Miles on Monday: "Three Miles Ahead" on NPR's "Jazz Night in America," and more

This week in Miles Davis news:

* Last week's episode of NPR's program "Jazz Night In America" featured "three interpretations of Miles Davis — on the silver screen, the page and on the bandstand."

Titled "Three Miles Ahead," the episode includes interviews with Don Cheadle, director and star of Miles Ahead, the recent film about Davis, and two St. Louis natives: writer, poet and Davis biographer Quincy Troupe, and trumpeter Keyon Harrold (pictured), who performed on the soundtrack for Cheadle's film and recently presented a tribute to Davis in NYC.

* Miles Davis' grandson Khalid Davis has died at age 42 in St. Louis. A visitation and memorial service will be held starting at 9:00 a.m. Tuesday, August 30, at Granberry Mortuary, 8806 Jennings Station Road, with burial immediately after service at Lake Charles Memorial Park. StLJN's condolences go out to the Davis family.

* In the "Better Late Than Never" Department, a writer from the Hindustan Times opined as to "Why Miles Davis’s Kind of Blue is one of the greatest jazz albums of all time," and a reviewer at the website Prog Archives took a retrospective look at Davis' album Sketches of Spain.

Miles on Monday: Big Fun getting vinyl reissue, plus reviews and more

This week in Miles Davis news:

* In an essay about the re-release of Louis Malle’s 1959 film Elevator to the Gallows, the New Yorker's film critic Richard Brody calls Davis' score for the film "worth hearing entirely on its own" and "better than the film itself, by far, and there are better ways to hear it than in the movie—namely, by listening to a CD that features the entire studio sessions from which the score was edited." The movie's revival continues at the Film Forum in NYC through Thursday.

* Davis' 1974 double album Big Fun, which collected previously unreleased material from the bands that recorded Bitches Brew, On The Corner, and Jack Johnson, will be reissued on vinyl in September.

* Saxophonist Jim Snidero's upcoming album MD66 will pay tribute to Davis' "second great quintet," the group that from 1966 to 1968 included pianist Herbie Hancock, saxophonist Wayne Shorter, bassist Ron Carter and drummer Tony Williams.

* Keyboardist Robert Glasper talked about his work on Don Cheadle's film Miles Ahead and his Davis-remix album Everything's Beautiful in an interview with the website Nerdtorious.com, and the film was reviewed by Heed magazine.

* The recently released album, The Columbia Sessions, produced by Davis in 1969 for his wife at the time, singer Betty Davis, was reviewed by the website Headstuff.org.

* The website Jazz Music Archives offers brief reviews looking back at the 1956 album Cookin' with the Miles Davis Quintet and the 1959 landmark Kind of Blue.

Miles on Monday: News, reviews and more

This week in Miles Davis news:

* With Don Cheadle's film Miles Ahead now available on Blu-Ray, DVD, and video on demand, the film rating site Rotten Tomatoes has given the flick a 73% score on the "Tomato Meter".

* The video release of the movie also has prompted a few additional reviews from websites and publications that didn't get it to is during its theatrical run, like the ones published last week by TheFilmStage.com and Spacial-Anomaly.com.

* Also last week, Glide magazine published a review looking at the video release of Miles Ahead, the film's soundtrack, and Everything's Beautiful, the companion remix/tribute album from keyboardist Robert Glasper.

* From Newport, RI comes news that Roomful of Blues trumpeter Doug Woolverton will pay tribute to Davis' famous set at the 1958 Newport Jazz Festival, recorded live and released as Miles Davis at Newport 1958, by recreating it this Thursday, July 28, at the Jane Pickens Theater in Newport.

* And from MTV, of all places, there's a surprisingly readable article about the recently released "lost album" of singer Betty Davis (pictured), which was produced by Miles Davis in 1969 for his then-wife and employed many of the same musicians who played on Miles' landmark album Bitches Brew.

Miles on Monday: Miles Ahead released on DVD and Blu-Ray, and more

This week in Miles Davis news:

* Don Cheadle's film Miles Ahead, which tells the trumpeter's story beginning with a fictionalized incident set during his late-1970s career hiatus, is being released tomorrow on DVD (pictured) and Blu-Ray.

* Speaking of Miles Ahead, an article published last week in Hollywood Reporter mentions Cheadle's performance in the film as one that "merit(ed) attention" for a potential Academy Award nomination.

* Everything's Beautiful, the tribute/remix album by pianist Robert Glasper issued in conjunction with the theatrical release of Miles Ahead, was reviewed by Croco magazine and by AllAboutJazz.com's Asher Wolf.

* An article by AllAboutJazz.com's Mark Werlin evaluates the remastered SACD reissues of several albums from Miles Davis "Second Great Quintet"

* Somewhat unsurprisingly, given that it's the best-selling jazz album of all time, Davis' landmark recording Kind of Blue figures prominently in Paste magazine's list of "10 Jazz Albums for People Who Don’t Like Jazz."

* The London revival of Robert LePage's Needles and Opium, a performance piece about Miles Davis, Jean Cocteau and various forms of addition, was reviewed by The Telegraph.

Miles on Monday: Betty Davis' lost sessions released, reissue news, and more

With no post here last Monday due to the Independence Day holiday, here's an extra-large serving of Miles Davis news from the last two weeks:

* Perhaps the biggest story of the fortnight involving the trumpeter was the news that a set of previously unreleased recording sessions he produced for his ex-wife, singer Betty Davis, has been issued as Betty Davis: The Columbia Years 1968-1969 by the label Light In The Attic Records.

Co-produced by Davis and his longtime collaborator Teo Macero, the album (pictured) features much of the band that would appear a couple of years later on Davis' album Bitches Brew, including guitarist John McLaughlin, keyboardist Herbie Hancock, bassist Harvey Brooks, saxophonist Wayne Shorter, and organist Larry Young, plus two of Jimi Hendrix' musical associates, drummer Mitch Mitchell and bassist Billy Cox.

