The Miles Davis Movie: Filming the ‘Birth of the Cool’

I read an interesting article in the Wall Street Journal (Hidden in Plain Hearing) about the beginnings of cool jazz and what is often referred to as the ‘Birth of the Cool.’

And when you mention the phrase ‘Birth of the Cool’ you quickly think of Miles Davis, the classic nonet and the legendary recording Birth of the Cool.

The article recalls the days of Gil Evans, Gerry Mulligan, the influential bandleader Claude Thornhill, and a new coolness taking over the jazz scene.

Trumpeter Miles Davis was the nominal leader of this ensemble, but it was the outfit’s arrangers — primarily Gil Evans and Gerry Mulligan — who were the real stars. The devices they drew on had been available for years, hidden in plain hearing within the big band of Claude Thornhill.

There’s probably a movie in itself about the story how the “Birth of the Cool” album was created, the important figures in jazz history associated with the project and the burgeoning ‘cool jazz’ scene.

So I got to wondering if there would be something in the Miles Davis biopic representing this moment(s) in both jazz and Miles Davis’ history. Though we now know the biopic will (most likely) veer away from a traditional narrative, it doesn’t mean such a landmark recording and important chapter should be overlooked.

You’d have to think a scene with the nonet playing “Boplicity” or “Deception” would capture the moment nicely – perhaps practicing in Gil Evans’ apartment, or even during a studio session.

Somehow, somewhere Gil Evans is going to have to make an appearance, so here’s a great opportunity.

I think there is going to be a fine line at how much of the film’s story can be directed squarely at jazz aficionados who would love to see all the inner-workings of the making of Davis’ music and to those moviegoers who are simply looking to grab onto a ‘great’ story that follows the usual ebb and flow of a legendary life.

It can’t be too ‘inside baseball,’ to borrow a phrase. They can deconstruct the biopic all they want, but it still has to be entertaining.

The music and the artists connected with the recording of Birth of the Cool are significant to the story of Miles Davis and the history of jazz… and certainly deserve mention in the biopic.

I believe.

The Miles Davis Movie: Filming the ‘Playboy’ interview

A bit of a reach on the day before Christmas you say? Possibly. But Alex Haley’s ‘candid conversation with the jazz world’s premier iconoclast‘ in 1962 was the first Playboy Interview (Volume 9, Number 9) and the conversation is both candid and enlightening – which you’d expect from Miles Davis anyway.

There are also some great quotes:

“I don’t pay no attention to what critics say about me, the good or the bad. The toughest critic I got is myself…and I’m too vain to play anything I think is bad.”

“I don’t dig people in clubs who don’t pay the musicians respect. You ever see anybody bugging the classical musicians when they are on the job and trying to work?”

And just to prove how ‘cool’ Playboy was back in the day, some of the folks interviewed in the months after the Miles conversation included Peter Sellers, Jackie Gleason, Frank Sinatra and Malcolm X.

Could the ‘interview’ be a throwaway moment in the film, maybe a scene with him and Alex Haley talking? Did the interview cause any controversy in the media, with fans, etc? Haley did go to the gym with Miles, so there’s a great opportunity to show Miles’ passion for boxing.

If anything the Playboy article might be used as jumping off point to reflect Miles’ feelings on race and other important, social issues. Miles didn’t need a magazine as a conduit to express his feelings, but in the context of a film, maybe it’s a good device to connect different personal issues and opinions circulating at that point in his life.

Here’s an excerpt from Miles, the Autobiography:

It’s 1962-63, we’re in that musical chapter of Miles’ life that makes up Steamin’, Quiet Nights and Seven Steps to Heaven, so clearly transition was stirring, which could be a good source of drama… and what’s a great biopic without drama.

Okay, maybe now I’m reaching… Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah everybody.

The Miles Davis Movie: Filming ‘At the Blackhawk’

In April of 1961 the Miles Davis Quintet played two nights at the Blackhawk, a legendary jazz club in San Francisco. The Friday and Saturday night shows were captured on two separate recordings (now available as a complete set w/ an unreleased fourth set).

I love this collection. The quintet (together only briefly) features Paul Chambers, Wynton Kelly, Jimmy Cobb, and Hank Mobley; like a master class in hard bop.

As for the Miles Davis movie, here again is a moment that can be a (quick) scene or two depending if the story gets to California. Or, if it’s just part of a montage of Miles on tour.

