Skip to content
Nefertiti
Nefertiti
Release Date:
Jan 15, 1968
Recording Period:
Jun 1967 - Jul 1967
Label:
Columbia Records
Tracklist
Artist Name
0.00
0.00
Want to hear the full song? Click to login to a service & hear full tracks:
1. Nefertiti
00:30
Lyrics
2. Fall
00:30
Lyrics
3. Hand Jive
00:30
Lyrics
4. Madness
00:30
Lyrics
5. Riot
00:30
Lyrics
6. Pinocchio
00:30
Lyrics

By 1966, the producers at CBS Records—that was most often Teo Macero—had learned to roll tape early and often at a Miles Davis session, catching rehearsal and first-takes as well as the final sessions. In some cases, like the title track of Nefertiti in the first week of June 1967, it truly paid off. What was intended to be the initial rehearsal of “Nefertiti,” a new, 16-bar tune by Shorter, found the group repeating the melody line, over and over, tugging and pulling at the tune, embellishing it at will—yet never veering off to solo over the harmony as per standard jazz practice.

The first take on the session reels ends with the group laughing at themselves.

Miles: “Hey man, why don’t we make a tune…just playin’ the melody, not play the solos…”

Williams: “Right, right! That’s what we’ve been doin’!” 

Hancock: “That’s what I’ve been thinkin’ about.”
Davis: “That’s it, right?”

And in fact, that was how they recorded “Nefertiti,” as a modern jazz bolero, with the melody itself serving as a mantra of sorts with Williams’ rhythmic ebb and flow steering the performance (producer/saxophonist Bob Belden called it a “drum concerto as composition.”) In June 1967, that light-bulb moment immediately led to the second, final take, and injected a new sense of structural freedom not only into the Quintet’s repertoire, but by example, the jazz scene in general. “Nefertiti” also became the linchpin—with its haunting beauty and cyclic form—to an album filled with groundbreaking performances.

“Hand Jive” is another feature for Williams, written and propelled by the drummer, a taste of the more funk-inflected style he would lean on in 1968 and after. “Fall” and “Pinnochio” are Shorter compositions, the former a moodier companion piece—in feel and form—to “Nefertiti.” The latter offers a jaunty, swinging take on yet another catchy Shorter theme, the Quintet using it at the open and close of the tune, and as an interlude between solo statements by Miles, Shorter, and Hancock. 

The two Hancock compositions reveal how Miles only took what he felt was needed—the released take of “Madness” for example only uses the last eight bars of the tune, the cadence section before firing into improvisations—the theme of “Riot” is equally brief, and is powered by the Quintet’s penchant for dynamic outburst, and William’s Latin-spiced drive. 

The Quintet, by the time of this, their fourth studio album, is venturing forth in new musical territory, breaking ground for generations to come. It also stands as a departure point for Miles: Nefertiti is the last purely acoustic jazz album he records as a leader. Starting with his next recording and all that follow, he will invite electric, amplified instruments to the party, an ever-increasing reliance on non-traditional instrumentation that has a seismic influence on the jazz scene.

Toggle Share
X
Save On Apple Music Save On Deezer Save On Spotify
X
X

We're sorry, a Spotify Premium account is required to use this service. Start your free trial here.

We're sorry, this service doesn't work with Spotify on mobile devices yet. Please use the Spotify app instead.

X

You're signed in! About the streaming player:

Songs play if you keep the player window open. The music stops if you close the window. To keep the music playing while you visit other pages, two options:

  1. In top row of the player, click Pop-Up Player button to open player in a new window.
  2. Keep player open in a browser tab. Visit other pages in a separate tab.
X

We're sorry, this service doesn't work with Spotify on mobile devices yet. Please use the Spotify app instead.

You're signed in! About the streaming player:

Songs play if you keep the player window open. The music stops if you close the window. To keep the music playing while you visit other pages, two options:

  1. In top row of the player, click Pop-Up Player button to open player in a new window.
  2. Keep player open in a browser tab. Visit other pages in a separate tab.