Press coverage of the release has been extensive, with stories and reviews appearing everywhere from NPR to the alt-rock magazine Pitchfork to AllAboutJazz.com.

* Meanwhile, a box set of Davis' own music, Miles Davis At Newport 1955–1975: The Bootleg Series Vol. 4, was named the winner in the Historical Album category of the 2016 DownBeat Critics Poll.

* The recent reissue of Davis' album Agharta on LP by the label Music on Vinyl was reviewed by London Jazz News.

* Also in London, theater artist Robert Lepage's performance piece Needles and Opium, a surreal meditation from 1991 about Miles Davis, Jean Cocteau and various types of addiction, was revived for a production at the Barbican that featured actor Wellesley Robertson III as Davis.

* Also revived is Elevator to the Gallows, the 1958 Louis Malle film that features a soundtrack by Davis, as a newly restored version will be shown next month at Film Forum in New York City in advance of a potential wider release.

* In other Davis-on-film news, Elmore magazine reviewed Everything's Beautiful, keyboardist Robert Glasper's tribute to Davis that serves as a companion piece to his work on the score for Don Cheadle's movie Miles Ahead; and the Massillon, OH Independent ran a feature story about the experiences of an local Davis fan who worked as an extra on the film, which was shot in Cincinnati. Miles Ahead comes out on DVD and Blu-Ray on Tuesday, July 19.

* Last but not least, "Miles in May," an episode of All Music Television's program The Jazz Creative recorded earlier this year in Los Angeles and featuring Glasper and multi-instrumentalist Terrace Martin, has been posted online, and can been seen in the embedded video window below.

Miles on Monday: Wayne Shorter talks Miles Davis, TV tribute debuts Friday, and more

This week in Miles Davis news:

* The soundtrack album for Don Cheadle's film Miles Ahead and pianist Robert Glasper's tribute/remix album Everything's Beautiful were reviewed for Jazz Times magazine Mac Randall.

* Miles and Me, the TV special paying tribute to Davis with music from a recent concert in Los Angeles by Glasper and multi-instrumentalist Terrace Martin will debut this Friday, June 24 on ASPiRE TV.

* SFJAZZ this fall will present a class in their "Discover Jazz" series focusing on four of Davis' most important albums, "considering the recordings as they were meant to be considered - as complete and dynamic works of art created by a visionary like no other.

* The Australian Broadcasting Company's radio network recently interviewed saxophonist Wayne Shorter, and has put on YouTube two brief video clips in which Shorter (pictured) talks about being part of Davis' "Second Great Quintet" in the 1960s and his experiences recording with the trumpeter.

* Reviews of Miles Ahead were published by The Australian newspaper and the website StartsAt60.com.

Miles on Monday: Tribute album debuts as #1 on Billboard jazz chart, and more

This week in Miles Davis news:

* A previously unheard audio recording has surfaced online documenting Davis performing with the Mel Lewis Big Band at the Village Vanguard in June 1981, just as he was beginning his comeback from his extended hiatus of the late 1970s.

* Presenting organization SFJAZZ tied into their Davis-themed "Electric Miles" concert at this year's San Francisco Jazz Festival with a playlist of tracks drawn from the trumpeter's electric era.

* Prince's former road manager Alan Leeds talked about his former boss' relationship with Davis as part of an interview with OkayPlayer.com.

* A video special with music from a recent tribute to Davis staged in Los Angeles by keyboardist Robert Glasper and multi-instrumentalist Terrace Martin will debut on Friday, June 24 on AllMusicTelevision.net.

* In related news, Glasper's Miles Davis tribute/remix album Everything's Beautiful debuted last week at #1 on Billboard's jazz chart, making it the highest-charting Davis-related recording in 29 years; and Glasper was interviewed about the recording on NPR's "On Point".

* Actor/director Don Cheadle was interviewed by the Melbourne Herald Sun in advance of the Australian opening of his film Miles Ahead, and the movie was reviewed by the Sydney Morning Herald and InSessionFilm.com.

Miles on Monday: A report from the Miles Davis Jazz Festival, and more

This week in Miles Davis news:

* Last Saturday's Miles Davis Jazz Festival in Alton, IL is the subject of a report in the Alton Telegraph.

* SFJAZZ profiled three of Davis' ex-sidemen who will be paying tribute to their former boss with the band Miles Electric at this year's San Francisco Jazz Festival.

* Another former Davis colleague, bassist Ron Carter, was interviewed by WBGO about a number of subjects, including his time with the famed trumpeter.

* The Montreux Jazz Festival has revamped their website, with new features such as pages devoted specifically to prominent artists who have played there over the years, including Davis.

* The New York Post has more about the apartment in Davis' old NYC townhouse that's now on the market for $495,000.

* Don Cheadle's film Miles Ahead is still making news, as the actor/director was interviewed about the movie before its opening in Australia by the Sydney Morning Herald, which called his work "an Oscar waiting to happen."

* Meanwhile, Roberto Schaefer, who was director of photography on Miles Ahead, was interviewed about his work on the movie by Filmmaker magazine.

* One notable new critic of Miles Ahead did emerge last week, as comedian, author, activist, and St. Louis Dick Gregory weighed in with a statement and video criticizing Cheadle's approach to Davis' story.

* As for the music associated with the film, pianist Robert Glasper's remix/tribute album Everything's Beautiful was reviewed by Rolling Stone even as members of Davis' family attended a release party for the recording; and the film's soundtrack (pictured) was reviewed by AllAboutJazz.com's Geno Thackara.

