THE LAST MILES: THE MUSIC OF MILES DAVIS, 1980-1991
by GEORGE COLE

A detailed look at Miles Davis' final recordings

By Rick Hines, Feb. 14, 2020

I got turned on to Miles Davis in college in the '70s. Soon after graduation, I read a book called "Milestones" by Jack Chambers. It was an incredibly detailed and critical look at the music of Miles. Most of what I learned about jazz history and how to listen to jazz I learned from that book. The book was written before Miles passed away and stops before he left Columbia records. The only thing I didn't like was that Chambers didn't seem to like much of anything Miles did post "Bitches Brew" or "Jack Johnson." Personally, I like a lot of that stuff. I consider "On the Corner" to be one of the great masterpieces of modern music. After Miles died, Chambers updated his book, only to rag on Miles even more extensively on his later music. I didn't buy the update.

I've waited for thirty years or so for someone to write a book similar to "Milestones" but covering Miles post-retirement years. And preferably by an author who didn't start with the premise that Miles later work was crap until proven otherwise. This is the book I was waiting for.

George Cole interviews virtually everyone who worked with Miles during 1980-1991. There is some biographical material, but Cole concentrates on the music, analyzing Miles album-by-album, song-by-song. There is analysis of his studio work, his live recordings, his guest appearances, soundtrack work, etc. I found myself gaining a whole new appreciation for Miles' Warner Brothers recordings after hearing what the band members, song writers and producers experienced and were intending to do. Everything is explained in easy-to-understand language and doesn't require any special musical knowledge.

I only have two quibbles, relatively minor: one is that Cole is almost too reverential of Miles. His conclusive summary at the end of each album generally amounts to, "Not his best work ever, but a lot of good stuff to offer." It's not necessarily false, but one would have hoped for a bit more editorial latitude to differentiate the albums' worth relative to each other.

The other quibble is: this book really, really needed a last trip through the proof-reader. Most of the mistakes are obvious enough you can tell what was supposed to be written, but it tends to obscure the fact this is a really well-written book otherwise. If I were Cole, I'd be furious.

For anyone interested in Miles' later musical projects, I highly recommend this book. Just expect some typos. It'll be sitting on my shelf right next to "Milestones." I'm glad it's in hardback, as I will be referring back to it often and expect some wear.