Tales (album)

1995 studio album by Marcus Miller

Tales

Studio album by

Marcus Miller

Released| May 1995
Genre| Jazz fusion[1]
Length| 63:08
Label| PRA[2]
Dreyfus[3]
Producer| Marcus Miller
Marcus Miller chronology
| The Sun Don't Lie
(1993)  | Tales
(1995)  | Live & More
(1998)

|
|

Tales is a studio album by American jazz musician Marcus Miller, released in 1995 on PRA/Dreyfus Records.[4][5] He supported it with a North American tour.[6]

The album peaked at No. 7 on the US Billboard Top Contemporary Jazz Albums chart and No. 12 on the US Billboard Top Jazz Albums chart.[7] Tales was also Grammy nominated, in the category of "Best Contemporary Jazz Performance".[8]

## Production

[edit]

The album was produced by Miller.[9] It samples the voices of several Black American musicians.[10] "Eric" is dedicated to the guitarist Eric Gale.[11] Miller wrote or cowrote nine of the album's songs; the title track was written with Allen Toussaint.[12][13]

## Critical reception

[edit]

Professional ratingsReview scores

Source| Rating
AllMusic| [14]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music| [2]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD| [3]

The Independent wrote that the album "lashes its constituent parts together with stupendous playing and rigorous adherence to the principle that music is about spinning yarns, not showing off."[4] Adam Sweeting of The Guardian determined that most of Miller's music "occupies a safe centre ground of funk basslines, loose-limbed drumming from Poogie Bell, and layers of beatific keyboard harmonies."[15]

Joe Rassenfoss of The Rocky Mountain News opined that Meshell Ndegeocello "spellbinds with 'Rush Over', a ballad wrought from spoken word and singing."[11] Marty Hughley of The Oregonian praised Miller's "knack for welding groove to harmonic structure and balancing upscale polish with urban grit."[16] Steve Miller of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution deemed Miller "a fusionaire whose slickness is cued to the marketplace, but he also knows how to round up a band."[17]

Scott Yanow of AllMusic, in a 3/5 star review wrote, "Marcus Miller's electric bass is a major force throughout the music...A few songs (especially later in the program) ramble on a bit and one wishes that Marcus Miller would drop the funk now and then for variety's sake, but in general his set holds one's interest."[14]

## Track listing

[edit]

All tracks composed by Marcus Miller except where noted.

1. "The Blues" – 5:45
2. "Tales (Intro)" (Miller, Allen Toussaint) – 0:30
3. "Tales" (Miller, Allen Toussaint) – 5:46
4. "Eric" – 6:16
5. "True Geminis" – 5:35
6. "Rush Over" – 5:00
7. "Running Through My Dreams (Interlude)" – 1:27
8. "Ethiopia" – 5:15
9. "Strange Fruit (Intro)" (Abel Meeropol) – 1:20
10. "Strange Fruit" (Abel Meeropol) – 2:14
11. "Visions" (Stevie Wonder) – 5:36
12. "Tales (Reprise)" – 2:34
13. "Forevermore (Intro)" – 0:31
14. "Forevermore" – 4:58
15. "Infatuation" – 5:08
16. "Come Together" (John Lennon, Paul McCartney) – 5:30

European, Japanese and other US Releases

1. "The Blues" - 5:45
2. "Tales" - 5:46
3. "Eric" - 6:16
4. "True Geminis" - 5:35
5. "Rush Over" - 5:18
6. "Running Through My Dreams (Interlude)" - 1:27
7. "Ethiopia" - 5:15
8. "Strange Fruit" - 3:19
9. "Visions" - 4:48
10. "Brazilian Rhyme" (Maurice White) - 5:01
11. "Forevermore" - 5:07
12. "Infatuation" - 5:08
13. "Tales (Reprise)" - 2:34
14. "Come Together" - 5:30

## Personnel

[edit]

