Hopefully this hasn't been posted before. I’ve heard quite a few times on here (prince.org) about Miles Davis quote on Prince: “Prince doesn't hear Ravel when he wants to make love to his woman, he hears drums 'n shit”.. but never read all of what he had 2 say so while visiting Housequake, Toejam (thank you), shared Miles Davis's recollections of Prince from his Autobiography (1989). For those who never read the book enjoy:

...but I really love Prince, and after I heard him, I wanted to play with him sometime. Prince is from the school of James Brown, and I love James Brown because of all the great rhythms he plays. Prince reminds me of him... But Prince got some Marvin Gaye and Jimi Hendrix and Sly in him, also, even Little Richard. He's a mixture of all those guys and Duke Ellington. He reminds me, in a way of Charlie Chaplin, he and Michael Jackson, who I also love as a performer. Prince does so many things, it's almost like he can do it all; write and sing and produce and play music, act in films, produce and direct them and both him and Michael Jackson can really dance.

They are both motherfuckers, but I like Prince a little better as an all-around musical force... He's got that church thing up in what he does... It's the church thing that I hear in his music that makes him special, and that organ thing. It's a black thing and not a white thing. Prince is like the church to gay guys. He's the music of the people who go out after 10 or 11 at night. He comes in on the beat and plays on top of the beat. People don't understand... Prince doesn't hear Ravel when he wants to make love to his woman, he hears drums 'n shit. So he's not a white guy. His music is new, is rooted and comes out of 1988, 89 or 1990. For me, he can be the new Duke Ellington if he just keeps at it.

Prince is very nice, a shy kind of person, a little genius, too. He knows what he can and cannot do in music and everything else. He gets over with everyone because he fulfills everyone's illusions. He's got that raunchy thing, almost like a pimp and a bitch all wrapped up in one image, that transvestite thing. But when he's singing that funky X-rated shit that he does about sex and women, he's doing it in a high pitched voice, in almost a girls voice. If I said "Fuck You!" to somebody they would be ready to call the police. But if Prince says it in that girl-like voice he uses, then everyone says it's cute. And he isn't out in the public eye all the time. Me and Michael Jackson are the same way. But he's really like his name, man, a prince of a person when you get to know him."

And don't forget my favorite line of Miles on P "he can play the sh*t out of the drums." I have Miles's autobiography also and I love the stories about Bird.

Yeah I remember reading this in Miles' biography. I was blown away by the way he broke Prince's importance and impact down. Miles really got it. It's cool to see two of my heroes with so much respect for one another.

Miles mentions Prince a lot in his autobiography, but this was the main paragraph/s on him. I have edited it (slightly) for it to make sense on it's own.

Hi toejam lol...Because of you and adorable2 I will go and purchase this book, I would love 2 hear what he says about Bird

nice stuff, and pennylover, are you a lionel ritchie fan?

lilgish said:

I loved Lionel when he was with the Commodores but he became a bit 2 much when he went solo. Oh by the way I love your knowledge of music, and love reading your threads along with the pictures u post.

I get it.

pennylover said:

Pimp Sh*t. I likes.....

@ "They are both motherfuckers"

I see miles didnt have a ghost writer.

"tell it like it is"

adorable2 said:

What were some of the things he said about Bird?
Just curious....

Thanks. I ordered the book.

:fallof:

I Miss Miles, Thanx for this

Taurus said:

He talked candidly of he and Bird's relationship musically and personally. He tells this really creepy story about Bird, a bucket of chicken and a white lady in the back of a cab that you would have to read yourself to believe. He talkes of the dynamics of Bird's relationship with Dizzy. He also talks about Fats Navarro and John Coltrane. Its a good book cause Miles tells it like it was/is. But Bird is definitely a hot topic.

adorable2 said:

miles said:

Who is this Bird?

GangstaFam said:

Charlie Parker.

Miles (Davis) said - 'Prince is like the church to gay guys'.

Great quote, if you can explain it.

I think I know where he's coming from on that.

FunkMistress said:

Yes, a word of motherfucking advice...if you don't like the word "motherfucker" this motherfucking book ain't for you. Everything and everyone is a "motherfucker" - sometimes motherfucking good, sometimes motherfucking bad, but always, always a motherfucking motherfucker.

muirdo said:

From what I remember, the whole book is basically a transcript of a series of taped interviews the author had with Miles. So its very...er...conversational.

adorable2 said:

i wanna hear i wanna hear!!!

SDNafka said:

Moonwalkbjrain said:

its one of those kind of stories too.

adorable2 said:

Is it the story of that white chic comming down on him(Bird) while Miles was getting his head outta the cab's window?

Nothing like the story of Bird per4ming a number called Pussy bluse or something like that.

The funniest stories are the ones where Miles shows up in The White House's parties and(the fight of words with that snobby ol' bitch was something else).

SDNafka said:

I've read the book--Miles' memory is amazing.

Harlepolis said:

No the story when he talks of Bird going down on a white chick in the back seat of a car and smacking on fried chicken at the same time. It's really funny because Miles is there and he grows leary of Bird actin like ignorant and the lady moaning and carrying on.

adorable2 said:

Me too. Then there are the ones about Trane between sets, shooting up, puking, shooting up again, playing another set.
[Edited 7/19/06 12:41pm]