Miles on Monday: The man who made Miles Davis' trumpets, and more

This week in Miles Davis news:

* With the release of Everything's Beautiful, keyboardist Robert Glasper's tribute to Miles Davis, set for Friday, May 27, Sony Legacy announced last week that the album (pictured) also will be issued in a special box set containing both CD and vinyl versions plus a limited edition T-shirt, an enamel pin, an 11" x 11" art print, and a letter from Glasper.

* Larry Ramirez, who built custom trumpets for Miles Davis in the 1980s and also invented the Superbone, a hybrid trombone with both slide and valves famously used by Maynard Ferguson, was profiled in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

* The Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis will kick off their festival paying tribute to Miles Davis and John Coltrane this weekend with "Miles Davis - The Sorcerer at 90," a program featuring new arrangements and favorites from Davis’ body of work.

* Alex Skolnick, guitarist for the rock band Testament, was asked by TeamRock.com to come up with a list of "the 10 best Miles Davis tracks", and made some pretty smart picks.

* With the film now in wide release, the media frenzy accompanying Don Cheadle's Miles Ahead has abated a bit over the last week, but there still are a few reviews and related articles coming out. Here are some links from the last seven days:

Film Review: ‘Miles Ahead’ [City Screen, York] (SoundSphereMag.com)
CD REVIEW: Miles Ahead - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (London Jazz News)
Vince Wilburn, Jr. & Garry Marshall Celebrate ‘Miles Ahead’
Ahead of the curve – Miles Ahead (Film Review)(VultureHound.co.uk)
Miles Ahead – claustrophobia, paranoia and all that jazz (GetIntoThis.co.uk)
Miles Davis' nephew talks latest biopic, soundtrack honoring music legend (KUSA)

Miles on Monday: Navigating Miles Davis' "electric years" in 10 records, and more

This week in Miles Davis news:

* The CD box set Miles Davis at Newport 1955-1975: The Bootleg Series Vol. 4 was nominated in the 2016 Jazz Journalists Awards in the category "Historical Record of the Year."

* Keyboardist Robert Glasper will headline a salute to Miles Davis' 90th birthday held on Thursday, May 19 in Los Angeles.

* Prompted by the wide release last week of Don Cheadle's film Miles Ahead, retailer The Vinyl Factory offered "An introduction to the electric sound of Miles Davis...Navigating the complex landscape of Miles Davis’ electric years in 10 crucial records."

* And speaking of Miles Ahead, there's still coverage of the film coming out in the form of reviews, interviews, and features. Some links from this past week:

Miles Davis: Ace of Baseness (Counterpunch.org)
Film Review: Miles Ahead is The Most Fascinating Music Biopic I’ve Ever Seen (WeMinoredInFilm.com)
Stylish and sharp Miles Davis story leaves you wanting more (The Independent UK)
The long and tortured road to Don Cheadle's Miles Davis biopic (Radio Times)
Tuned in: Trumpeting the genius of Miles Davis (Sydney Morning Herald)
A Conversation With The Family Of Miles Davis, On Miles Ahead & More (DayAndADream.com)
Robert Glasper Stays 'Miles Ahead' With Soundtrack, New Music (Houston Press)

(For much, much more about Miles Ahead, see previous posts with the "Miles on Monday" tag.)

Miles on Monday: When Miles met Prince, plus the latest Miles Ahead reviews, and more

This week in Miles Davis news:

* With the unexpected death last week of multi-hyphenate pop/rock star Prince, unreleased audio has surfaced online from an attempted late-1980s collaboration between him and Miles Davis. Billboard magazine has details and the audio here, while a story on Pitchfork.com went "Inside Miles Davis’ Prince Obsession, As Detailed By Davis’ Family and Collaborators."

* The BBC compiled memories of Davis' late-career performances in the United Kingdom from musicians, promoters, and others involved with the British jazz scene for a feature story headlined "Miles Davis: The rare UK shows near the end of a jazz life."

* A post on OpenCulture.com highlighted a video interview with keyboardist Herbie Hancock revealing "What Miles Davis Taught Herbie Hancock: In Music, as in Life, There Are No Mistakes, Just Chances to Improvise."

* Meanwhile, news and reviews of the film of Miles Ahead - playing this week in St. Louis at the Tivoli and the AMC Creve Coeur 12 - continue to proliferate. Here are links to the latest, grouped roughly by topic; for much, much more about Miles Ahead, check out previous posts here under the "Miles on Monday" tag.

Reviews
* Miles Davis movie short on facts but packed with action (Las Vegas Review-Journal)
* ‘Miles Ahead’ is a free-form take on life of jazz great Miles Davis: 2.5 stars (Kansas City Star)
* Seymour Movies: So What? That’s What. (GeneSeymour.com)
* Jazz portrait Miles Ahead hits the right notes, but not necessarily in the right order, writes BRIAN VINER (The Daily Mail UK)
* Rebirth of cool: Cheadle shines in Miles Davis biopic (RTE.ie)
* Don Cheadle's Miles Davis biopic is an unconventional pleasure - Worth of the Cool (Nashville Scene)
* ‘Miles Ahead’ adds unnecessary fiction to the life of Miles Davis (Las Vegas Weekly)
* Cheadle’s Miles Davis biopic a missed opportunity (Cape Cod Times)
* Review: Miles Ahead (Gambit)
* Miles Ahead, film review: an open-ended biopic with a glorious performance from Don Cheadle (The Independent UK)
* REVIEW: 'Miles Ahead,' Don Cheadle's Miles Davis bio-pic (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette)
* Don Cheadle gives mesmerizing performance as Miles Davis (Richard Roeper/Universal Press Syndicate)
* Miles Ahead: A Powerhouse Film, But is it the Truth? (AllAboutJazz.com)
* ‘Miles Ahead’ leaves Miles Davis behind (Seattle Times)
* A Miles Davis biopic as gloriously messy as the man himself (The Telegraph UK)
* Nice effort, Don Cheadle, but no film will ever do Miles Davis’s defiant, volatile music justice (The Spectator UK)
* 'Miles Ahead' movie review: Jazz biopic eschews convention in search for the essence of Miles Davis (New Orleans Times-Picayune)
* Miles Ahead review – magnificent mooch through the wilderness years (The Guardian UK)
* Miles Ahead review – ode to a jazz giant (The Guardian UK)
* Don Cheadle’s Miles Davis Film, Miles Ahead, Isn’t a Real Biopic—It’s Something Better (IndyWeek.com)
* 'Miles Ahead' review: Don Cheadle finds Miles Davis' spirit in wild, subversive biopic (MLive.com)
* FILM REVIEW: Don Cheadle's Miles Ahead (London Jazz News)
* Review: Miles Ahead (Brilliant Corners, A Boston Jazz Blog)
* 'Miles Ahead': The great Don Cheadle puts the great Miles Davis in a bizarre heist movie (Cleveland Plain Dealer)
* Miles Davis biopic ‘Miles Ahead’ is a hot mess (Charlotte News-Observer)
* Don Cheadle Plays Miles Davis in Miles Ahead - Also Featuring an Unnecessary Ewan McGregor! (Portland Mercury)

