Live at Vienne|refname="Swiss Hitparade"|access-date=13 February 2022|rowheader=true}} |
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Miles Davis|state=collapsed}}
Category:Miles Davis live albums