This is our third and final installment of our centennial celebration of Miles Davis. May 26 marks the 100th anniversary of his birth. Join Rodney Stepp as we spotlight the music of Carl Perkins, one of the most important jazz pianists to emerge from Indiana Avenue, and one of Miles Davis' favorite pianists.
Born in Indianapolis on August 16, 1928, Perkins was an important figure in hard bop music, performing alongside legendary musicians, including Max Roach, Dizzy Gillespie, Quincy Jones, and Miles Davis.
In a 1955 edition of DownBeat magazine, Davis praised Perkins’ work as a pianist, stating, “He plays very good piano, but he doesn’t record enough. I wish I could get him to work with me. You know, that man can play bass notes with his elbows.”
Davis wasn’t joking about Perkins playing piano with his elbows. In the liner notes of a 1957 album from the Curtis Counce Group, Perkins explained: “When I was small, my hand was too little to make the bass chords, so I turned my hand around and used my elbow to make them.”
Sadly, Perkins and Davis never had a chance to record together — Perkins died tragically young — a drug overdose took his life in March of 1958. He was just 29 years old.