Interviews and features
* Who shot Miles redux (OpenSkyJazz.com)
* Conversation between friends about Miles Davis – the movie, the music and the man (Buffalo News)
* Don Cheadle: Miles Davis was mercurial and dangerous... he was the real original gangsta (The Sun UK)
* Q&A: Actor/Director Don Cheadle On His Miles Davis Biopic 'Miles Ahead' – 'It Became A Monkey On My Back' (NME.com)
* Man with the Horn: Actor Don Cheadle on Channeling Jazz Great Miles Davis in Miles Ahead (San Antonio Current)
* Don Cheadle on Miles Davis: ‘He touched on everything. And he changed everything’ (Irish Times)
* Miles Davis’s story brought to life as Don Cheadle fulfils a dream (The Australian)
* "Miles Davis consumed everything to create what he created..." hmv.com talks to Don Cheadle (HMV.com)
* Don Cheadle interview: Miles Ahead, directing and more (DenOfGeek.com)

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

Miles Ahead opens today in St. Louis

Here's this week's wrap-up of assorted links and short news items of local interest:

* Miles Ahead, actor/director Don Cheadle's film about Miles Davis, opens nationwide this weekend and will play in St. Louis starting today at the AMC Creve Coeur 12 and Tivoli theaters.

The film's local opening has occasioned reviews from Calvin Wilson of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and Kenya Vaughn of the St. Louis American and a short feature story from the Alton Telegraph's Mary Cox. For complete Miles Ahead coverage, see StLJN's ongoing series of "Miles on Monday" posts.

* Saxophonist David Sanborn, who was back home in St. Louis last week to play at Jazz at the Bistro, has been announced as one of the performers for the February 2017 edition of The Contemporary Jazz Cruise, along with Pat Metheny, Gregory Porter, Terence Blanchard, and others.

* The St. Louis Black Rep is taking a dramatic look at the life of the late keyboardist, singer/songwriter and former St. Louisan Donny Hathaway with Twisted Melodies, a play written by and starring St. Louis native Kelvin Roston Jr.  The production continues through Sunday, May 1 at the Edison Theatre on the campus of Washington University.

* Drummer Kimberly Thompson was interviewed by Nylon magazine in conjunction with the official release last Saturday of her new album, Treasures Abound. Thompson also may have broken some news about her next appearance in her hometown with a recent Tweet listing upcoming concert dates, one of which was "Kim Thompson & Mike Stern at the Bistro Feb 14 - 18 2017". (Jazz St. Louis usually announces the next season's schedule in May.)

* Last Saturday's Record Store Day festivities in St. Louis were featured in stories on the local newscasts of KSDK and KTVI/Fox 2.

* Singer Wendy L Gordon announced that the Leevert & Wendy Gordon Scholarship Fund will grant another $1000 scholarship this year to a yet-to-be-selected Sumner High School senior attending Harris Stowe State University in the fall.

The scholarships are funded with proceeds from Gordon's series of "Jazz Heaven" tribute concerts, the next of which is scheduled for Sunday, September 11 at the Florissant Civic Center Theatre, and from special events like the upcoming tribute to singer Mae Wheeler by Gordon and fellow vocalist Jeanne Trevor set for Tuesday, May 17 at the Sheldon Concert Hall.

Miles on Monday: Jazz at Lincoln Center to present "Miles and 'Trane Festival," and more

A drawing by Miles Davis

This week in Miles Davis news:

* Jazz at Lincoln Center's "Miles and ’Trane Festival" will celebrate the 90th birthdays of both Miles Davis and John Coltrane on all three stages at their NYC HQ from May 12 through 15.

* A new poll at JazzTimes.com asks readers to choose their favorite period of Miles Davis’ music. You can cast your vote on  the lower left of the Jazz Times home page.

* Bob Gluck, author of The Miles Davis Lost Quintet and Other Revolutionary Ensembles, was profiled and his book discussed in an article in the Albany Times-Union.

* Marc Myers of the blog JazzWax had three posts last week about Davis, including "Miles Davis: Milan, 1964", "Miles Davis: 1951-54" and "The Musings of Miles".

* Blogger Matt Phillips writes about one of Davis' more unusual collaborations of the 1980s in "Story Of A Song: Toto/Miles Davis’s ‘Don’t Stop Me Now’".

* An exhibition of original Miles Davis art work will be held April 25 - 30 at the Dundas Street Gallery in Edinburgh, Scotland to coincide with the Glasgow run of Miles Ahead. (An image of one of the works appearing in the exhibition can be seen illustrating this post.)

