WKCR is thrilled to announce we will be broadcasting a 72-hour (three-day!) celebration for the Miles Davis centennial. This special broadcast will run from Tuesday, May 26th, to Thursday, May 28th, with a special introductory Sunday Profile hosted by Sid Gribetz on May 24th from 2 pm to 7 pm.
Miles Dewey Davis III was born in Alton, Illinois, on May 26, 1926. After originally taking violin lessons, he received a trumpet on his 13th birthday from his uncle. It was in East St. Louis where Davis would land his first public gig, playing with the Eddie Randall band in 1941. Still in St. Louis, Davis would be deeply influenced by the sounds he was exposed to through the Billy Eckstein Big Band, of which he eventually became the music director. In 1944, Davis joined the ranks of the Billy Eckstine big band, where he was exposed to the budding world of bebop. Davis recalled that “After I had heard and played with Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie… Art Blakey, Sarah Vaughan, and Mr. B himself, I knew I had to be in New York, where the action was.”
Davis moved to New York on a scholarship to Juilliard that year. He split his time in the city between school, apartment, and club jam sessions, spending time in Harlem to develop the emerging vision of Bebop. Through regular jam sessions in Gil Evans' apartment, Davis met a number of musical peers, such as Gerry Mulligan, Lee Konitz, and John Lewis, with whom he would later collaborate on his first large-scale project, “The Birth of Cool,” in 1949. These years led to what Davis himself called “a four-year horror show” as he fell into a depression and turned to heroin.
At the 1955 Newport Jazz Festival, Davis reclaimed his spot in the scene. He gained the attention of the head of album production at Columbia Records, where he signed a long-term contract. “Round Midnight” was his first record with John Coltrane and Paul Chambers. Before expanding into the vast world of electronic sound, Miles produced some of the most well-known and respected albums, such as Milestones (1958), Kind of Blue (1959), Sketches of Spain (1960), and Miles Smiles (1967).
Through a number of landmark albums in the world of jazz fusion, he mixed rock, funk, African rhythm, and the beginnings of electronic music to redefine a sound that would garner even more commercial recognition. The 1970 release of Bitches Brew would lay the foundation for pop experimentation in his final years, leading him to work with artists such as Toto, Prince, and Randy Hall.
Until his death in 1991, Davis remained one of the most innovative figures in the American Jazz tradition through pushing and pioneering the many sounds and genres of his time. WKCR is proud and honored to present this special broadcast with three days of music, archival recordings, and interviews.
We invite you all to share in the celebration of Davis’ enduring and transformative legacy. Listeners can tune in to 89.9 FM or stream the birthday celebration live on our website at wkcr.org. Follow WKCR on Instagram (@wkcr) and Twitter (@WKCRFM) for updates about this special broadcast and future events. Online listening is available 24/7 at wkcr.org via our web stream.
