Miles was, in my opinion, the best leader. He hired formidable musicians (often totally unknown pre-Miles) and let them play however they liked, with minimal direction on his part.
I have talked with some guys who worked with Miles (John McLaughlin, John Schofield, Dave Liebman) and they all said that although Miles instructions were minimal, they were always very pertinent. (Apparently during the Bitches Brew session all he ever told Chick Corea was "That's too much Chick" or "That's not enough Chick")
But was Miles the greatest jazz player ever ? Once you get to that standard of playing you can name a top hundred players OK, but putting them in any order of excellence would be tough. Miles was a much better trumpet player than a lot of pedants might have given him credit for, but he always took risks so sometimes you hear a fluffed note or two. So what ?
The Miles Davis discography is huge, and so many styles are explored that most people find something they like. (However my friend's uncle threw out all his Miles vinyl records when Bitches Brew came out and never listened to him again - some people take stuff far too seriously !)
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