Turning to Miles Davis movie news, here's a list of links to the most recent coverage of Don Cheadle's film Miles Ahead, which opens here in St. Louis this Friday, April 22 at the AMC Creve Coeur 12 and the Tivoli. As with the similar link compilations featured here the past couple of weeks, they've been grouped roughly by topic.

About the music
* Watch The Video For Robert Glasper And Bilal's Miles Davis Rework, "Ghetto Walkin'" (TheFader.com)
* The Beginner's Guide To Miles Davis (NotionMagazine.com)
* Critic’s Pick: ‘Miles Ahead’ original motion picture soundtrack (Lexington Herald-Leader)

Reviews of the film
* 'Miles Ahead': Don Cheadle's daring, soul-baring turn as Miles Davis (Philadelphia Inquirer)
* Movie review: 'Miles Ahead' hits the right note (Syndicated/More Content Now)
* Miles Davis biopic 'Miles Ahead' might give you the blues (Twin Cities Pioneer Press)
* Miles Ahead: Biopic fails to convey significance of Miles Davis’ life (The Globe and Mail)
* Miles Ahead review: Miles Davis biopic doesn't hit the high notes (Toronto Sun)
* Charisma aside, Miles Ahead falls behind, reducing Miles Davis to a character (National Post)
* Miles Davis biopic plays it cool (Montreal Gazette)
* Don Cheadle’s Miles Ahead captures late-period Miles Davis (Georgia Straight)
* Miles Davis biopic is a farce – in more ways than one (NowToronto.ca)
* 'don't call Cheadle's film about Miles Davis a biopic or jazz' (Victoria Advocate)
* Review: 'Miles Ahead' sheds light on the artist (Canada AM)
* "Miles Ahead" – Don Cheadle Channels Miles Davis (iChill.ca)
* Miles Davis biopic ‘Miles Ahead’ brings the brass (BeatRoute.ca)
* Miles Davis biopic fittingly offbeat (Vancouver Courier)
* Miles Ahead keeps pace with a jazz legend (City Pages)
* Miles Ahead Review – A totally chaotic experience of phenomenal acting (FlavourMag.co.uk)

Interviews and features
* ‘Do black movies really not sell?’: Don Cheadle on Miles Ahead (The Spectator UK)
* Don Cheadle: Life of Miles Davis is a touchstone story (The Telegraph UK)
* Don Cheadle Wanted a Make a Gangster Movie About Miles Davis, So He Did (Essence)
* Don Cheadle boldly portrays legendary trumpet player Miles Davis (Denver Post)
* Don Cheadle brings 'fire' to Miles Davis biopic (Minneapolis Star-Tribune)
* “If Miles Davis Was Alive, He’d Be Working with Kendrick Lamar”: An Interview with Don Cheadle (Vice.com)
* Here’s how Miles Davis and Nina Simone were alike and different (Washington Post)
* 'Miles Ahead': What's fact, fiction and what's Cincinnati (Cincinnati Enquirer)
* 'Miles Ahead': Cincinnati portrays NYC well but familiar local sites hard to miss (WCPO)
* KC native Don Cheadle attends showing of new film ‘Miles Ahead’ at Kansas City FilmFest (Kansas City Star)
* Don Cheadle: ‘Diversity is about who gets to say yes to something, not the people being said yes to’ (The Telegraph UK)

Miles on Monday: The latest Miles Ahead news and reviews, and more

This week in Miles Davis news:

* The new book The Miles Davis Lost Quintet and Other Revolutionary Ensembles by Bob Gluck (pictured) was reviewed by Karl Ackerman for AllAboutJazz.com.

* Pianist Robert Glasper and writer Ashley Kahn will team up this fall to teach a course on the music and legacy of Miles Davis at NYU’s Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music.

* A new exhibit, "So What! The Artistry of Miles Davis," opened last week at the William Grant Still Arts Center in Los Angeles. The exhibit, which features "archival recordings, magazine articles, concert posters, original photographs, and a significant discography" continues through June 4.

Meanwhile, as the run-up continues to the nationwide opening on April 22 of Miles Ahead, Don Cheadle's film about Davis, the movie continues to make plenty of news. Here's coverage from the past week, once again organized roughly by topic:

The music
* Smithsonian Jazz Expert Gives Liner Notes to the New Miles Davis Biopic (Smithsonian)
* Early Days With Miles Davis (Magnet)
* Don Cheadle’s latest film, Miles Ahead, is miles apart from other biopics (Dallas Morning News)
* HEAR: Miles Davis & Robert Glasper ft. Phonte on New Track (Keyboard)
* Album review: Miles Davis and various artists, Miles Ahead OST (Irish Examiner)
* The mercurial, magnificent Miles Davis (San Francisco Chronicle)
* Robert Glasper on scoring 'Miles Ahead' tribute LP (Revolt.tv)

Reviews of the film
* 'Miles Ahead' review: Don Cheadle's inventive, freewheeling slice of jazz legend's life (Chicago Tribune)
* Review: Miles Ahead (RogerEbert.com)
* Miles Ahead Captures Miles Davis' Lightning in a Bottle (East Bay Express)
* Original Gangster - Don Cheadle and Steven Baigelman jettison traditional biopic conventions to capture the gangster truth of enigmatic jazz genius Miles Davis in Miles Ahead (Writer's Guild of America)
* Insert music-related pun to indicate Don Cheadle's Miles Davis biopic isn't good (RedEyeChicago.com)
* Cheadle’s acting excellent in free-form Miles Davis movie (SF Gate)
* ‘Miles Ahead’ boldly re-imagines Miles Davis’s life (Washington Post)
* ‘Miles Ahead’: Don Cheadle captures the cool in bold biopic (Chicago Sun Times)
* 'Miles Ahead' Ponders Miles Davis' Lost Years (Popmatters)
* Miles Ahead Review (EmpireOnline.com)

