I respect all of Miles’ work but have to say that his earlier era of late 1940s to the early 1960s (Bebop-Modal) are what I enjoy most. Certainly to each their own.
Me too i prefer him in this period ...
Thanks for the great post about Davis stuartk ...
There is many ways to be creative...Going toward the estuary of the big river exploring all the ramified possibilities on the delta of the river for example ; and Miles Davis was in the creative hunger to go frenetically from one metamorphosis to an another ; or we can obsessively possessed by one direction only going back from the river direct flowing to his source and deepening the melodic way in a relaxed minimal way of steady row against the flows as Chet Baker did creating his myth in a different way than Davis ...
Or going more from one course or phase to the other , reversing our speed to innovate , one or two times in a life as most creative musicians do , or staying anchored on the river memorizing repeating formulas and fishing with or without virtuosity and imagination ...
We cannot say one way is better than the other ... It is a question of character and moods of the soul ...
Nevermind what we do the river flows with his few big arms but beware! if we construct a few dams to sell the electricity ...😊😁
A metaphor is only a story not an explanation for sure ...😁
But at the end there is no more an explanation perhaps , only a metaphor or a story ...