The best music autobiography ever?Yes, quite definitely.Entertaining beyond question.I think I've read this three times now, and will probably read it 2-3 times more before I die.

Sitting across from me he continues telling me about his life. I don’t particularly like him or find him interesting, at least not as interesting as he finds himself. Laying a line of cocaine on the tabletop, he snorts it then orders another drink. There is one exception which has and still runs through our conversation. His life is lived not only for creativity but for reaching, for further and new means of reaching. This is the experience which provides the meaning in his life. I’m coming to s...

5 Stars for Miles: The Autobiography (audiobook) by Miles Davis and Quincy Troupe read by Dion Graham.Miles Davis led an amazing life. This book chronicles his personal life and his music. This is a really open and honest look into his life. He pulled no punches in telling his story. What I’m most impressed with in this book is how much it sounds like it’s being narrated by Miles Davis. The coauthor Quincy Troupe did an amazing job putting all of these stories together and making it sound like M...

Was Miles Davis a devotee of the OULIPO movement? Given his stated disinclination to read books it may be unlikely, but it does seem that he set himself an OULIPOian constraint when dictating the material that was shaped into book form by Quincy Troupe. The constraint was to describe every person, object and experience using only the words motherfucker, shit and bad. His early interest in music? "I remember being fascinated by hearing the records of Louis Armstrong, Jimmie Lunceford...and a whol...

Miles Davis's autobiography takes no pains whatsoever to varnish the author's reputation as a kind and loving human being. By far, the word that appears more often than any other in Miles: The Autobiography, written in partnership with Quincy Troupe, is that 12-letter, four-syllable all-purpose standby for a person who engages in sexual relations with his own mother. In whip-quick conversational prose that moves with the deft, percussive rhythms of truth when it riffs out hesitation free, Davis

I loved this audio production of Miles. It was wonderful learning about his life from the early years on and he held nothing back. He tells it like he lived it and does not pretty it up. He is raw and honest and his life story is no different. For me, I learned some surprising things about how he was brought up and how other musicians influenced him; and it all made sense once he explained it. Needles to say I learned a lot about music, and enjoyed the parts I didn't even understand. Even though...

This is a very honest autobiography. Davis thought (for good reason) that he was a wonderful musician and didn't let anyone dissuade him. At the same time, in many respects this book is a name dropping list of great musicians Davis worked with and for and lauched. I was turned off by the language even though I knew that it was absolutely Davis's voice. I also didn't think he explained the politics of Black Power well enough. I understood his point of view but he tried to stay apolitical while ha...

An absolute must for musicians and fans. I would think this autobiography would be interesting for anyone just based on the insight into such a magnificent cultural era(s) in our country but I am biased because I love Miles and his work. The narrative really reads like you are being spoken to in Davis' tone, cadence and patois. And he seems to hold little back including a lot of recollections and ideas that you wish were not part of someone's heart and mind that you so greatly admire. But that i...

"Some kind of happiness is measured out in Miles."

A fantastic autobiography! I didn't realize it would be so timely with Davis's commentary on racism in America during his career and through 1990. Still valid today. He was quite bitter about the cultural appropriation and lack of appreciation for jazz in his time. This one is rich with history. Miles is so open and honest that he doesn't come across as a likable man. He is a man in search of respect that certainly didn't give much respect. But here's the thing, he knew this about himself. Full

Over the course of these four hundred pages, Miles switches between electrifying discussions of his and others' creative processes and insults directed at the musicians he worked with. Take it as you will, I guess, but the music-talk is as wonderful as one would expect. And treat yourself to a shot of the liquor of your choice every time he calls someone or something a motherfucker.

****Bad words ahead!!! stop reading now if you get your panties in a bunch around "naughty words". ****If foul language offends you, DO NOT pick up this book.If you could give a shit, pick it up and enjoy!one motherfucking good read!-read it with a glass of wine and some miles playing in the background-it will blow your mind, motherfucker!

i won't say this is the absolute best book i've ever read, but it sure is a motherfucker, as miles would probably say if he were here. though actually he'd probably just punch me in the face for saying that and tell me to come up with my own shit to say, instead of copying him and trying to look hip when i'm not. and he'd be right about that as he is about pretty much everything else, except maybe on the question of whether or not one should beat women, but hey, everybody's got their blind side....

A long, rambling epic that careens between stuff like Miles breaking down in surprising depth the multiple jazz zeitgeists he was involved in and Miles uncomfortably sitting in the back of a car with Charlie "Bird" Parker and a prostitute while Bird simultaneously gets his dick sucked and eats chicken. So much fucking dirt on the musical idols of every jazz nerd... according to Miles Mingus was an intensely racist rageaholic, Armstrong was an Uncle Tom, Coltrane was a nose-picker and Billie Holl...

There are autobiographies where you don't know/care much about the person, but they sweep you away and you become heavily invested (Andre Agassi's "Open" comes to mind). And then there's autobiographies about people you admire, that are so humanizing and disheartening that they leave a bad taste in your mouth and you just hope it won't taint your love of the art. Sadly, "Miles" is the latter to me. At first, I just found the 'authentic' writing a bit of a drag. It jumps around a lot and I have n...

What a treat. I waited far too long to read this book, but I finally did and have been richly rewarded. I now have this book as the 2nd best biography I have ever read. For those who are interested in the first, it is Arthur Ashe. But Miles came damn close to challenging for that number one spot. He was extremely genuine and forthright about his life, even admitting to slapping and abusing women, which is brave, only because it isn't mandatory to reveal such scurrilous behavior. The honesty abou...

Quite simply, this is one of the best autobiographies you will ever read. It's just a real honest look at a musical genius who gives it all to you Straight, No Chaser (referencing Thelonious Monk) with all of the warts and flaws included.If you thought you knew everything about Miles Davis you might want to read this book to find out otherwise. He is brutally honest about everything here including: racism, drugs, women, physical abuse, music, family issues etc...This book is written in a very co...

tips for being a great artist:1) never doubt yourself2) never repeat yourself3) never admit that you were wrong4) do drugs

Wow, what a great Bio. I’ve read some really good Bios in the last two years and this one is definitely one of the best. Davis is extremely candid about his life and times as absolutely one of the best Jazz musicians, Ever! And his memory and attention for details makes this definitely worth wild. Davis shares moments and experiences, good & bad and gives great accounts of the different formations of musicians that created numerous bands, big & small, the original making of the bands....lol. He

This is one of the most inspiring musician biographies I've ever read, and I'm not a rabid Miles fan. It's good in the same way the recent Keith Richards autobiography is good - because it's a book about music by a guy who loves music, has played a lot of music and knows a lot about music. Also, unlike the comparable Ray Charles autobiography it doesn't wind down halfway through when it becomes clear its protagonist is an incurable man of habit and a control freak. Nah, that ain't Miles. Miles i...