A portrait of the legendary trumpeter Miles Davis on his centenary. We hear how Miles not only changed music but also the lives of those he played with. We've pulled interviews from The Music Show's archives with former bandmates including pianists Herbie Hancock and Chick Corea, saxophonists Wayne Shorter and Gary Bartz, guitarist John McLaughlin, bassist Dave Holland as well as big fans of his music like Paul Grabowsky. We move from the Birth of the Cool to Kind of Blue, Nefertiti, Bitches Brew and, finally, to Aura.

As a bonus, we'll also hear what it was like working with Miles Davis the actor. In the last ten years of his life he aspired to appear on screen— he only starred in one full-length film before his death in 1991, and that was Rolf de Heer's Dingo.

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Archive interviews featured

Chick Corea (2007)Dave Holland (2007)Wayne Shorter (2016)John McLaughlin (2009)Gunther Schuller (1998)Paul Grabowsky (2019)Herbie Hancock (2007)Rolf de Heer (2020)Gary Bartz (2016)

Music played in this program

Title: JoshuaArtist: Miles DavisComposer: Victor FeldmanAlbum: Seven Steps To HeavenLabel: CBS BP233072

Title: Venus De MiloArtist: Miles DavisComposer: Gerry MulliganAlbum: Birth Of The CoolLabel: Capitol Records T-762

Title: DeceptionArtist: Miles DavisComposer: Miles DavisAlbum: Birth Of The CoolLabel: Capitol Records T-762

Title: So WhatArtist: Miles DavisComposer: Miles DavisAlbum: Kind Of BlueLabel: Coronet KLP893

Title: Blue In GreenArtist: Miles DavisComposer: Miles DavisAlbum: Kind Of BlueLabel: Coronet KLP893

Title: NefertitiArtist: Miles DavisComposer: Wayne ShorterAlbum: NefertitiLabel: CBS SBP 2335 15

Title: E.S.P.Artist: Miles DavisComposer: Miles Davis, Wayne ShorterAlbum: E.S.P.Label: CBS SBP 233267

Title: Pharaoh's DanceArtist: Miles DavisComposer: Joe ZawinulAlbum: Bitches BrewLabel: CBS S2BP-220056

Title: Concert on the RunwayArtist: Miles Davis and Michel LegrandComposer: Miles Davis and Michel LegrandAlbum: Dingo: Selections From The Motion Picture SoundtrackLabel: Warner Bros. Records ‎- 9 26438-2

Title: WhiteArtist: Miles DavisComposer: Palle MikkelborgAlbum: Aura Label: CBS 463351 1

The Music Show is made on Gadigal, Gundungurra, and Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Country Country

Technical production by Harvey O'Sullivan, Emrys Cronin, Que Nguyen, Nathan Turnbull and Simon Branthwaite

Library archivist Sabrina Lipovic