This text is more than just a “book.” It represents hundreds of hours of research by Masaya Yamaguchi into every aspect of Miles Davis’ life, from the mundane (cooking habits and clothes worn) to his relationship with John Coltrane and much more. In the case of Miles with whom I played in the 1970s, separating fact from myth is challenging. Miles was more than a great jazz musician. He represented what “cool” meant culturally in America of the ‘50s and‘60s. Masaya painstakingly points out inconsistencies in the well-known biography of Miles and backs up his assertions with fact-based quotes (most often by Miles himself) and writings. This book is important and necessary to be published. It will set the standard that all other books on the subject will be measured going forward.
Masaya Yamaguchi (1970) is a guitarist and educator residing in Manhattan, New York City. He is not only a musician but also a conceptualist who established his own system to explore the imaginative formation of musical scales.