The album(s), and their iconic cover, are well-known in jazz circles, so a shot of the marquee (re-created because the place doesn’t even exist anymore) might ‘wow’ some jazz/Miles Davis fans, but in the context of the movie it probably registers low on scale of importance.

As Doug Collette touched on in a review of the 1961 recordings, “…the world of jazz was a culture far-removed from the mainstream…”

So being that it was ‘61 and cultural change was stirring, maybe the biopic uses the dates at the Blackhawk as a signpost to underscore not only society going through a transformation, but also jazz music as a whole and, of course, Miles Davis.

But the montage – there’s a good topic. Just like in “Ray” when they show Ray Charles traversing the world in a lively tour montage cut to the song “Bye Bye Love,” I can see a ‘cool’ montage, or two, being useful in the Miles Davis biopic. More to come on that….

Miles Davis — The Second Great Quintet and Fusion Groups

* Filming the ‘Second Great Quintet’

** Filming ‘Bitches Brew’

(clip is from A Masterpiece by Midnight, the 10th episode of Ken Burns’ Jazz series.)

The Miles Davis Movie: Filming ‘Kind of Blue’

It’s not just one of the greatest jazz albums of all time, but one of the best albums… period!

It’s the one album most non-jazz fans know about, or even own.

I like to think there’s a part in the minds of music fans who don’t care much for jazz music who feel they should at least have this album in their collection – just because.

Kind of Blue

The tile alone elicits a variety of feelings and thoughts.

Recorded at Columbia’s 30th Street Studio in New York City on March 2 and April 22 of 1959, the seminal recording hit the streets on August 17, 1959.

Another landmark moment for Miles Davis, jazz and music in general.

The players:

Miles Davis – trumpet
Julian “Cannonball” Adderley – alto saxophone
John Coltrane – tenor saxophone
Wynton Kelly – piano
Bill Evans – piano
Paul Chambers – bass
Jimmy Cobb – drums

Stephen Thomas Erlewine’s review for AllMusic.com says it best:

Kind of Blue isn’t merely an artistic highlight for Miles Davis, it’s an album that towers above its peers, a record generally considered as the definitive jazz album, a universally acknowledged standard of excellence.

There are books and essays, radio programs and websites dedicated specifically to “Kind of Blue.”

Philip B. Pape (for allaboutjazz.com) writes:

This album throws away conventional song and chord structure that had been definitive to most jazz artists, welcoming a new structure based on modes. More than a milestone in jazz, Kind of Blue is a defining moment of twentieth century music.

Ashley Kahn’s “Kind of Blue: The Making of the Miles Davis Masterpiece” is a comprehensive account on the making of the album. There’s also a production from NPR about how the album was produced and its endless popularity.

So…let’s discuss the filming of the making of “Kind of Blue.”

Yep, it’ll be in the Miles Davis movie. If we can get scenes that incorporate the entire septet I’ll be quite happy. I think you could make the case that Cheadle, as director, can spend a little extra time with the “Kind of Blue” sessions, as well as goings on outside the studio.

You might also say that the music from “Kind of Blue” is the most recognizable to audience members not entirely immersed in jazz/Miles Davis history, but definitely are aware of those famous, ‘modal’ harmonies associated with tracks like “So What” and “Blue in Green.”

As I’ve mentioned before in other ‘filming’ posts, it’s all about the director’s vision, and to another degree, the cinematographer. And the editor as well…

The aforementioned, legendary pianist Bill Evans also wrote the liner notes for “Kind of Blue,” and in commenting on the challenge of group improvisation notes that:

“Miles conceived these settings only hours before the recording dates and arrived with sketches which indicated to the group what was to be played. Therefore, you will hear something close to pure spontaneity in these performances.”

So right there you can see the movie scene unfolding, with the musicians in the studio, and Davis providing only the basic ideas of what he wants before the band begins recording.

In a film that must cover a lot of important ground in 2-plus hours only so much time can be spent in the studio watching the construction of “Kind of Blue.”

But the “Kind of Blue” chapter is positively an essential one for the film to explore. It also offers the opportunity to hear some of Davis’ more famous songs worked into the movie, sure to elicit happiness from any audience.

The Miles Davis Movie: Filming Charlie Parker and Miles Davis at the Three Deuces

“But it was at the Three Deuces, playing every night there with Bird and Max, that really helped me find my own voice.”

– Miles Davis (excerpt from Miles: The Autobiography)

In 1944 Miles Davis moved to New York to study in the Julliard School of Music. His tenure would only last a few months. Instead he sought a musical education in the clubs of 52nd Street with musicians like Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie. Davis soon joined Parker’s group at the Three Deuces club in 1945 and in the recording studio.

