Miles Davis and Charlie Parker had one important thing in common: they were both driven at an early age to make music with their chosen instruments.
"Bird falsified his age to gain entry to competitive clubs in Kansas city, where he was rejected; at sixteen he was laughed off a bandstand.
You guys remember me telling you about the time I was in a funereal limo, and when there was dead silence, someone started a conversation about Miles music in order to lighten the load. That's when the grieving widow piped in;
"I remember Miles, he was the little dark skinned kid who was always trying to blow the trumpet". That remark returned the limo back to dead silence. (what do you say after a remark like that) There was nothing racist about that remark, she remembered a little dark skinny kid who was always trying to blow the trumpet.
All of the people in the limo originated from Miles old neighborhood, including me. The events she remembered that brought her in contact with Miles occurred two years before I was even born. At the early age of thirteen, Miles sought out any professional musical help he could get to unravel the mysteries of his trumpet.
This lady lived in a big house with her Mother in law, plus two of her husbands brothers while her husband was off to war. One of the brothers was a musician who played the sax, and the other was a music teacher. That house was located two blocks from Dr. Davis's dental office, and she recalled letting Miles in when he came to learn whatever he could learn from the resident musicians.
The funny thing about this is the fact that the lady who knew Miles, knew next to nothing about his music.