Tales (album)

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]

Professional ratings

Review 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] 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]

The Rocky Mountain News opined that Meshell Ndegeocello "spellbinds with 'Rush Over', a ballad wrought from spoken word and singing."[11] The Oregonian praised Miller's "knack for welding groove to harmonic structure and balancing upscale polish with urban grit."[16] 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]

AllMusic wrote that some songs "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]

All tracks composed by Marcus Miller except where noted.

1. "The Blues" – 5:35
2. "Tales (Intro)" (Miller, Allen Toussaint) – 0:12
3. "Tales" (Miller, Allen Toussaint) – 5:42
4. "Eric" – 6:16
5. "True Geminis" – 5:36
6. "Rush Over" – 4:57
7. "Running Through My Dreams (Interlude)" – 1:27
8. "Ethiopia" – 5:15
9. "Strange Fruit (Intro)" (Abel Meeropol) – 1:46
10. "Strange Fruit" (Abel Meeropol) – 2:02
11. "Visions" (Stevie Wonder) – 5:37
12. "Tales (Reprise)" – 2:34
13. "Forevermore (Intro)" – 0:32
14. "Forevermore" – 4:59
15. "Infatuation" – 5:08
16. "Come Together" (John Lennon, Paul McCartney) – 5:30

• Poogie Bell – Drums
• Dean Brown – Guitar
• Hiram Bullock – Guitar
• Kenny Garrett – Alto Saxophone
• Lalah Hathaway – Vocals
• Jason Miles – Programming
• Marcus Miller – Organ, Synthesizer, Flute, Guitar, Piano, Clarinet (Bass), Bass, Rhythm guitar, Keyboards, Programming, Producer, Engineer, Sampling
• Meshell Ndegeocello – Synthesizer, Vocals
• Q-Tip – Speech/Speaker/Speaking Part
• Joshua Redman – Tenor Saxophone
• Michael "Patches" Stewart – Trumpet
• Dave Ward – Programming
• Lenny White – Drums
• Bernard Wright – Organ, Synthesizer, Clavinet, Synthesizer Bass

Production

• Roland Alvarez – engineer
• Ray Bardani – engineer
• Goh Hotoda – engineer
• Bruce Miller – engineer
• Jonathan Miller – engineer
• David Ward II – engineer