Buddy Miles

Buddy Miles 1972 in the Hamburg Music Hall

Buddy Miles (* 5. September 1947 in Omaha , Nebraska ; † 26. February 2008 in Austin , Texas ; actually George Allen Miles ) was an American rock - blues -, Soul - and radio - drummer and singer.

Life

Miles began playing drums at the age of nine and joined his father's jazz band at the age of twelve . In the late 1950s he played with various vocal groups including The Ink Spots , The Delfonics, and Ruby & the Romantics . When he toured with Wilson Pickett in 1966 , Michael Bloomfield became aware of him and brought him into his band The Electric Flag . After Bloomfield left this formation in 1968, Miles was briefly the band's front man . The band's second album, released during this time, flopped and Miles dropped out.

In the same year he formed his own band called Buddy Miles Express. The group was signed by Mercury Records and was able to win Jimi Hendrix as producer for their debut Expressway to Your Skull . Miles subsequently worked as a studio musician on Hendrix ' Electric Ladyland and on Muddy Waters ' Fathers and Sons .

In 1969, Electric Church , the second album by Buddy Miles Express, was released. It was produced again by Jimi Hendrix. After Hendrix dissolved the Jimi Hendrix Experience at the end of the year , he formed the band of Gypsys with Miles and bassist Billy Cox. On New Year's Eve 1969 and New Year 1970, the trio played four concerts in New York's Fillmore East . A live album was compiled from the recordings, with which Hendrix fulfilled a contractual obligation with Capitol Records . This album ( Band of Gypsys ) includes two compositions by Buddy Miles, We Gotta Live Together and Them Changes . The manager of Hendrix, Michael Jeffrey, now wanted to reform the Jimi Hendrix Experience with its original cast. After an abandoned gig at a festival in Madison Square Garden , at which Hendrix was completely deranged, Miles was fired from the band by Jeffrey.

Miles then supported John McLaughlin on his album Devotion and published his solo work Them Changes in 1971 . Between December 1971 and May 1972 Miles toured with Carlos Santana . The tour is documented on the album Carlos Santana & Buddy Miles, which was released in June 1972 ! Live! captured in the crater of an inactive Hawaiian volcano.

Between 1973 and 1976 Miles released a total of five albums, then it became quiet around him for the time being. One exception is the 1981 album Sneak Attack on Atlantic Records . In 1986 Miles became the "lead singer" of the California Raisins, a fictional rhythm and blues group made up of animated raisin characters that had been invented to promote the California raisins industry. In her most famous commercial, Miles sang the thematically fitting song I Heard It Through the Grapevine by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong .

In 1987 Miles worked again for Carlos Santana, this time as lead singer. In the early 1990s, he played with Bootsy Collins , and on April 6, 1993 , he performed live on a Prince after-show in Chicago. In 1994 he called the Buddy Miles Express back to life. Two more albums were created. In 1997 he toured Italy with More Experience at 20 concerts. In 2002 he formed a new band, the Blues Berries, and toured Europe with Mitch Mitchell and Randy Hansen . On April 17, 2002 Miles appeared again on an aftershow by Prince; this time in Dallas, Texas in The Red Jacket.

Buddy Miles died of heart failure at the age of 60 .

Discography

Albums

year	title	Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes)				Remarks
		DE	UK	US	R&B
1969	Electric Church	-	-	US145 (4 weeks) US	-	Buddy Miles Express
1970	Them changes	-	-	US35 (74 weeks) US	R&B14 (44 weeks) R&B
	We Got to Live Together	-	-	US53 (26 weeks) US	R&B14 (25 weeks) R&B
1971	A message to the people	-	-	US60 (24 weeks) US	R&B12 (21 weeks) R&B
	Buddy Miles Live	-	-	US50 (24 weeks) US	R&B10 (22 weeks) R&B
1972	Carlos Santana & Buddy Miles! Live!	DE14 (16 weeks) DE	UK29 (4 weeks) UK	US8th platinum (33 weeks)US	R&B6 (12 weeks) R&B	with Carlos Santana , taken in Diamond Head Crater in Hawaii
1973	Chapter VII	-	-	US123 (9 weeks) US	R&B36 (4 weeks) R&B	The Buddy Miles Band
	Booger Bear	-	-	US194 (3 weeks) US	R&B47 (5 weeks) R&B	Buddy Miles Express
1975	More Miles Per Gallon	-	-	US68 (11 weeks) US	R&B27 (11 weeks) R&B
1987	The California Raisins Sing the Hit Songs	-	-	US60 platinum (36 weeks)US	-	with California raisins
1988	Sweet, Delicious & Marvelous	-	-	US140 (15 weeks) US	R&B82 (6 weeks) R&B	with California raisins

