In A Silent Way is Davis' less acclaimed jazz-rock fusion counterpart to Bitches Brew.
The album abandons the smooth sound of swing and vintage jazz sounds for an atmospheric, space themed tone. It’s known as the beginning of the “electronic era” for Miles, and his change in approach would influence jazz for decades to come.
Although rock enthusiasts at first criticized the use of the genre, the album would later be regarded warmly by critics. In A Silent Way is split into four pieces and two tracks, each one transitioning as a different live piece.
The Complete In A Silent Way Sessions were released in 2001 to commemorate the albums legacy. Phil Freeman later reviewed the albums features in detail in his book Running the Voodoo Down: The Electric Music of Miles Davis:
It didn’t swing, the solos weren’t even a little bit heroic, and it had electric guitars… But though In a Silent Way wasn’t exactly jazz, it certainly wasn’t rock. It was the sound of Miles Davis and Teo Macero feeling their way down an unlit hall at three in the morning. It was the soundtrack to all the whispered conversations every creative artist has, all the time, with that doubting, taunting voice that lives in the back of your head, the one asking all the unanswerable questions.