Interviews and features
* Box Office: A Healthy Opening for Don Cheadle's 'Miles Ahead' (IndieWire.com)
* Photos from Miles Ahead opening in London (PAImages.co.uk)
* Don Cheadle on playing Miles Davis and directing his first film (AV Club)
* Don Cheadle interview: The actor directs and stars in a new biopic of manic jazz legend Miles Davis (The Independent UK)
* Popcast: Miles Davis and Chet Baker, Artists in Exile (New York Times)
* Vince Wilburn on Miles Ahead (WBGO)
* Don Cheadle on BBC Radio 4 (BBC Radio 4)
* How Miles Davis inspires actor-director Don Cheadle (BBC)
* Don Cheadle: 'Miles Davis was probably bipolar' (BBC)
* Don Cheadle gets inside Miles Davis’ head (San Francisco Examiner)
* Actor Don Cheadle is Miles Ahead as Music Icon Miles Davis (Voice of America News)
* Cincinnatian appears in Miles Davis movie (Cincinnati Herald)

Miles on Monday: Rounding up coverage of the opening weekend of Miles Ahead

This week's Miles Davis news is pretty much all about Don Cheadle's film Miles Ahead, the fictionalized look at Davis' life that opened to much anticipation this weekend in New York and Los Angeles.

The movie will begin its run in St. Louis on Friday, April 22 at the AMC Creve Coeur 12 and the Tivoli. In the meantime, Miles Ahead has inspired a volume of media coverage rarely seen for any sort of jazz-related event, and that's included some nice publicity for trumpeter Keyon Harrold (pictured), the St. Louis native who performs on the film's soundtrack and is featured in the very first article linked below.

While this post isn't guaranteed to contain links to absolutely all of the Miles Ahead coverage published over the past week, there should be plenty to keep all but the most fanatical of readers busy for a little while. Here's what we've found, grouped once again roughly by topic:

About the music
* Meet The Ferguson-Raised Trumpet Player Behind Don Cheadle In Miles Ahead (DigitalMusicNews.com)
* A Few Feet of Miles: A Beginner's Guide to Miles Davis (Billboard)
* A Guide to 1980s Miles Davis (Pitchfork.com)
* Albumism Presents: Four Ways to Listen to Miles Davis (Albumism.com)
* Glasper Reimagines Miles Davis Classics on New Album Due May 27 (DownBeat)
* Jazz Pianist Robert Glasper and the Foreign Exchange's Phonte Salute Miles Davis with "Violets" (Vice.com)

Reviews of the film
* Review: ‘Miles Ahead,’ an Impressionistic Take on Miles Davis (New York Times)
* Cheadle’s ‘Miles Ahead’ Hits Bum Notes but Still Swings (Village Voice)
* "Miles Ahead" Reviewed: Miles Misguided - A bizarre action-movie narrative derails Don Cheadle’s long-anticipated jazz flick (Jazz Times)
* Birth of the Uncool - Miles Ahead captures the spirit and genius of the trumpeter Miles Davis in part by setting aside his legendary glamor (The Atlantic)
* ‘Miles Ahead’ Review: Cheadle Turns Miles Davis’ Life into Freeform Jazz (The Wrap)
* Miles Ahead \\ Film Review (ThisIsJazzStandard.com)
* Review: Miles Ahead, the movie (Jazz Journal UK)
* Movie Review: ‘Miles Ahead’ Jazzes Up the Music Biopic (LATFusa.com)
* Richard Linklater's Raucous College Party, Don Cheadle as Miles Davis, and Two Indie Genre Knockouts (TribecaFilm.com)
* Two Films, Both Kind of Blue (Wall Street Journal)
* Sketches of Pain - Why can’t movies about jazz greats get what makes jazz great? (Slate.com)
* Movie review: ‘Miles Ahead’ features Don Cheadle dominating as famous jazzman (New York Daily News)
* When Is A Biopic Not A Biopic? When Don Cheadle Meets Miles Davis (NPR)
* Kind of Clichéd: How the Miles Davis Movie Could Have Been Better (The New Yorker)
* Review: Don Cheadle's 'Miles Ahead' Pays Tribute to Miles Davis While Playing Loose with the Facts (Forbes)
* 'Miles Ahead,' Don Cheadle's valentine to jazz and Miles Davis, hits a few strange notes (Los Angeles Times)
* Review: MILES AHEAD, Cool Attitude Prevails In Don Cheadle's Unconventional Miles Davis Biopic (Twitch.com)
* Experimental biopic about Miles Davis (Shanghai Daily)
* Film Review: Miles Ahead - Don Cheadle's passion project is full of love and complication (ConsequenceOfSound.com)
* Miles Mangled: Don Cheadle Desecrates the Memory of Legendary Jazz Trumpeter (Observer.com)

