Don’t Call Me Legend (from The Miles Davis Story)
Jazz legend Miles Davis redefined the sound of modern music. Clarke Peters explores his arrival in New York as he began to find his voice as a revolutionary artist and leader.
To mark the 100th anniversary of his birth, we’re excited to share Episode 1 from The Miles Davis Story, the latest series of the Legend podcast.
In the series, acclaimed actor and longtime fan Clarke Peters (The Wire, Treme, Da 5 Bloods) explores the life and legacy of a visionary artist whose relentless pursuit of the "new" often scorched his own life and the lives of those around him.
Across the series, Clarke charts Miles’s ever-evolving art form, starting with this first great transformation of a legend - when the young Miles chose to step into the unknown, seize control of his own creative destiny, and begin his journey as a leader.
Blending archival recordings and legendary tracks with fresh perspectives from a range of creators, the series reveals how Miles’ influence ripples far beyond the world of jazz. We discover how his "take no shit" attitude and aesthetic fearlessness impacted on the likes of Oscar-winning filmmakers, celebrated designers and music icons like Prince, Joni Mitchell, Sting and even bands like Radiohead, as well as generations of now also legendary jazz musicians that he championed early in their careers - John Coltrane, Bill Evans, Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter, Keith Jarrett and Marcus Miller, to name a few.
This is episode one of the series - if you like what you hear, you can listen to every episode only on BBC Sounds. Just search for ‘Legend’.
Miles Davis Interview: From Jazz Talking by Ben Sidran, 1986.
The Arsenio Hall Show, Paramount, originally broadcast in 1989.
60 Minutes, CBS News. Originally broadcast in 1989
Featured tracks (in order of appearance)
“So What” – Miles Davis
“Blue in Green” – Miles Davis (feat. John Coltrane & Bill Evans)
“Bitches Brew” – Miles Davis
"Miles Runs the Voodoo Down" - MIles Davis
“Agitation” – Miles Davis
“Flamenco Sketches” – Miles Davis & Bill Evans
“Ko Ko” – Charlie Parker
“Salt Peanuts” – Dizzy Gillespie
"Jivin with Jack the Bellboy" - Miles Davis
"Move" - Miles Davis
"Moon Dreams" - Miles Davis
"Boplicity" - Miles Davis
Presenter: Clarke Peters
Series Producer: Clem Hitchcock
Executive Producer: Rami Tzabar
Editor: Kirsten Lass
Production Manager: Emily Duffy
Music Consultant: Guy Barker
Additional Music: Guy Barker
Archivist: Simon Rooks
Script Consultant: Anne Harbin
Technical Production and Sound Design: Melvin Rickarby
Commissioning Editors for the BBC: Dan Clarke and Matthew Dodd
A Loftus Media production for BBC Radio 4
This is episode one of the series - if you like what you hear, you can listen to every episode only on BBC Sounds. Just search for ‘Legend’.