More albums

• 1968: Expressway to Your Skull (Buddy Miles Express)
• 1972: Fathers and Sons (with Muddy Waters , Otis Spann , Michael Bloomfield , Paul Butterfield , Donald "Duck" Dunn and Sam Lay )
• 1974: All the Faces of Buddy Miles
• 1976: Bicentennial Gathering of the Tribes
• 1977: Roadrunner
• 1981: Sneak Attack
• 1988: Christmas with the California Raisins (California Raisins)
• 1989: Meet the Raisins (California Raisins; US:platinum - video album)
• 1993: The Mighty Rhythm Tribe
• 1994: Hell and Back (Buddy Miles Express)
• 1996: Tribute to Jimi Hendrix
• 1997: Miles Away from Home
• 1997: The Best Of (compilation)
• 2002: Blues Berries (feat.Rocky Athas)
• 2004: Changes
• 2006: The Band of Gypsys Return (with Billy Cox )

Singles

year	Title album	Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, album , rankings, weeks, awards, notes)				Remarks
		DE	UK	US	R&B
1969	Memphis Train Them Changes	-	-	US100 (1 week) US	-
1970	Them Changes Them Changes	-	-	US62 (17 weeks) US	R&B36 (4 weeks) R&B	with The Freedom Express
	Down by the River Them Changes	-	-	US68 (7 weeks) US	-	Author: Neil Young
	Dreams Them Changes	-	-	US86 (3 weeks) US	-
	We Got to Live Together - Part I We Got to Live Together	-	-	US86 (6 weeks) US	R&B47 (2 weeks) R&B
1971	Wholesale Love A Message to the People	-	-	US71 (6 weeks) US	R&B49 (4 weeks) R&B	Author: Otis Redding
1972	Evil Ways Carlos Santana & Buddy Miles! Live!	-	-	US84 (5 weeks) US	-	with Carlos Santana
	Them Changes Carlos Santana & Buddy Miles! Live!	-	-	US95 (1 week) US	-	with Carlos Santana
1975	Pull Yourself Together All the Faces of Buddy Miles	-	-	-	R&B83 (5 weeks) R&B
	Rockin 'and Rollin' on the Streets of Hollywood More Miles Per Gallon	-	-	US91 (3 weeks) US	R&B33 (12 weeks) R&B
1988	I Heard It Through the Grapevine The California Raisins Sing the Hit Songs	-	-	US84 (4 weeks) US	-	with California raisins

More singles

• 1968: Train
• 1969: Funky Mule
• 1969: Miss Lady
• 1970: I Still Love You Anyway
• 1971: Give Away None of My Love
• 1972: Life Is What You Make It
• 1973: Hear No Evil
• 1973: Thinking of You
• 1974: We Got Love
• 1975: Nasty Disposition
• 1976: Where You Gonna Run to Lady
• 1977: I Love You More and More
• 1981: Sunshine of Your Love (Buddy Miles Regiment)
• 1981: Can You Hold Me (Buddy Miles Regiment)
• 1988: What Does It Take (To Win Your Love) (with The California Raisins)
• 1991: What Are We Fighting 4? (Unit III feat. Buddy Miles)
• 1992: Doriella du Fontaine (with Hendrix and Lightnin 'Rod)
• 2013: Just a Kiss Away

swell

1. ↑ ^{a b} Chart sources: Singles Albums US
2. ↑ ^{a b} US singles: Joel Whitburn : Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-2006 . Billboard Books, New York 2007, ISBN 0-89820-172-1 . / US albums: Joel Whitburn : Joel Whitburn presents the Billboard Albums . 6th edition. Billboard Books, New York 2006, ISBN 0-89820-166-7 .
3. ↑ Gold / platinum database of the RIAA (USA)
4. ↑ Gold / platinum database of the RIAA (USA)
5. ^ Joel Whitburn : Hot R&B Songs 1942–2010: 6th Edition, ISBN 978-0-89820-186-4 .

Web links

• Buddy Miles at drummerworld.com
• Buddy Miles at the Internet Movie Database (English)
• Buddy Miles at Allmusic (English)
• Buddy Miles at Discogs (English)
• The Buddy Miles band at Discogs (English)
• Buddy Miles Express at Discogs (English)
• Buddy Miles, Hendrix Drummer, Dies In: The Times . (Obituary)
• Discography at 45cat.com