* Marcus Miller – Wurlitzer electric piano (1, 4), bass guitar (1, 3-8, 11, 14-16), rhythm programming (1, 3-5, 7, 8, 11, 14-16), vocal samples (1, 15, 16), synthesizers (3, 4, 8, 10, 16), sound programming (3-7, 10, 11, 14, 15), organ (4), rhythm guitar (4), keyboards (5-7, 11, 14, 15), guitars (5, 16), bass clarinet (5, 6, 8, 10), African flute (7), voice recording (14)
* Bernard Wright – organ (1, 4), synthesizers (1), clavinet (3), synth lines (8), marimbas (8), electric piano (15), synth bass (16)
* David Ward – sound programming (1, 3, 4, 7, 10, 11, 14-16)
* Jason Miles – additional sound programming (5)
* Meshell Ndegeocello – synth solo (6), vocals (6)
* Hiram Bullock – lead guitar solo (4)
* Dean Brown – guitars (16)
* Poogie Bell – drums (1, 3, 4, 6, 11, 14, 16), drum fills (8)
* Lenny White – drum fills (4)
* Bashiri Johnson – percussion samples (8)
* Kenny Garrett – alto saxophone (1, 3-5, 8, 11, 15)
* Joshua Redman – tenor sax solo (5)
* Michael "Patches" Stewart – trumpet (1, 3, 5, 8, 11, 14)
* Bill Cosby – vocal samples (1)
* Q-Tip – spoken intro (2)
* The Pointer Sisters – vocal samples (3, 13)
* Eric Gale – voice recording (4)
* Miles Davis – voice recording (5)
* Bill Withers – spoken intro (9)
* Joe Sample – rap (12)
* Roberta Flack – spoken intro (13)
* Lalah Hathaway – vocals (15)
* Jonathan "Juice" Miller – funky intro (16)
* Julian "Juju" Miller – funky intro (16)

Musicians on "Brazilian Rhyme"

* Marcus Miller – keyboards, bass guitar, sound programming
* Bernard Wright – synthesizers, synth bass
* David Ward – sound programming
* Poogie Bell – drums
* Kenny Garrett – alto saxophone
* Michael "Patches" Stewart – trumpet
* Lalah Hathaway – vocals

### Production

[edit]

* Marcus Miller – producer, additional recording
* David Ward II – co-producer, recording
* Goh Hotoda – mixing (1, 3, 6, 10, 12, 15, 16), additional recording, mixing on "Brazilian Rhyme"
* Ray Bardani – mixing (4, 5, 7, 8, 11, 14), additional recording
* Roland Alvarez – additional recording
* Bruce Miller – additional recording
* Jonathan Miller – additional recording
* Eric Flickinger – assistant engineer
* Jim Labinski – assistant engineer
* Jay Militscher – assistant engineer
* Bernie Grundman – mastering at Bernie Grundman Mastering (Hollywood, California)
* Bibi Green – production coordinator
* Norman Moore – art designer
* William Claxton – front cover photography, insert photography
* Hideo Oida – back cover photography, additional photography
* Patrick Rains & Associates – management

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Seymour, Gene (February 1996). "Finding excitement in jazz fusion". Emerge. 7 (4): 102.
2. ^ a b Larkin, Colin (1998). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. V (3rd ed.). MUZE. p. 3677.
3. ^ a b The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD. Penguin Books Ltd. 1996. p. 903.
4. ^ a b Coleman, Nick (April 14, 1995). "A little bit of slap and tickle". Music. The Independent. p. 24.
5. ^ "Marcus Miller: The master's voice". Bass Player. 10 (1): 42. January 1999.
6. ^ Dean, Mensah (October 12, 1995). "Bassist Marcus Miller blends jazz, R&B and hip-hop...". The Washington Times. p. M2.
7. ^ "Marcus Miller". Billboard.
8. ^ "Marcus Miller". The Recording Academy. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
9. ^ "Tales by Marcus Miller". Billboard. Vol. 107, no. 21\. May 27, 1995. p. 58.
10. ^ Shuster, Fred (May 12, 1995). "Strange conversations". Los Angeles Daily News. p. L20.
11. ^ a b Rassenfoss, Joe (June 2, 1995). "MARCUS MILLER TELLS SOME GOOD 'TALES'". Rocky Mountain News. p. 24D. Retrieved May 28, 2025 - via newsbank.com.
12. ^ Young, Bob (October 8, 1995). "Miller brings it all together to tell 'Tales' at Scullers". Arts & Lifestyle. Boston Herald. p. 65.
13. ^ "'Tales' Marcus Miller". Agenda. The Sunday Age. July 23, 1995. p. 7.
14. ^ a b Yanow, Scott. "Marcus Miller - Tales". AllMusic. Retrieved May 28, 2025.
15. ^ Sweeting, Adam (April 21, 1995). "MARCUS MILLER Tales". The Guardian. p. T12.
16. ^ Hughley, Marty (July 21, 1995). "In heavy rotation on the home stereo". The Oregonian. p. 6. Retrieved May 28, 2025 - via newsbank.com.
17. ^ Dollar, Steve (October 13, 1995). "Marcus Miller". Atlanta Journal-Constitution. p. P4. Retrieved May 28, 2025 - via newsbank.com.

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Studio albums|

* Suddenly
* Marcus Miller
* The Sun Don't Lie
* Tales
* M²
* The Ozell Tapes
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* Free
* Marcus
* Renaissance
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Live albums|

* Live & More

With SMV|

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