Miles Dewey Davis III Jazz Extraordinaire

Date of Birth: Miles Davis was born on May 25, 1926, in Alton, Illinois

Family His father, Miles Dewey Davis Jr. was a dentist in Alton, Illinois, where he was born. His mother, Cleota Davis, was a leisurely woman, she did not work. He had an older sister, and a younger brother.

Early Life Miles Davis was born into a wealthy, upper middle class family. Miles began taking private music lessons at a young age. He received his first trumpet as a gift from his father on his 13 th birthday.

Teenage Years… After receiving his first trumpet at 13, he started taking lessons from Joseph Gustat, first chair of the St. Louis Orchestra. At the age of 16, Miles began taking gigs in St Louis, and he spent most of his time there. During this time period, Miles made up to $125 a week, which is pretty good for a 16-year old.

Early Adulthood In 1944, Miles began his music career by studying the art at the Juilliard School of New York City. Miles only stayed for one year at the school, as he wanted to start performing Jazz to live audiences and to make recordings. In 1945, he made his first commercial recordings with Herbie Fields, a Saxophonist. At this recording, Miles was very nervous, and some of the other performers complained about his lack of talent and experience.

Late Adulthood After many more recordings and gigs, Miles started to get the hang of performing. He helped create many new forms of Jazz such as bebop, or bop, a modern form of jazz, cool jazz which emphasized emotional restraint, and fusion, another new style of jazz.

Late Adulthood cont. In the late 1940s to the early 50s, Miles became addicted to heroin. Miles married 3 times, but all 3 ended in divorce. His wives names were Frances Taylor, Betty Mabry, and Cicely Tyson. In 1970 Miles recorded a soundtrack for a documentary on boxer Jack Johnson.

End of Jazz Career In 1974, Miles suffered a heart attack while on tour in South America. Davis never fully recovered, thus he retired from Jazz and music altogether.

Post-Retirement Life In the early 80s, Miles began painting and drawing to help relieve his physical he was going through. Miles Won 3 Grammies, 1 in 1983 for his album “We Want Miles”, and 2 for his album “Aura” in 1990 He was later inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for his jazz/rock style.

End of a Jazz Legacy Miles Dewey Davis died on September 28, 1991, of pneumonia, respiratory failure, and a stroke.