About

Marcus Miller was the architect who built the sonic edifice for Davis, and the key thing was that he was a producer who could play as well as a player who could produce. Amid the tapestry of electronics, his bass guitar and bass clarinet make their presence felt, as does Michael Urbaniak’s electric violin, Paulinho Da Costa’s percussion, and Adam Holzman and Jason Miles’ synths. These elements cohere in backdrops that had strong echoes of black popular music of the day – Cameo’s sparkling, day-glow funk, Prince or Jam & Lewis’ fizzing electro-acoustic cocktails and, to a lesser degree, the angsty soul-reggae that Wally Badarou and Sly & Robbie laid down for Grace Jones. But Miller brought more crystalline harmonic subtleties to the table. Combined with Davis’ brooding brass whispers, the result was a work of engrossingly fraught atmospheres. And great tunes. None are light. Some are positively heavy. - BBC