“Don’t play what’s there, play what’s not there.” This is yet another quotable quote from Miles Davis, and probably the one that best describes his musical style. His early playing was sometimes tentative and not always fully in tune, but his unique, intimate tone and fertile musical imagination outweighed his technical shortcomings … which by the 1950s he turned into considerable assets. Miles would have celebrated his 99th birthday a few days ago, on May 26th, but while he severed his earthly bonds in 1991, he left behind a wide variety of timeless jazz that will be enjoyed by many generations to come.
(Top) The Pan Piper and Solea are both tunes from Davis’ 1960 album Sketches of Spain. They are co-arranged with Gil Evans, blending jazz and classical influences, incorporating a flamenco theme for this 1991 Montreux performance. (Middle) is a Davis original, now a standard, Milestones from his 1958 album of the same name. It features a regular who’s who of jazz, with Miles on flugelhorn, Cannon Adderley playing alto, John Coltrane, playing tenor, Red Garland on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and Philly Joe Jones at the drums. Finally (Bottom), the quintet’s 1964 performance of My Funny Valentine evokes a slightly different feeling with Miles on trumpet, Wayne Shorter on sax, Herbie Hancock playing piano, Ron Carter on bass, and Tony Williams at the drums –– talk about a who’s who!
