![]() ‘ Tutu had a lot of elements that represented the 80s that for better or for worse, represented where we were at, not just musically, but as a society’ – Marcus Miller Of the second period, I think Tutu is probably the most definitive album.” There was the first period which started with The Man with the Horn, and there’s the second period with Tutu. The last time I looked at Downbeat, they were still arguing the same stuff.”Ĭonversely, there are those who see Tutu as being the most significant Miles Davis album of the 1980s, but Miller qualifies this viewpoint: “I think there were two periods in the 80s. In terms of ‘it’s not jazz’ I bought a Downbeat magazine when I was 15 years old and they were arguing about that. Once Miles puts his presence on it, it’s his. ![]() I was the one noticing the difference between writing for him and writing for other people. I was the one that was inspired to come up with those things. In terms of ‘it’s not Miles’ albums, it’s Marcus’,’’ well you know man, I was there. Did any of this get under Miller’s skin? “Honestly, it didn’t bother me at all. Some of the criticism of Tutu was harsh – it wasn’t jazz, and Miles was just a sideman on his own record. ![]() Who knows what will happen in 20 years time? I have no idea, but it’s really beautiful to see that Tutu has developed.” The second one you don’t have any control over, because how your music is viewed down the road is as much a function as what happens down the road, as what happens in your music. One is to create something that describes the time that you’re living. So how does Miller feel about the fact that people are still listening to Tutu? “That makes me feel wonderful. Marcus Miller once noted that, the problem with making contemporary music is that, you never know whether the music you make will only exist for the period in which it’s made or whether it will become timeless. But while much of the music from this era is now long forgotten Tutu continues to thrive artists such as George Benson, Al Jarreau and Cassandra Wilson have recorded cover versions of the title track Warner Jazz UK have released a deluxe version of the album, and Marcus Miller, who produced, arranged, played and composed most of the music on Tutu, has released a CD/ DVD package of his Tutu Revisited project, which saw Miller touring the world with a group of young musicians and performing the music from Tutu. ![]() Tutu was a product of the 80s, a decade where music was often in danger of becoming subservient to technology. Although synthesisers had long been used in jazz, no jazz artist had ever made an album like Tutu. When you listen to Tutu it’s easy to see why it provoked such strong reactions: instead of recording the album with live instruments and a band, Miles recorded his trumpet parts over a lush electronic soundscape, produced from a battery of samplers, synthesisers, sequencers and drum machines. For some, Tutu heralded an exciting new direction for Miles’ music but for others, it was a sell-out to commercialism and new technology. When the Tutu album appeared in 1986, it divided both fans and critics: some loved it others hated it. ![]()
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