pete cosey

Pete Cosey died two days ago on May 30th. It was the work he did with the Miles Davis group between 1973 and 75 that he'll always be associated with. The band was at it's most electric and ferocious during this period.
Easily recognised on stage as one of the few lead players always playing seated.
"By 1975, Cosey had developed a remarkably advanced guitar approach — involving numerous alternate tunings, guitars restrung in unusual patterns and a post-Hendrix palette of distortion, wah-wah and guitar synth effects — that has influenced many adventurous guitarists"
Performed on the Miles albums 'Get Up with It', 'Dark Magus', 'Agharta' and 'Pangaea'.

Here's the group in Berlin 1973.
Al Foster on drums, Michael Henderson on bass, James Mtume on percussion, Dave Liebman on sax, Reggie Lucas and Pete Cosey on guitar and of course Miles. This band blended Jazz and Rock in a way that has never been repeated. Pete appears on camera towards the end of the video playing lead, until then his wah guitar is part of the intense power of the rhythm section.

miles davis

The 20th anniversary of Miles Davis' death. September 28th 1991.
The man was the very embodiment of 'cool' and one of the most influential musicians and composers of the 20th century. His music was to have an impact on jazz, fusion, rock, funk and soul.
His playing from the 1950's smokey blues of 'Kinda Blue' (voted jazz' greatest record) to a boxers jab like riffs of the electric bands were unmistakeable. No one else could have dreamt of electrifying a trumpet with a wah wah pedal!
Like Bob Dylan turning electric in the 1960's left a purist folk audience infuriated, Miles' 1969 release of Bitches Brew drew equal disclaim from his previous jazz classicist audience. The resulting bands that grew out of the Miles Davis groups sidemen were to be many and frequent. His planned recording with Jimi Hendrix can only be imagined due to Jimi's death in 1970.
Since Miles' parting, jazz and jazz fusion has stood in a corner without this extraordinary man leading the way.
Here is mid movement of one of Miles Davis' epic compositions Calypso Frelimo ,  recorded Sep 73, released on 'Get Up With It'