Unlimited Miles: Celebrating 100 Years of Miles Davis
Born in 1926, Miles Davis remains the greatest icon in jazz history, leaving behind countless legendary recordings and performances — among them Kind of Blue and Bitches Brew. To commemorate the 100th anniversary of his birth, a special live event titled “UNLIMITED MILES: MILES DAVIS AT 100 feat. John Beasley, Sean Jones, Mark Turner, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Ben Williams, Terreon Gully” was held at Blue Note Tokyo from April 21–23.
Leading the project is Grammy Award-winning artist John Beasley, who joined Miles’s band in his twenties. He spoke with us about his memories of Miles and the highlights of the performances.
Here is the edited article, ready for publication on the ICAP website:
Originally published in JAZZ LIFE, April 2026. Author: Kazune Hayata. English translation edited by ICAP.
Unlimited Miles: Celebrating 100 Years of Miles Davis
Born in 1926, Miles Davis remains the greatest icon in jazz history, leaving behind countless legendary recordings and performances — among them Kind of Blue and Bitches Brew. To commemorate the 100th anniversary of his birth, a special live event titled “UNLIMITED MILES: MILES DAVIS AT 100 feat. John Beasley, Sean Jones, Mark Turner, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Ben Williams, Terreon Gully” was held at Blue Note Tokyo from April 21–23.
Leading the project is Grammy Award-winning artist John Beasley, who joined Miles’s band in his twenties. He spoke with us about his memories of Miles and the highlights of the performances.
You joined Miles Davis’s touring band during his later years and also appeared on the album Live Around the World. How did you first meet Miles?
John Beasley: I joined his band in March 1989. At the time I was in Los Angeles playing with a group called Audio Mind, featuring Vinnie Colaiuta, Gary Willis, Steve Tavaglione, and myself. As you can imagine from the lineup, we were playing pretty edgy music. Some of our sets were entirely improvised experimental performances. Since smooth jazz dominated LA at the time, we stood out, and our shows were always packed.
Among the audience was Vincent Wilburn Jr., Miles’s nephew and drummer in his band at the time. One night he said, “I want Miles to hear your playing. Can you give me a demo tape?” So I recorded a few minutes of improvisation over a drum machine and handed it to him.
I tried not to expect too much — there were plenty of musicians who wanted to work with Miles. But a few months later, I got a phone call: “This is Miles.” At first I thought it was a prank by a friend, but the voice was unmistakable — that raspy tone. He said, “Hey, you wanna join my band?” That was definitely Miles! (laughs)
A few weeks later I flew to New York and joined rehearsals.
You must have been listening to Miles’s music long before playing with him. When did you first encounter his work?
John Beasley: I became interested in Miles’s music when I was about 12 years old. Before that I listened mostly to accessible, straight-ahead jazz — albums by Quincy Jones and the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra. Then my father gave me Maiden Voyage by Herbie Hancock for my 12th birthday, and that became my gateway to Miles.
In what way?
John Beasley: I heard Herbie, Ron Carter, and Tony Williams on that album and thought, “Wow, this music is incredible!” Then a friend played me Seven Steps to Heaven, which featured those same musicians. That’s when I first discovered Miles.
I remember listening to it over and over that day. After that, I became obsessed with the quintet recordings featuring Wayne Shorter — E.S.P., Miles Smiles, Miles in the Sky. Then I went further back and explored masterpieces like Milestones, Steamin’ with the Miles Davis Quintet, and Workin’ with the Miles Davis Quintet.
How would you describe Miles’s musical appeal?
John Beasley: The first word that comes to mind is “mysterious.” The more you listen, the deeper you get drawn in. Another great appeal is how he absorbed so many musical elements into his work.
He listened to all kinds of music. I visited his hotel room several times while on tour, and once he was listening to a band called Kazzav. He also said he liked Karlheinz Stockhausen — and he often listened to Prince, Jimi Hendrix, and James Brown.
What was the appeal of performing with him in person?
John Beasley: The biggest thing was the freedom he gave musicians. During live performances he would sometimes give directions, or you had to respond instantly to what you heard in his playing, so at first I felt nervous. But over time I began to immediately understand the meaning behind his cues and his trumpet lines. I think that was because he was completely devoted to the music. When an artist is that dedicated, their message comes through very clearly.
Tell us about the Blue Note Tokyo concerts.
John Beasley: This year marks the 100th anniversary of Miles’s birth, and I’m involved in many concerts and events, but Unlimited Miles at Blue Note Tokyo is the biggest. We performed 18 shows across 12 cities including Tokyo, with a touring sextet of Sean Jones, Mark Turner, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Ben Williams, and Terreon Gully alongside me. The concerts were recorded live and will be released this summer as Unlimited Miles: Live from Blue Note Tokyo (working title). The April 22 performance was also filmed for broadcast on France’s Mezzo TV and other outlets.
What music was performed?
John Beasley: The main goal was to present the evolution of Miles’s music throughout the concert — covering a broad range of eras, from Birth of the Cool to his late-period work Amandla. We also performed music from the First Great Quintet, the Kind of Blue sextet, the collaborations with Gil Evans, and the Second Great Quintet.
With the Second Quintet material especially, there are pieces like “Nefertiti” and “E.S.P.” that were recorded in the studio but rarely played live — so we wanted audiences to experience those works in concert. For some songs, we used arrangements that let listeners hear how Miles’s music evolved over time. In any case — what’s going to happen? That’s what I wanted people to look forward to. (That phrase, by the way, was something Wayne Shorter used to say all the time.)
The day after the Blue Note Tokyo performances, you appeared at Jazz Auditoria 2026 with Tomoaki Baba. What was that performance about?
John Beasley: That performance was titled John Coltrane Centennial Celebration. This year marks not only Miles Davis’s 100th birthday but also the 100th anniversary of John Coltrane’s birth — both were born in 1926. Together with Tomoaki Baba and others, we performed masterpieces associated with Coltrane, who also had deep ties to Miles. I’m really looking forward to it.
Finally, what are your future plans?
John Beasley: uI’m releasing a new album called Invisible Piano with the SWR Big Band through the German label o-tone music on May 8.
The project began with improvisations inspired by artworks at the Stuttgart Art Museum, performed on a self-playing Steinway & Sons piano called Spirio — an instrument with memory functionality. Those performances were then transcribed and orchestrated. During the recording sessions, the Spirio reproduced my piano playing while I conducted the orchestra alongside it. It’s a fusion of cutting-edge technology and creativity, and it turned out to be a very exciting album. I’d love for everyone to jhear it.
This article is republished with permission. Original interview by Kazune Hayata, JAZZ LIFE, April 2026.
Photos used by permission – Shigeru Uchiyama
