In the USA, the Montreux set is going to be 20 CDs, limited to 5000 copies, and will include every note Miles and his minions played between 1973 and 1991 at the festival. The set goes on sale in early September at a price of $249.99. Amazon.com is pre-selling it for $199.99, here: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00006FDSY/qid=1028557393/sr=2-2/ref= sr_2_2/103-0374742-1963867 The reason the UK gets 20 (not 19 - the 20th disc is being called a "bonus" disc) discs on Warner Bros. is that the set is a collaborative effort: Miles spent time on both labels during that stretch. Here, Sony had to license the 1990 Miles Davis and Quincy Jones concert (featuring new versions of the old Gil Evans charts from 'Miles Ahead,' 'Porgy and Bess' and 'Sketches of Spain') previously released on Warner, which is also automatically included in the Euro box. The European version will also be limited to 5000 copies; amazon.uk is selling it for 162.99 pounds: http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00005S844/qid=1028556626/sr=2-2/re f=sr_2_3_2/202-2515731-6151033 No word as yet whether anything's going to be released separately. But before electric Miles fans get into a lather about this, bear in mind that the box set begins two years before Miles's sabbatical, including only two discs of material from 1973 before skipping to 1984. This is mostly going to be for fans of the bands that included saxophonists Kenny Garrett and Bill Evans, guitarists Mike Stern, John Scofield and Robben Ford, bassists Marcus Miller, Darryl Jones and Foley, etc. Inevitable that now that the '70s are officially cool for Miles, the '80s are the next to be rehabilitated. Speaking of the two times I saw the band, on an off night they could be boring; on a *good* night they could levitate the stage. Both times were Kool Jazz Festivals; the first time was an indoor gig with Larry Carlton, the Yellowjackets and Spyro Gyra, while the second time was with Marlon Jordan, McCoy Tyner, Lee Ritenour (with his "standards" band), Geroge Benson and -- immediately prior to Miles -- the Wynton Marsalis Septet. I've always wondered if Miles was so transcendent that second time because he was following Wynton; it was the same tour during which the infamous Toronto incident took place, when Wynton tried to sit in and Miles stopped the band until he left. Granted, the performances in the Montreux box are almost 100% previously issued. But the material mostly falls squarely into the 'Star People' through 'Amandla' albums, with a few things that weren't recorded, including at least one of the songs Prince wrote for Miles, though without Prince's participation. The 4-CD Rhino box 'The Last Word' will apparently include live material and studio rarities from the Warner years, but unfortunately, the oft-bootlegged (or faked) Prince material is not going to be on there, after all. The label head was quoted in ICE as having thought he'd made Prince "an offer he couldn't refuse," but apparently the wee purple one wasn't having anything to do with his former employers. Nevertheless, this could be surprisingly good: 'Tutu' is a great album, 'Amandla' is better than just good, and 'Doo-Bop,' well, two out of three... Curiously, Jazzmatazz lists this as cancelled, but that's news to me. There was a feature in ICE in July, as I recall. Alan, you know something you're not sharing? Steve Smith ssmith36@sprynet.com