No. 343: Miles Davis - "In A Silent Way" (1969)

When I was studying at university back in 1998 I went through a phase where I listened to nothing but this album for about a month. And it was a great month.
Miles Davis was a legendary trumpeter and band leader, and also one of the most influential musical figures of the 20th century, and this is generally regarded as the first album in the "electric" phase of his career. Electric keyboards and electric guitar has already been used on previous Miles Davis albums, but this was the first one where these electric instruments were used to create new experimental soundscapes - leading to the birth of jazz fusion.
Miles continued his relentless experimentation into the mid 1970's, even hooking a wah-wah pedal up to his trumpet, and the music got very dark and aggressive-sounding - but this album is a meandering, relaxation-inducing masterpiece. Plain and simple. Every note that Miles plays through his trumpet is perfect, measured and understated: exactly what you would expect from a genius of his calibre.
Everyone on Earth needs to hear this album at least once while they are still here.