Interviews and features
* Don Cheadle Narrates A Scene From 'Miles Ahead' (New York Times)
* Don Cheadle on playing the drug-addled Miles Davis in “Miles Ahead,” and the toxic costs of Hollywood racism (Salon.com)
* Meet the Miles Davis heirs who keep his work alive and made 'Miles Ahead' (Southern California Public Radio)
* Don Cheadle wanted film ‘Miles Ahead’ to be ‘innovative,’ ‘kind of gangster’ (Today)
* Exclusive Video Interview: Ewan McGregor Talks Miles Ahead (WeGotThisCovered.com)
* Don Cheadle's "Miles Ahead" Defies Convention (HipHopDX.com)
* ‘Miles Ahead’ Premiere: Don Cheadle, Regina King, Dr. Dre, Lenny Kravitz, Michael Ealy, & More (IceCreamConvos.com)
* Stars Attend Miles Davis Biopic Premiere (BlackAmericaWeb.com)
* ‘Miles Ahead’ Star Don Cheadle On His Anti-Biopic, the Cautionary Tale of ‘Walk Hard’ and the Future of ‘Captain Planet’ (Yahoo)
* Don Cheadle Learned Miles Davis’ Solos for “Miles Ahead” (SiriusXM/YouTube.com)
* A Conversation with Don Cheadle (SXSW Film 2016/YouTube.com)
* Don Cheadle's Miles Davis: The Latest 'Badass' Black Man On Screen (NPR)
* ‘It has to be hot. It has to be creative’: Don Cheadle on his 10-year quest to play Miles Davis (The Guardian UK)
* Don Cheadle channels Miles Davis to make directorial debut (Seattle Times)
* Don Cheadle Learned Trumpet for Miles Davis Movie (ABC)
* Don Cheadle never 'shut it down' like Miles Davis (USA Today)
* 'Miles Ahead' plumbs mute years of jazz icon Miles Davis (Reuters)
* Jazz Legend Miles Davis Had An Amazing Supercar Collection (Maxim)
* Five Exotic Sports Cars Owned by Miles Davis (Robb Report)
* Miles Davis, Chet Baker Biopics Shrug Off ‘Greatest Hits’ Formula (Variety)
* Miles Davis’ son recalls the Fonzie doll his dad gave him (New York Post)
* Style Lessons From Miles Davis and Cicely Tyson, the King and Queen of Cool (Vogue)
* Don Cheadle Brews Miles Davis Pic; Richard Linklater Loves The ’80s – Specialty Preview (Deadline.com)
* Don Cheadle Q&A: How He Convinced Miles Davis' Family to Make a Non-Traditional Biopic (IndieWire.com)
* Don Cheadle plays his lifelong hero, Miles Davis (San Francisco Chronicle)
* In portraying jazzman Miles Davis, Don Cheadle took his cues from his subject (Washington Post)
* Don Cheadle Brings Miles Davis Back to Life (WNYC)
* Roberto Schaefer Mixes Formats for Miles Davis “Fever Dream” (Kodak.com)
* Don Cheadle: 'I Don't Think the Miles Davis Story Is a Black Story' (BET)
* Don Cheadle Says He Was a ‘Nervous Wreck’ Making Miles Davis Biopic (Essence)
* Emayatzy Corinealdi on Don Cheadle’s Miles Davis Biopic, ‘Roots’ Remake (Women's Wear Daily)
* What Does Miles Davis' Family Think Of 'Miles Ahead'? The Don Cheadle Film Has Sparked A Big Reaction (Bustle.com)
* Don Cheadle Channels Miles Davis (AARP.org)
* Why should we care about Miles Davis? Thoughts about the man, new biopic, live tribute (NoDepression.com)
* 'Follow Your Instinct': Don Cheadle captures the restless rhythms of Miles Davis (FilmJournal.com)

Miles on Monday: Prestige 10" LPs reissued, the latest Miles Ahead news, and more

This week in Miles Davis news:

* Concord Records' Prestige imprint will release a box set reissuing 11 of Davis' albums released originally from 1951 to 1954 in the 10" LP format on Prestige Records.

* Jazz Times magazine has posted to YouTube a video of guitarist Mike Stern talking about two of his musical mentors, Miles Davis and guitarist Jim Hall.

* Keyboardist Adam Holzman, who played with Davis from 1985 to 1989, discussed his time with the trumpeter as one of many topics in a new interview published on Innerviews.com.

* Photographer Glen Craig, whose exhibit "A Day in the Life of Miles Davis" has been shown at galleries in Los Angeles and Miami and be seen this spring in Washington DC and NYC, was the subject of an interview published on the Leica camera website.

* The dates and locations that Don Cheadle's film Miles Ahead will play here in St. Louis have been revealed: The film movie opens Friday, April 22 at the AMC Creve Coeur 12 and the Tivoli. A complete list of the film's opening dates and theaters by city can be found on the Sony Classics Miles Ahead website.

* With the release of Miles Ahead in NYC and Los Angeles set for this coming weekend, over the past week there's been a flurry of press attention for the film, its director and stars, and the premiere screening in Cincinnati, where the movie was made. Here, grouped roughly by topic, are some of the highlights of the most recent coverage:

Review: Three Not-Really-Biopics Reimagine the Lives of Chet Baker, Miles Davis and Hank Williams (Time)
Movie review: Don Cheadle Is Electrifying in Miles Ahead (Vulture.com)

Don Cheadle Attends Miles Ahead Premiere In Cincinnati (Inquisitr.com)
Don Cheadle expresses gratitude to Cincinnati at 'Miles Ahead' premiere (WCPO)
Don Cheadle: ‘Cincinnati opened its arms to us’ (WLWT)
'Miles Ahead' movie premiere picture gallery (Cincinnati.com)
Friends and Family Remember Legendary Jazz Musician Miles Davis at the Debut of Don Cheadle's Miles Ahead (People)

6 Miles Davis Albums That Changed Music (NPR)
Don Cheadle and Jazz Trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire Talk Bringing Miles Davis' Sound and Story to the Big Screen (Billboard)

What Does Genius Look Like? Don Cheadle On Miles Davis And Race In Hollywood (NPR)
Cheadle Discusses Bold Cinematic Depiction of Miles (DownBeat)
Don Cheadle On Becoming Miles Davis (New York Times)
How Don Cheadle Became Miles Davis (The Daily Beast)
First-time director Don Cheadle jazzed to have completed biopic 'Miles Ahead' (New York Daily News)
Ewan McGregor on Miles Davis biopic, taking direction from a costar (The Today Show)

In addition to the feature stories and interviews linked above, Cheadle (pictured, as Davis in one of the film's flashback sequences) sat down last Thursday for an extended interview that was webcast live on AOL.com, which you can see in the embedded video window below:



Last but not least, Sony Classics last week released another trailer for the film, featuring Cheadle as Davis talking about classical music, improvisation & "playing like you used to":

Miles on Monday: Don Cheadle takes Miles Ahead to SXSW, and more

This week in Miles Davis news:

* With the US opening of Miles Ahead now less than two weeks away, actor/director Don Cheadle went to the SXSW festival in Austin, TX to attend a screening of the film and participate in a panel discussion that included pianist Robert Glasper and trumpeter and St. Louis native Keyon Harrold (pictured, with Cheadle), who both worked on the film's soundtrack.

