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In celebration of the 100th anniversary of his birth, we’re excited to share Episode 1 from The Miles Davis Story, the latest series of the Legend podcast.
Presented by acclaimed actor and longtime fan Clarke Peters (The Wire, Treme, Da 5 Bloods), the 5-part series explores the life and legacy of a visionary artist whose relentless pursuit of the "new" often scorched his own life and the lives of those around him.
Across the series, Clarke charts Miles’s ever-evolving artform, starting with this first great transformation of a legend - when the young Miles chose to step into the unknown, seize control of his own creative destiny, and begin his journey as a leader.
This is episode one of the series, exploring how New York helped Davis discover a radical new sound. If you like what you hear, you can listen to every episode on BBC Sounds. Just search for ‘Legend’.
Miles Davis Interview: From Jazz Talking by Ben Sidran, 1986.
The Arsenio Hall Show, Paramount, originally broadcast in 1989.
60 Minutes, CBS News. Originally broadcast in 1989
Featured tracks (in order of appearance)
“So What” – Miles Davis
“Blue in Green” – Miles Davis (feat. John Coltrane & Bill Evans)
“Bitches Brew” – Miles Davis
"Miles Runs the Voodoo Down" - MIles Davis
“Agitation” – Miles Davis
“Flamenco Sketches” – Miles Davis & Bill Evans
“Ko Ko” – Charlie Parker
“Salt Peanuts” – Dizzy Gillespie
"Jivin with Jack the Bellboy" - Miles Davis
"Move" - Miles Davis
"Moon Dreams" - Miles Davis
"Boplicity" - Miles Davis
Presenter: Clarke Peters
Series Producer: Clem Hitchcock
Executive Producer: Rami Tzabar
Editor: Kirsten Lass
Production Manager: Emily Duffy
Music Consultant: Guy Barker
Additional Music: Guy Barker
Archivist: Simon Rooks
Script Consultant: Anne Harbin
Technical Production and Sound Design: Melvin Rickarby
Commissioning Editors for the BBC: Dan Clarke and Matthew Dodd
A Loftus Media production for BBC Radio 4

Flautist Claire Wickes and jazz pianist Ashley Henry join Jeffrey and Anna as they add the next five tracks, exploring the association between music and chocolate, and digging into the Harlem Renaissance with the poet Langston Hughes and Cuban Negrismo, before marking the official longest partnership in pop.
Producer Jerome Weatherald
Presented with musical direction by Jeffrey Boakye and Anna Phoebe
The five tracks in this week's playlist:
5-4-3-2-1 by Manfred Mann
Dance of the Mirlitons from The Nutcracker by Tchaikovsky
The Weary Blues by Langston Hughes
Boda Negra by María Teresa Vera
West End Girls by Pet Shop Boys
Other music in this episode:
Mississippi Goddam by Ashley Henry
Knee Play 5 from Einstein on the Beach by Philip Glass
Numbers by Kraftwerk
5,6,7,8 by Steps
Moon River by Audrey Hepburn
Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy by Tchaikovsky

Bass guitarist, composer and songwriter Guy Pratt and bassoonist Amy Harman are Jeffrey and Anna's studio guests as they add five more tracks. Starting with an early ska classic, they explore the art of 'hocketing' before heading to the beach with Einstein.
Producer Jerome Weatherald
Presented with musical direction by Jeffrey Boakye and Anna Phoebe
The five tracks in this week's playlist:
Miss Jamaica by Jimmy Cliff
Rock On by David Essex
Finale of Symphony No 6 in B Minor by Tchaikovsky
Hockets for Two Voices: 1 by Meara O’Reilly
Knee Play 5 from Einstein on the Beach by Philip Glass
Other music in this episode:
Ain't No Doubt by Jimmy Nail
Like a Prayer by Madonna
The Reason by Celine Dion
I'm Alive by Vybz Kartel
Be My Guest by Fats Domino
Walk on the Wild Side by Lou Reed
The Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd
9th Symphony by Gustav Mahler
Zap Mama by Babanzélé
Gamelan by the Bali Gamelan Orchestra
Money by Pink Floyd
Welcome to the Machine by Pink Floyd

Classical pianist Lucy Parham and operatic tenor Nicky Spence are Jeffrey and Anna's studio guests as they compile another five-track playlist. Starting with a memorable scene from Werner Herzog's film Fitzcarraldo, they end up at the queen of the power ballad, stopping off to reveal the background to two very popular tunes regularly played on Radio 4.
Producer Jerome Weatherald
Presented with musical direction by Jeffrey Boakye and Anna Phoebe
The five tracks in this week's playlist:
Quartet from Rigoletto by Verdi
La Flor de la Canela by Chabuca Granda
The Minute Waltz by Chopin
My Native Heath, Suite IV: Barwick Green by Arthur Wood
The Reason by Celine Dion
Other music in this episode:
Cantaloop by Us3
Proud Mary by Ike & Tina Turner
Approaching Menace by Neil Richardson
The Archers Theme by The Yetties
My Heart Will Go On by Celine Dion

Multi-platinum songwriter and musician Fiona Bevan and pianist Keelan Carew are Jeffrey and Anna's studio guests as they add five more tracks, taking us from Ray Charles letting loose for the first time, to a famous riverboat steamer on the Mississippi via Mozart and Nick Drake.
Producer Jerome Weatherald
Presented with musical direction by Jeffrey Boakye and Anna Phoebe
The five tracks in this week's playlist:
Mess Around by Ray Charles
Kyrie from the Mass in C Minor by Mozart
From the Morning by Nick Drake
Fields of Gold by Eva Cassidy
Proud Mary by Ike & Tina Turner
Other music in this episode:
Soul Bossa Nova by Quincy Jones
Violin Partita No. 2 in D Minor (the Chaconne) by J.S. Bach
Over the Rainbow by Eva Cassidy
Fields of Gold by Sting
Little Things by One Direction