It was soon after that Davis would make his first recordings as a band leader, which featured Parker, pianist John Lewis, and drummer Max Roach.

Photographer William P. Gottlieb captured some memorable images from those days and the photograph above is recognizable to jazz fans: Charlie Parker, Tommy Potter, Miles Davis, and Max Roach at the Three Deuces, New York, N.Y., August 1947.

I’ve brought up the issue of who should play Charlie Parker, but I can only assume this point in Davis’ life (and career) would rate high on the scale of important scenes for the Miles Davis film.

Not only can the audience get introduced to a number of famous jazz musicians, but the Three Deuces setting provides an ideal opportunity for a musical sequence.

The Miles Davis Movie: Filming Miles Davis ‘At Newport 1958′

It’s debatable if this performance in 1958 at the Newport Jazz Festival is necessary for the Miles Davis biopic. The new sextet, with recent additions Jimmy Cobb and Bill Evans, were part of a festival tribute to Duke Ellington, but perhaps more importantly this was the collaboration that would record “Kind of Blue” six months later.

The bigger question is how much ‘performing’ will audiences see in the film? I recall a whole bunch of performance scenes from “Ray,” a mix of the early years in smoky clubs, studio work and on big tours played in front of thousands.

Is that the appropriate template? Do we get Miles Davis as a youngster playing in East St. Louis and then the clubs of NYC, followed by various studio work (notably the “Kind of Blue” sessions) and then on stage at different points in his career?

I’d say as much of Don Cheadle playing as Miles Davis the better. Plus, the music itself can be front and center. Here is where the artistry of filmmaking is requested — a blend of sound and vision that equals the thrilling moment(s) people cling to when the lights go up, the memory happily recalled because it’s so poignant or just plain entertaining.

I can imagine the Miles Davis biopic having plenty of those moments.

The Miles Davis Movie: Filming the ‘Steve Allen Show’ appearance

I was still a ways off from making my appearance on the planet, but I can only imagine how exciting it must have been in ‘64 to watch Miles Davis and Co. perform on “The Steve Allen Show.” I could be lost in a haze of nostalgia for a bygone era, (I’ve been watching a lot of “Mad Men” lately so that might have something to with it as well), but I’ve watched this clip (below) ten times, and I just think it’s, for lack of a more resounding adjective, cool.

Burt Lancaster is there too! Even more cool.

I’m not sure if this TV appearance is a significant moment on the list of significant moments for Miles Davis, but if someone does know whether or not this performance of “All Blues” is regarded as a major, or even minor event – besides the fact that it’s just very entertaining and thrilling for fans – please drop me a line.

Was it uncommon in ‘64 to feature a jazz act on a variety/talk such as Steve Allen’s? Or is having Miles Davis considered a coup for any show during that time period? I did some cursory research about the show (this particular incarnation of his popular talk show aired between ‘62-’64) and it looks like a variety of musical guests were featured – The Beach Boys, Cab Calloway, Dizzy Gillespie, Frank Zappa and Nina Simone to name a few.

So, obviously jazz musicians were welcomed to appear on TV talk/variety shows. Unlike today.

Just reading a little about Allen on Wikipedia it’s clear he was a big jazz aficionado – “the show featured plenty of jazz played by Allen and members of the show’s band, the Donn Trenner Orchestra.”

Allen also produced a second half-hour show, titled Jazz Scene, which featured West Coast jazz musicians.

Regarding the Miles Davis biopic, I guess if you were to write up a list of 50 events/moments that should be included in the story of Miles Davis, perhaps the “Steve Allen Show” appearance doesn’t rate. Then again, I’m not sure without some hard evidence that it wasn’t a big deal.

Still, maybe a snippet – with Allen and Burt Lancaster(!) introducing Davis – might speak to the era, especially if the film is combining moments from the early sixties to reflect where Miles Davis stood musically and personally. Maybe there’s a scene and in the background we see Davis performing on the “Steve Allen Show.”

I don’t know. I just like watching the clip. My thanks to the person who posted it.

The Miles Davis Movie: Filming the death of Miles Davis

On Sunday we marked the 17th anniversary of Miles Davis’ passing — ‘Miles Davis, Trumpeter, Dies; Jazz Genius, 65, Defined Cool’ (a well-written nytimes obit).

It got me wondering if a movie about Miles Davis would explore the days in September of ‘91 leading up to his passing at St. John’s Hospital and Health Center in Santa Monica, Calif.