Press coverage of that appearance included feature stories in The Guardian (UK) and Page Six.

* As part of the advance promotional effort, the film's distributor Sony Classics also released another trailer for Miles Ahead, featuring a scene in which Davis meets his future wife Frances. You can see that trailer via the video embed at the bottom of this post.

* In other Miles Ahead news, an interview with Cheadle headlined "Why I Had to Make My Miles Davis Biopic" was published by Rolling Stone; the film was reviewed, briefly but favorably, by RadioFacts.com; and it was announced that Cheadle will attend a red carpet premiere of the movie and after party on March 26 in Cincinnati, where Miles Ahead was filmed.

* Meanwhile, the film's impending release prompted a writer at ClassicalLite.com to muse about the late-1960s beginnings of Davis' electric period, and the blog Aquarium Drunkard to take another look at a video of Davis' 1973 performance in Vienna, featuring a maelstrom of electric guitar from Pete Cosey and Reggie Lucas.

Miles on Monday: Release dates set for Miles Ahead soundtrack & tribute album, and more

This week in Miles Davis news:

* Columbia/Legacy Recordings last week announced the upcoming release of two Miles Davis-related projects: a soundtrack album for the feature film Miles Ahead, and Everything’s Beautiful, a tribute album described as "reimagined interpretations" of Davis' music.

The Miles Ahead soundtrack, out on Friday, April 1 to coincide with the film's release in the US, will feature recordings from Davis’ Prestige and Columbia Records catalogs plus new original music written and performed by pianist Robert Glasper, with guest appearances by Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, trumpeter and St. Louis native Keyon Harrold, and more.

Everything’s Beautiful is set for release on Friday, May 27, one day after what would have been Davis' 90th birthday. It also was produced by Glasper and incorporates some of Davis' original recordings into "new collaborative soundscapes," along with performances from guest artists including Stevie Wonder, Erykah Badu, John Scofield, Ledisi, Hiatus Kaiyote, and others.

Columbia Legacy already has released "Ghetto Walkin'", a single from Everything's Beautiful featuring the singer Bilal, which you can hear by clicking on the image in this post. They've also put out a short promotional video for the album, which you can see in the embedded video window at the bottom of this post.

* Meanwhile, Glasper, Harrold, Miles Ahead director and star Don Cheadle, and others are set to take part in a panel discussion on the making of "Miles Ahead" during this week's SXSW Music conference in Austin, TX. The Austin Chronicle also reviewed the film in advance of the SXSW screening.

* Continuing his series of media appearances for the film, Cheadle was interviewed on the Jazziz magazine podcast.

* Davis' sartorial style, and his occasional attempts to impart tips to his sidemen on how to dress, were the subject of a New York Times feature, "The Ensembles of Miles Davis Epitomized Cool".

* Also worth a look, the UK website Uncut has republished their 2011 feature "Miles Davis – the making of Kind Of Blue, Bitches Brew and more", featuring comments from former Davis collaborators Jimmy Cobb, Jack DeJohnette, Michael Henderson, Bill Evans, Marcus Miller, and Easy Mo Bee.

Miles on Monday: Miles Ahead movie featured on DownBeat cover, and more

This week in Miles Davis news: 

* The upcoming feature film Miles Ahead and its director and star Don Cheadle are featured on the cover of the April issue of DownBeat magazine (pictured).

The accompanying article inside includes extensive quotes from interviews with Cheadle and Davis' ex-wife Francis Davis, as well as a look at the film's soundtrack, highlighting the contributions and including a photo of trumpeter and St. Louis native Keyon Harrold.

Though the article isn't available online (due to DB's custom of keeping most of their content print-only), the dead-tree edition is available for purchase at your favorite bookstore, newsstand, or other source for magazines.

* In other Miles Ahead news, the movie is included on The Observer's list of the "Magnificent Seven: Films to See This Spring", and was reviewed by the Australian web site Boomtown Rap in advance of a screening next week at the Perth Film Festival.

* This week in Miles Davis history, it was 46 years ago today that Davis performed at the Fillmore East in NYC, a recording of which circulated for years as a bootleg before being officially released by Sony Music in 2001 as Live at the Fillmore East March 7, 1970: It's About that Time.

The gig, featuring a number of compositions from the yet-to-be-released album Bitches Brew, turned out to be the final performance in Davis' band for saxophonist Wayne Shorter. You can hear an audio stream of music from the album via the embedded window below.

Miles on Monday: Miles Davis vs. Kanye West, Miles Ahead poster released, and more

This week in Miles Davis news:

* The poster for Don Cheadle's film Miles Ahead was released last week, promoting the film's opening in select US theaters on April 1 and in the UK on April 22. (You can see a larger version of the poster by clicking on the image at left.)

* Also from the Miles Ahead file: a preview of the film in advance of a screening at the 2016 Glasgow Film Festival, a review from The Movie Blog; and new still photos from the film via IndieWire.com.

* In an interview with the BBC, guitarist Mike Stern, who played with Davis in the 1980s, reminisced briefly about his time working with the trumpeter.

* The box set Miles Davis – At Newport 1955-1975: The Bootleg Series Vol. 4 was described as "essential listening" by the website Audiophile News and Music Review.

* And from the "Miles Davis as cultural icon" file, the podcast Yo, Is This Racist? last week found hosts Langston Kerman and Andrew attempting to settle an argument with a listener in an episode titled "Miles Davis vs Kanye West".

Edited after posting to add the IndieWire link.