Miles Davis, “gimme’ notes,” and low-hanging fruit.

Miles Davis was an iconic and mystifying personality to me growing up. I’m glad for that.

Why Miles Davis?

Miles Davis was a great musician. He may have had issues in other areas of life, but his music is solid. It holds up. It stands the test of time. Why is that?

Miles wasn’t a fast player and he didn’t have the most popular tone. So why is he so revered in the jazz world?

The kind of masterpiece that is Kind of Blue is hard to overstate. It is great jazz. It’s also extremely accessible. It’s timeless for a reason.

The key..

Miles said many times to musicians he jammed with to not play the “gimme notes.” He was interested in notes that weren’t there yet, not ones everyone heard whether they had been played or not. He wanted the right note, not a lot of them.

I think about this a lot. I can’t play fast. So the notes I put down, I still want to be good. But even if I hit a wrong note, I’m okay. Miles said it’s the note after a wrong note that determines if it was wrong or not. Pressure’s off.

Miles makes me think. He also makes me appreciate melody to this day. He has accessible music by the pound as well. Interesting person. By all accounts, obsessed with music.

Make it count

There was thought behind nearly every note that man played. You can’t say that about fast shredders and soloists. Miles was onto something I live by musically; quality vs quantity.

My first memories of him are when he looked like this.

The right philosophy takes you places.

1959 when Kind of Blue came out, Miles reinvented himself. Much like Bob Dylan in the rock world, Miles would continue to evolve and change his sound to the extent of redefining jazz every decade or so for the rest of his life. Bitches Brew isn’t the same as Kind of Blue. But it has the same kind of note economy. His philosophy took him all over the musical map. It’s because he played the right notes, not the fastest ones.

Often as musicians we are taught scales and dexterity, and this is good. But what’s fun for me is listening to progressions or tunes and hearing notes that aren’t obviously there but work well. I’m not interested blazing fast lead rips and arpeggios and sweeps.. I’m interested in why the A sounds good on the C like that. Or even holding the same note through a progression or cycle and it works with all the chords. I love those notes.

If you haven’t listened to Jack Johnson, It inspired a lot of Djembe Funk style music from me.

The best advice I’ve ever gotten..thanks, Miles Davis.

Miles is a treat for the mind if you’re into jazz, maybe even if you’re not. He had an approach that is worth stowing in your musical arsenal. “Don’t play gimme’ notes.” I believe that to be valuable advice. Thanks, Miles.

“You have to know 400 notes that you can play and pick the right four.”

-Miles Davis

Return to home.

I’m Kelly. Sometimes I shave and wear different glasses. I like to keep folks on their toes.