This might be a crock of shit, but Miles Davis has to be the most versatile jazz musician of his time. I say this because I have only heard three albums by Davis aka the “Prince of Darkness.” “How the hell did he get that nickname?” And those albums are; Birth of the Cool, which had kind of an uptempo bebop feel, Some Kind of Blue, which is the laid back lounge lizard jazz, and this one, which is on a whole other planet… A planet called Spain.

Initially, I imagined an album with a few salsa numbers, merengue, bossa nova, maybe a little cha-cha. Only to find out later none of those genres come from Spain. What is Spanish music? A wiki search will tell you Spanish music is commonly associated with flamenco, traditional folk and European classical musical. This definitely helps me color in the numbers of Sketches of Spain, a symphonic jazz odyssey that must be heard to be understood.

“Concerto de Aranjuez” is the album’s most memorable piece. Clocking in at almost twenty minutes, the song is an arrangement of Joaquín Rodrigo’s 1939 piece written for classical guitar. Though because Davis is a horns man, he plays the arrangement on flugelhorn. The result is moody and atmospheric, even scary at times. It’s hard to believe such a complex jazz arrangement existed at the same Andy Griffith was winning over the hearts of America with his small town ways.

The origin of this album (if true) is another fascinating story. Apparently, Davis was given the only album in existence with “Concerto de Aranjuez” and Davis and his arranger Gil Evans had to copy the music from what they heard on the record. The rest of the album developed from Spanish folk music the two heard in clubs. The end result is a collection of music that is both intricate and engaging.

Sketches of Spain feels like a soundtrack to an unmade film. I could imagine this album being at home in a European-produced western or something involving an exotic land or overseas adventure. This album takes the mind for a ride and that ain’t no crock of shit.

Favorite Tracks: “Concerto de Aranjuez,” “The Pan Piper,” “Will o’ the Wisp “

The other day I was watching a video of Chuck Berry performing at the Blueberry Hill Restaurant and Bar in St. Louis in 2014. The legendary rocker looked nice in his satin shirt and captain’s hat, but man, it didn’t sound nice. Chuck more or less wandered around the stage, mumbling his lyrics and occasionally reaching down to strum the wrong note on his Gibson hollow-body. Then I looked up his age. Chuck Berry was born in 1926! This means he was still performing live at 88-years-old! Pardon my French, but that is motherf#@king rock ’n roll!

I don’t care if Chuck Berry today sounds like shit. The fact that he’s up there, living the dream, even as a deteriorating skeleton-sailor-man is the personification of rock. Hats off to you Mr. Berry. Now on to this week’s “Classic Album Tuesday” where I will be discussing one of Berry’s finest works.

The 1950s was an odd era for the “album.” Apart from jazz or classical musicians, most albums were nothing more than compilations of singles. The “album” didn’t take off as an art form until the 1960s, so most 1950s rock albums were a couple of the hits and then a bunch of covers or leftover junk. What’s special about Chuck Berry is he was a hit making machine. Seven of the twelve tracks on Chuck Berry is On Top were on the Billboard Hot 100 and there’s not a cover to be found.

Not only was Chuck a hitmaker, he had a presence. Few people were playing the guitar like Berry back then, with Bo Diddley being one of the few exceptions. So guess who also plays on this album? Yep, Bo Diddley. This stuff was raw, or at least as raw as you could get back in 1959. I think a great deal of credit goes to Chess records for making this happen.

If you’re not familiar with Chess Records, Chess was a record company founded by Polish immigrant brothers Leonard and Phil Chess, that over time became what Brownsville Station frontman and later music critic Cub Koda described as “America’s greatest blues label.” They even made a movie about it with Adrien Brody as Leonard Chess. I believe Mos Def plays Chuck Berry. I should watch it, but only if Mos Def duck walks. It ain’t a Chuck Berry movie if there’s no duck walking.

And these songs, what can I say? “Johnny B. Goode”, “Carol”, “Maybellene”, “Roll Over Beethoven.” It’s like the 1992 NBA “Dream Team” of songs. These are the songs that Berry built on a foundation of earth, wood and rock and roll. When I was taking guitar lessons as a teenager, the opening riff to “Johnny B. Goode” was one of the first things I learned. It’s amazing how much power Berry’s songs carry today and will continue to carry on.

Thanks, Chuck.

Favorite Tracks: “Carol”, “Johnny B. Goode”, “Roll Over Beethoven”