Miles Davis – blind listening test

Miles Davis has recorded some BS as well, lest we not forget. That made his comments about why did they put out that record or record companies this or that into some perspective. Perhaps it was part of his frustrations of his own shortcomings at the hands of record labels.

That was required reading at the conservatory I went to years ago. (Not by the teachers, among us classmates. We made everyone read that we interacted with)

Got to play with Kenny at a jam thing a decade ago. Absolutely amazing experience.

There is so much that I can extrapolate on this subject, but I believe the greatest hurdle for a serious musician is that after you master all the dexterity, independence and music theory, the biggest hurdle is your own fucking self.

If that helps, I made a Spotify playlist for some of songs of the 4 different sessions (17 out of 34) that were linked by jeroen: http://open.spotify.com/user/timotheeb/playlist/05rxkOr1UWrP...

We've discussed Miles Davis on a number of occasions here at HN. It's exactly up our alley...or, at least, the upvotes seem to indicate it is, and I agree that it is.

Here's why I think he's interesting:

1. He was an astonishingly good businessman in a time when black men were rarely given opportunities in business, even in the music industry. He is nearly unique even in the jazz world (which was better for black folks than most other industries of the time) for the level of his business success.

2. He was a great leader. He's regarded as one of the best jazz band leaders ever. He helped nurture multiple generations of jazz greats. If you can name a jazz legend from any time until his death, they probably played with Miles before they were a legend. An executive at a startup would do well to learn from him how to pass on skills and help develop even greater talents than their own (many people who played with Miles ended up being better musicians than Miles, and pretty much all became better than they were before they played with Miles).

3. He's interesting. Which could be enough. Nerds like interesting people and things.

Sounds very interesting, thanks for the link!

>> Each month a star guest is played an eclectic and provoking series of records which they are asked to identify and comment on, with no prior knowledge of what it is they will hear. The conversations that ensue are often controversial and always entertaining.