Letters: Readers respond to Adrian Chiles’s article on the mysterious power of the genre
June 2024
Brief letters
Keith Jarrett and all that plink-plonk jazz
Brief letters: Gentle jazz | Piano man | Political pledges | Tory leaflets | Labour toast
September 2023
John Marshall obituary
Supremely gifted drummer who was a long-serving member of the British rock band Soft Machine
June 2023
The joy of the slow burn record: ‘Not only did I warm to his drawls, I became obsessed’
Sometimes, 20 years after dismissing an album, it’s suddenly exactly what you need. Our writers pick out the music that crept up on them
May 2023
‘People call me the godfather of fusion’: the return of jazz-funk keyboardist Lonnie Liston Smith
He has worked with Miles Davis, been sampled by Jay-Z, and has now made his first album in 25 years. He explains how going on TikTok helped him rediscover his cosmic keyboard sound
April 2023
Ahmad Jamal obituary
Innovative pianist who preferred the term American classical music to jazz, and became a favourite of hip-hop artists
March 2023
‘It’s a rockstar album’: the UK jazz musicians marking five decades of Miles Davis’s Bitches Brew
In an epic feat of improvisation, 12 players over three days reimagined the jazz great’s magnum opus
Wayne Shorter obituary
Saxophonist and master improviser with artists ranging from Miles Davis to Joni Mitchell, and with lineups including Weather Report
Wayne Shorter, icon of jazz saxophone, dies aged 89
Composer and performer traversed numerous phases of jazz history, and fused his playing with the likes of Miles Davis, Joni Mitchell and Carlos Santana
November 2022
From Bowie to Beyoncé: the gateway albums to get into the greatest artists
Keen to explore an artist’s oeuvre but overwhelmed by choice in today’s stream-heavy world? Fear not: from Joni to Fela, Madonna to Miles, our critics tell you which album to begin with
September 2022
Miles Davis: That’s What Happened 1982-1985: The Bootleg Series Vol 7 review – more discarded gems
Outtakes from the trumpeter’s Star People, Decoy and You’re Under Arrest albums, plus a live gig from 1983, continue Sony’s meticulous series
July 2022
‘Aphex Twin pours water on my meltdowns’: Guardian readers on the songs that soothe them
Donald Trump is reportedly calmed by a blast of Memory from Cats – but our readers prefer Radiohead and Miles Davis
February 2022
Betty Davis obituary
Pioneering funk singer whose uncompromising stance resonated with a new generation of musicians
Betty Davis projected her own liberation – and freed up generations in her wake
Rebecca Bengal
Loved by artists from Prince to Butthole Surfers, Davis created a fearlessly sexual, futurist sound that planted the seeds of rebellion
Betty Davis, raw funk pioneer, dies at 77
Trailblazing funk artist and second wife of Miles Davis released three influential albums in the 1970s before leaving the industry
January 2022
‘I make stars look interesting, not beautiful’: Anton Corbijn on his favourite portraits
David Bowie was a gent, Naomi Campbell was a revelation and Virgil Abloh was hauntingly prophetic. The great portrait photographer Anton Corbijn relives five of his best shoots
November 2021
From the Guardian archive
Miles Davis and Giants of Jazz reviewed – archive, 1971
15 November 1971: Davis and his jazz-rock group perform at London’s Royal Festival Hall, while across town a band of jazz luminaries play at the New Victoria
September 2021
Pee Wee Ellis obituary
American jazz saxophonist, arranger and bandleader who played with James Brown and Van Morrison
‘It didn’t adhere to any of the rules’: the fascinating history of free jazz
In documentary Fire Music, the hostile reaction that met the unusual genre soon turns into deep appreciation and a lasting influence
Charlie Watts, Miles Davis, John and Yoko … and other David Bailey wonders – in pictures
The celebrated photographer will open up his archive for the first time at Photo London – with portraits of the Rolling Stones, Michael Caine and Jerry Hall on display
