# When Miles Davis went electric: Jazz Night in America: Sound, Video

- Link: https://jazzblues.eu/2019/08/16/when-miles-davis-went-electric-jazz-night-in-america-sound-video/
- Published: 2019-08-16T14:17:06+01:00
- Author: https://JazzBlues.EU

**Electric Miles. Few word pairings in the jazz lexicon are apt to inspire so much
contention and challenge and ferment.**

What the phrase refers to, of course, is a period in the career of trumpeter Miles
Davis, spanning the last third of his life. And while there are other important 
antecedents, the big bang of this period is an album recorded 50 years ago by the
name of _Bitches Brew._

This episode of _Jazz Night in America_ takes us behind the furious mystique of 
that album, illuminating the musical and cultural forces Miles was metabolizing 
at the time. We’ll hear from an array of authorities on the subject — notably his
second wife, funk heroine and fashion icon Betty Davis, who inspired his outrageous
transformation in the Age of Aquarius. (“Whatever I would wear, he would wear,” 
says Betty with a laugh, in this rare, can’t-miss interview.)

Among the other essential voices in the show is electric bassist Marcus Miller, 
who served as musical director and record producer for a later edition of Davis’
band. We’ll hear highlights from an Electric Miles concert that Miller put together
for Jazz at Lincoln Center — featuring not one but two blazing trumpeters, Russell
Gunn and Marquis Hill, along with stone killers like guitarist Vernon Reid.

“When you create music,” Miller asserts, “your primary responsibility is to reflect
the times that you live in.” That’s one of many explanations for the current that
flows through Electric Miles — and the charge that it can still deliver.

**Set List **

 * “Directions” (Joe Zawinul)
 * “Bitches Brew” (Miles Davis)
 * “Spanish Key” (Miles Davis)
 * “Black Satin” interlude (Miles Davis)
 * “Tutu” (Marcus Miller)

**Musicians: **_Marcus Miller – Music Director, Bandleader, Bass Guitar, Bass Clarinet;
Brett Williams – Keyboards; Alex Han – Saxophone; Marquis Hill – Trumpet; Russell
Gunn – Trumpet; Vernon Reid – Guitar; Alex Bailey – Drums; Mino Cinelu – Percussion._

![](https://i0.wp.com/www.wbgo.org/sites/wbgo/files/styles/medium/public/201908/
miles___betty.jpg?w=640&ssl=1)

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