Davis had been at the hospital for several weeks according to reports, and I really have no knowledge of who was with him (I assume family) and what went on, other than Davis trying to survive.

But I wonder if the film being developed by Don Cheadle will even work its was up to (and beyond?) his death. My go-to biopic example, “Ray,” stopped around the time Ray Charles kicked his drug addiction and went on with his legendary career. Cue the touching montage and notes about Charles until we are shown the title card with the date of his death.

It’s a nice style to wrap up a film because a montage can zoom over time and it leaves the director not having to worry about cramming every significant moment into a movie.

This method could, I gather, work for a Miles Davis movie. I have already wondered if Davis electric period will even be explored, much less his work during the ’80s.

I think the film would suffer if they didn’t get into the period of the late ’60s and early ’70s and the jazz-funk fusion he essentially built.

Even “Walk the Line” wrapped it up after Johnny Cash kicked drugs. And maybe that’s fine. We probably didn’t have to spend an extra thirty minutes watching Cash in the ’80s and so on. I know “Lady Sings the Blues” worked its way up until almost the end of Billie Holiday’s life; it’s flawed, but I like the movie, and I like the montage of news reports that plays at the end opposite Holiday (portrayed by Diana Ross) performing at Carnegie Hall. Of course the last clip is her obituary.

It’s important to frame a story properly when dealing with a real person (same holds true for fiction, but more leeway because, well, you’re making it up!). In most cases going from young to old can work. But in the case of Miles Davis we don’t have 4 hours to devote to film, so one must put a blueprint together of essential plot points and from where we’ll enter and exit the story.

If I had to bet right now I would say his death (including the ’80s altogether) will not be explored except via montage. I could be wrong, but I just have that feeling.

The question is: at what point in the film, and that is to say in the life of Miles Davis, do they stop the narrative and wrap the rest of his life up in a cool montage?

He had already kicked drugs at a much younger age so that’s out. How about after the Second Great Quintet and before the jazz-rock fusion period? Perhaps 1981 when Davis returned after a six-year retirement. Or better yet right before his six-year retirement.

Maybe they cut the story after 1959 and the recording of ‘Kind of Blue.’

It’s a tough one. And then again perhaps they make big jumps in the narrative in order to cover the bulk of his life. I haven’t even begun to wonder about how they delve into his youth, in east St.Louis, much less his passing in ‘91.

Miles Davis would be 82 if he were with us today. It’d be fun to hear what he thinks about all this.

The Miles Davis Movie: Filming ‘Bitches Brew’

‘Electric’ Miles is not my favorite chapter in the legend’s musical history, but I’m no less impressed and entertained by the supremely talented musicians associated with some pretty revolutionary recordings – namely Bitches Brew.

I’m torn on how much, if any, movie time in the Miles Davis film is going to be devoted to the years covering the late-’60s to the mid ’70s. Of course we’d get to see Don Cheadle dressed in some wild costumes, but it remains how this chaotic and inventive funk-rock-jazz period for Miles will be represented in the movie.

They could choose to focus primarily on Bitches Brew, a masterpiece in some circles and notable for spinning modern jazz on its head.

It certainly was a time of great change for Miles and jazz music, to say nothing of the culture in general, so clearly we have some drama to mine here for the film.

How much of the actual music they’d feature I don’t know, but to hear something like “Miles Runs the Voodoo Down” might be pretty damn cool.

This is a revolutionary recording no matter how you slice it; it all but started the genre known as jazz-rock fusion.

And there were some incredible musicians associated with the album: Joe Zawinul, John McLaughlin, Chick Corea, Jack DeJohnette, Dave Holland, etc.

It’s a fascinating chapter for Miles, and if the film intends to follow Davis’ life right up to the end then obviously they cannot skip over the electric period.

I have already written about Betty Mabry’s inclusion in the film, and there’s a clear link between her influences and Bitches Brew.

There is plenty of opinion about Bitches Brew, the recording and the moment in jazz (music) history it represents. I’d think the Miles Davis movie would be wise to find room for it in the narrative.

When listening to the music of Bitches Brew and the Bitches Brew sessions, space and time tremble, quiver, and become elastic. One moment, you’re traveling rapidly, furiously backward toward the Big Bang—the next, you’ve stopped and hang suspended, a million light years from nowhere, curling dangerously across some cosmic bump.

Then, all at once, you’re surging forth, speed increasing, any ability to gauge time lost in the burn, spinning and tumbling upward, downward, outward. (David Beckman, AAJ)