Miles Davis

Miles married many times, but all his marriages ended in divorce. His first wife was Irene Birth, with whom he had three children. He later got married to dancer Frances Taylor and then to singer Betty Mabry.

Actor Cicely Tyson was his last wife, whom he married in 1981. It was Cicely who helped Davis in conquering his heroin addiction. The couple divorced in 1989.

Davis Miles had a lot of health issues, which resulted in hip and throat surgeries. He breathed his last in September 1991 after a respiratory failure and stroke.

Miles Davis was born on May 26, 1926, in Illinois. His parents were of African–American origin. His father, Miles Dewey Davis Jr., was a dentist, and his mother, Cleota Mae, was a music teacher. He had an elder sister, Dorothy, and a younger brother, Vernon.

Miles’ family was affluent, and Davis and his siblings had a happy childhood. As a youngster, Davis developed a keen interest in music. His first trumpet was gifted to him by his father’s friend. Miles took his first lessons in music from Elwood Buchanan, who advised him to play without “vibrato.” Miles joined the school band, which was directed by Buchanan. Later, he joined the orchestra, ‘Blue Devils,’ and eventually became its director.

As suggested by his father, Miles enrolled at ‘Juilliard School’ in New York to acquire better knowledge in music theory. However, he soon lost interest in theoretical studies and started following his idol, Charlie Parker, who was the most prominent name in bebop.

Miles Davis started his career as a jazz trumpeter and played with local bands in St. Louis. Davis got acquainted with Charlie Parker in New York. Parker was a renowned name in bebop music at that time. In 1945, there was a vacant spot in Parker’s band, and Miles got the position. He performed with them for some years before parting ways in 1948.

In 1948, Davis and eight other musicians formed the ‘Miles Davis Nonet.’ The group included pianist Gil Evans and saxophonist Gerry Mulligan. Their idea was to recreate music similar to human voice by carefully arranging the notes. The compositions by the band were mostly unnoticed until 1957, when the album ‘Birth of the Cool’ was released. It was a compilation of major works of the group and led to the emergence of the cool jazz movement.

In the early 1950s, Davis turned into a heroin addict. His career suffered a major setback as reports of his addiction and wild temper spread across the industry. In 1954, Davis conquered his addiction and re-entered the music scene with greater determination.

Davis’ album ‘Miles Davis Quartet’ was released in the year 1954. Several other compositions such as ‘Blue Haze’ and ‘Walkin’’ followed, and this helped Davis in making a strong comeback. He gave up cool jazz and bebop and moved on to what came to be known as hard bop.

Davis developed his unique style in music in many ways. He got a “Harmon mute” affixed to his trumpet and placed it close to the microphone so that it sounded unique. This became his signature style.

Miles Davis won eight ‘Grammy Awards.’ Most of these were for his solo jazz performances and some were for the instrumental performances by his band. He also won a ‘Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award’ in 1990.

He was honored with the ‘Hollywood Walk of Fame Star’ in 1998. His name was also included in the ‘Rock and Roll Hall of Fame,’ which aimed at recognizing artists who contributed to the development of rock and roll music.