miles
In 1987, Ronald Reagan invited Miles Davis to a White House dinner. Legend has it that at some point during dinner, Nancy Reagan asked him what he accomplished in order to receive the invite. Davis told her, "Well, I've changed the course of music five or six times. What have you done except [sleep with] the president?" And he wasn't wrong. At least about the first part.
As jazz's greatest trailblazer, Davis pushed the genre from hard bop to modal to fusion to funk. But he did not innovate for innovation's sake. Not overly concerned with the expectations of others, he instead followed his discerning, ever-shifting taste. And his evolution was not limited to his music. Davis once said that "for me, music and life are all about style." This effortless style coursed through his clothing, his photographs, and even his self-designed album covers. Though it is impossible to distill a lifetime of phases into one post, I will touch on some of my favorite eras here.
the cool
the silent way
the brew
