Miles Smiles

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Miles Smiles is a 1967 studio album by Miles Davis. It was released on February 16, 1967 by Columbia Records and was recorded on October 24–25, 1966 at Columbia 30th Street Studio in New York City. The album features Davis’s second great quintet: Wayne Shorter on tenor sax, Herbie Hancock on piano, Ron Carter on bass, and Tony Williams on drums.

What makes it special
- Miles Smiles shows Davis’s group pushing into more modal, post-bop territory. The music is not strictly bebop, nor is it completely free; it’s exploratory but still tightly played by a cohesive band.
- On three tracks, Herbie Hancock plays only right-hand piano lines and withholds left-hand chords, creating a lighter, more impressionistic sound (on Orbits, Dolores, and Ginger Bread Boy).
- The album balances fast, energetic pieces with quieter, more melodic ones, emphasizing interaction among the musicians and new ways of phrasing and rhythm.

Track listing
Side one
- Orbits (Wayne Shorter) – 4:37
- Circle (Miles Davis) – 5:52
- Footprints (Wayne Shorter) – 9:46

Side two
- Dolores (Wayne Shorter) – 6:20
- Freedom Jazz Dance (Eddie Harris) – 7:13
- Ginger Bread Boy (Jimmy Heath) – 7:43
Total length: 41:44

Musicians
- Miles Davis – trumpet
- Wayne Shorter – tenor saxophone
- Herbie Hancock – piano
- Ron Carter – double bass
- Tony Williams – drums

Production
- Producer: Teo Macero
- Recording engineer: Frank Laico
- Cover photography: Vernon Smith

Reception and impact
- When it came out, Miles Smiles received strong praise for its originality, the group’s chemistry, and Davis’s phrasing. Over time, critics have often called it one of the best albums by the second great quintet.
- Reviews highlighted the band’s adventurous yet accessible approach, with particular praise for tracks like Footprints, Circle, and Dolores. The album is noted for showing how the rhythm section could explore new depths while still driving the music forward.
- It’s considered a landmark in post-bop and is frequently cited as a key example of Miles Davis’s late-1960s group work.