Miles Davis’ masterly ‘Kind of Blue’ turns 50

updated 3:22 p.m. ET Oct. 6, 2009

NEW YORK - Jimmy Cobb could hardly imagine he would be making history when he arrived at Columbia Records' 30th Street Studio 50 years ago for the first of two recording sessions with Miles Davis.

"I was always enthusiastic about making records with Miles," said Cobb, who got to the studio before the other musicians to set up his drum kit. "I wasn't told anything about what the music was going to be."

Cobb ended up being part of the all-star sextet, plus one, that recorded "Kind of Blue," an album Quincy Jones (and many others) consider to be "one of the greatest records ever made."

Since its August 1959 release, "Kind of Blue" has ranked as one of the most influential and popular jazz albums ever with more than 4 million copies sold in the U.S. alone, according to the Recording Industry Association of America — and has recently been reissued in deluxe box sets to mark its 50th anniversary.

But in 1959, Cobb — the last surviving musician in a group that included saxophonists John Coltrane and Julian "Cannonball" Adderley, pianists Bill Evans and Wynton Kelly, and bassist Paul Chambers — regarded it "as just another Miles Davis record date."

"It was relaxed and the guys always had fun around each other," said Cobb. "It had to be the talent, the music, the studio ... I don't know how that magic happens but it happened those two days."

Golden era in jazz
Jones, who as a young trumpeter in the '50s was heavily influenced by his close friend Davis, considers "Kind of Blue" a culmination of a golden era in jazz that began in the late '40s with the bebop revolution launched by Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie. At the same time, the album foretold the new sounds that would emerge in the '60s.

"It's a record that sounds like it was made yesterday. It's as hip as anything on the planet," said Jones. "It's the accumulation of everything that ... modern jazz is about.

"I have given away hundreds of copies to kids all over the world and said, 'I want you to treat this like orange juice, listening to it every morning.'"

The original album (only 37 minutes) has had a huge impact that extended beyond jazz to other genres — from rock musicians such as the Allman Brothers and Carlos Santana to minimalist composers like Steve Reich and Philip Glass.

"Miles' genius was that he was able to keep the quality of the creativity very high and at the same time make a work of art that communicated broadly," said pianist Chick Corea.

Cobb says the musicians struck a groove on the first track they recorded, "Freddie Freeloader," a jaunty blues number that was the only tune to feature the more upbeat pianist Kelly.

Then with the introspective Evans at the piano, the sextet recorded "So What," which would become the album's opener, starting with an ethereal bass-and-piano prelude. Cobb hit a cymbal crash just as Davis began his solo, and waited for the trumpeter to call for another take.

"I thought I had made a mistake and had hit the cymbal too hard ... but it worked out because it resonated and got smaller and smaller."

Davis kept the tape rolling, and launched into one of the most memorable solos in jazz history — lyrical and restrained, using space to build drama, with his trumpet having a heartbreaking quality.

"I always loved Miles' trumpet because it sounded soulful. He could get into you with his beautiful, pure sound," said the 80-year-old Cobb, interviewed over lunch at a restaurant on Manhattan's Upper West Side.

"He was trying to create a mood and he did that. ... I heard a lot of people say that probably a lot of babies were made off of that music playing in the background."

Today, the five tunes on "Kind of Blue" — particularly "So What" and "All Blues" — have become deeply embedded in the musical landscape. But at the March 2 and April 22, 1959, recording sessions, nearly all the tunes were new to the band members, who didn't even have a chance to rehearse them. Davis gave the musicians written sketches of the scales and melodies, offering brief verbal instructions about the feeling he wanted on a particular tune.

MORE FROM MUSIC

Music Section Front

Obama hosts protest song concert   White Stripes: Air Force Reserve ad stole song Ringo Starr honored with Walk of Fame star Bonnaroo to feature Chris Rock, Jay-Z, others The Who pounds out nostalgia, spectacle Wyclef Jean, choir open BET concert for Haiti 25 most influential albums by African-Americans Leonard Cohen delays tour after back injury Pete Wentz says Fall Out Boy not totally done Townshend defends himself ahead of SB show Music Section Front   Add Music headlines to your news reader: