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Well, no, Holland was already playing seriously when Davis called him, Tony Williams too—they had both some experience. On the other hand, Davis at the time of Parker was a nobody, and I repeat, he couldn't play a note; he had nothing to do with bop, he had serious issues with his sound, I mean, guys, he just wasn't able. Then he improved a lot, made a record with Rollins where he really played great and with a lot of personality, but at the time of the meetings and the jams and recordings with Parker, he was a total mess, seriously, especially compared to the bop trumpet players who were around New York back then, apart from Dizzy Gillespie who was stratospheric, and all his followers. Surely Parker saw something good in him, of course, but it doesn't add up for me; it's not possible that in that environment there weren't other unknown kids who could have played with Parker much better than Miles. In my opinion, Parker was indebted to him, as he came from a wealthy family, and those recordings are a way to repay that debt, but it's a baseless hypothesis.

The tale they told me speaks of a Parker struck by the originality of Davis's phrasing, which was a fitting counterbalance to his vehemence. However, upon a more discerning listen, you can hear a Miles who is really just starting out; he lacks tone, hits wrong notes, and is out of time. In short, Parker was already a legend; he could have played with anyone, and instead, he chose to play with an aristocratic kid who just fiddles around? Let's hope the Basentio clarifies our ideas, but he must have stayed out late last night.

I don't understand...

Sure, here’s the translation:
Yeah, right, now he has retroactive influence; he has influenced trumpet players from 20 years before. I have a question about Miles Davis that’s been spinning in my mind for a while: Why did he play with Parker? I mean, he arrives in New York at 18, he plays the trumpet terribly, and at that time there were people like Gillespie, Eldridge, Navarro, who would wipe the floor with him, so why does Parker make him play with him? I think there’s something behind it that has little to do with music, if anyone can shed some light....

Shall we meet here again? Guys, I've got a mailbag that weighs four and a half kilos.

Come on, now you’re exaggerating; any trumpeter after Miles has to deal with him inevitably. As for Shorter not having invented anything, I completely disagree. First of all, he has a phrasing that, yes, starts from Coltrane and to some extent from Rollins, but he has developed it in a way that's completely different from everyone else, and compositionally he has made his mark in a big way. In my opinion, pieces like Virgo, Infant Eyes, Sightseen, but also Nefertiti, for example, are milestones of jazz, no doubt about it. Even his latest album, Alegria, is beautiful; it’s full of interesting ideas, in short, it’s beautiful, and music should be nothing but beautiful. As for whether he invented anything, I don't know; I believe that scientists invent, while musicians are better off just playing. Or if they really must invent something, they should invent a machine that runs on nonsense, so we could all go around free here on DeBAser.

On Miles Davis, I feel I must agree; he wasn't innovative in the strict sense of the term, but he influenced all the subsequent trumpeters. Someone was so influenced by him that they never left the tunnel; he's a highly regarded Italian who is unjustly celebrated, with a little mustache and a hieratic appearance—I won't mention any names. Wayne Shorter certainly belongs to the mentioned innovators, with an inimitable phrasing and conception both in soloing and composing.

No Basentini, Wayne Shorter doing Coltrane with a cold, no. You can’t break me with Shorter too, for heaven's sake!

Ah, and Jim Hall wow!!

I'll throw it out there, Metheny may not be the pinnacle of novelty and research, but I have always been fascinated by his extremely singable way of improvising. I don't think he should be considered a true jazz musician, but rather a craftsman of the guitar; in jazz, he still expresses himself very well thanks to his melodic vein and his clarity and simplicity in expression. More than anyone, I like Wes.