Steven Hale
1 min readDec 30, 2020

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Since you include Bitches Brew , may I suggest "Slightly All the Time"? The British progressive / fusion innovators Soft Machine were greatly influenced by the Miles of this period (some have suggested that the influence was mutual). You can also hear Coltrane in Elton Dean's alto sax playing on this track. And of course, Soft Machine played on Hendrix's second American tour.

Much fusion takes the worst of rock and blends it with the worst of jazz. In my opinion, the third, fourth, and fifth Soft Machine albums (like Bitches Brew) do the opposite.

I can't guarantee you'll add "Slightly All the Time" to your desert island list, but I know of no other song that encapsulates the essence of night (in any location) so richly.

Here's a decent YouTube upload. If possible, play the vinyl version on a turntable (solar powered or not).

https://youtu.be/4RwLgA9U_3I

Thank you once again for sharing your superlative tastes.

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Steven Hale
Steven Hale

Written by Steven Hale

Music: Discovering the lost and forgotten. Politics: Exposing injustice. Screenwriting: Emotional storytelling.

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