Random MySpace Page
It’s that time again. Yes, I am too lazy to do any actual research about musicians. I am quite overdo to write another article about one of the classical jazz musicians I love so much. This entire blog is just aching for an official Miles Davis history lesson. The problem is, that is a little like trying to tackle Mt. Everest for a guy who is not only a jazz fan but a huge Miles fan. It would be fun, but there would also be so much to talk about it scares the beejezus out of me.
So, instead, I did some checking for Miles Davis stuff on MySpace. Right away I found one I thouht you might enjoy checking out. Please do so by clicking right here.
Not only is there a cool history of Miles and his music, there are some posted musical videos of Miles on there. They are from Miles in his later years, rather than performances that must have been recorded somewhere from his heyday in the 50s, 602 and 70s. Still, you do get to see him have some interesting give and take with Herbie Hancock on the one video.
I love the way Miles used to play, although it sometimes ticked off fans and people who just didn’t understand him. He played with his head down, not really acknowledging or interacting with the audience. He would kind of lean back a bit, his horn pointed toward the floor at a slight angle.
When another musician would do his solo, Miles was known to leave the stage. Some thought this was because he didn’t care about their music, but really he said he just wanted the focus to be on the musician who was doing the solo and not him. He also felt that the entire show should be about the music. His political beliefs and the things that were important to him could be dealt with after the show. Duing the show, it was about the music. So, it wasn’t important for him to wave at the audience or bow to them or acknowledge that they were there. Did they hear some great music? Well then, they got ther money’s worth.
Of course, Miles was an arrogant guy. For me, though, I think there are a few people who sort of earn the right to be. Being arrogant doesn’t necessarily have to be a bad thing either. It means you have total confidence in what you are doing and you know you have nothing you need to prove. If it’s done right, it can even be something to admire.
Maybe some day I’ll get that way about my writing.
1 Comment
I love Miles Davis. He was confident and knew how to make the trumpet sing. He was rude too.
Once when playing with John Coltrane, he thought Coltrane’s solo was taking too long so he told him to take the horn out of his mouth.