Look, there are legends and then there are LEGENDS. And although the best of the best are based on truth, sometimes it takes a while for the truth to come out.
It's true that Miles Davis met a very hot girl called Betty Mabry (and married her for a minute). He even wrote a tune called Back Seat Betty for her and it’s a FUNKY muthafucka (as Miles would have said).
And he put her on the cover of an album with an image which tells us exactly what she was about -
He took her to see Muhammed Ali fight, which would have been the scene back then. It was the same fight that busted American Gangster Frank Lucas for wearing his fur coat.
Betty was very hip and turned on, and wore the sort of clothes the kids were wearing and she turned Miles on (in every way) too.
Betty was friends with all the hipsters, and tight with Jimi Hendrix. Betty listened to Sly Stone, so of course Miles did too. And what happened is history (HIS story geddit?!)… Bitches Brew is what happened. And its title may or may not be a reference to Betty.
But Betty had a story (HER story) too and went on to be a strongly independent feminist funkateer in her own right. Her records are (as title) “Nasty Girl” stuff. Raw UNCUT funk. The Bomb. In the best way.
But legend always had it that Miles’ first space rock explorations were at a Betty session. Just no one had ever heard it but now we can as it turns out it wasn't a myth, it was true and the Light In The Attic LEGENDS have found it.
The legendary Columbia session produced by Teo Macero and Miles, and featuring much of Miles’ wrecking crew (including rock/jazz guitar master John McLaughlin, Herbie Hancock, saxophonist Wayne Shorter, and organist Larry Young) alongside Hendrix acolytes Buddy Miles (Band of Gypsies drummer) and Mitch Mitchell (Experience drummer) predates Bitches Brew and dips a toe in that funk rock well.
Hit up the LITA site for more info and go snap it up on wax STAT.
-TH
[and keep your eyes peeled for our very own run down on the way this new black music developed “Running The Voodoo Down” on Festival records in July]
