American trumpeter who led new styles for about half a century: cool jazz, modal jazz, and electric jazz. Kind of Blue is one of the best-selling jazz albums of all time.
Recommended recordings
Autumn Leaves (Joseph Kosma) (1958, Somethin' Else (Cannonball Adderley) / Blue Note): Miles appears on an album under Cannonball Adderley's name. It is known for the opening theme played on muted trumpet.
So What (Miles Davis) (1959, Kind of Blue / Columbia): The opening track of the album that launched modal jazz, showing improvisation based on modes rather than chord changes.