#189 Miles Bould- Percussionist, Drummer, Session Musician & More!
This week’s guest is Miles Bould. Miles was born in London took up Saxophone and Clarinet at a young age and was strongly musically influenced by his father, a producer who had worked with such Jazz luminaries as Gil Evans and Dizzy Gillespie - many of these great musicians went on to be family friends. Dizzy noticed Miles musical passion turn specifically to percussion at around 11 years old and set him on his path as a percussionist by giving him three of his touring congas.
At age 16 Miles was jamming and working in clubs playing various style of music predominantly Latin, Jazz, Funk and Reggae. He then joined his first serious Funk band ‘Sava Jazz’. Through that followed a meeting with guitarist Dominic Miller (Sting). Dominic took Miles under his wing and they toured and have done many sessions together over the years. He was also spotted by Robert Palmer who he then began recording and gigging with. He then met Julia Fordham who was very instrumental in helping Miles get more connected in the session scene. She hired him to tour and eventually record with her. He went on to record and tour extensively with quite a broad spectrum of artists as both a percussionist or drummer. Including Sting, Daryl Hall, Joe Cocker, Level 42, Cher, Eternal, The Lighthouse Family, Julia Fordham, Incognito, The Pasadenas, The Beloved, Suggs, Shara Nelson and Simply Red.
He also recorded a sample CD with fellow percussionist Danny Cummings called ‘The Rhythm of Life’ which has been used by Pat Metheny, George Michael, Brownstone, NYPD Blue, The Michael Douglas/Demi Moore film ‘Disclosure’ and many others. This was followed by another 2 sample CDs for AMG: ‘Intravenous’ and ‘The Progression’.
He also gigged with his own bands ‘Goosebump’ a Funk Rock band and also ‘Peoplespeak’ A Fusion project - Steps Ahead used one of their compositions ‘Agitate the Gravel’ for their 1992 album Ying Yang. He toured extensively with Billy Ocean and went on to co-write the title song on his 2010 album “Because I Love You”.
The next few years saw Miles recording albums and gigging with more artists including Kylie Minogue, Michael Ball, Beyonce, Michael Jackson, Joan Armatrading, Jermaine Jackson, Sonique, Valerie Etienne (Galliano) Desert Eagle Discs, Gerard Presencer, Shaun Escoffery, Brand New Heavies, Russell Watson, Morcheeba, Mansun, Daniel Bedingfield, McFly, Dominic Miller, Nigel Kennedy and Lesley Garret.
His current band ‘USONiC’ were nominated for a MOBO award in 2011 for best jazz act with their album ‘EVOLUTION’, which features Scott Henderson and Scott Kinsey of Tribal Tech.
Miles has his own professional recording studio where he currently carries out a lot of his drum and percussion sessions remotely
Happy Birthday!
Happy 78th Birthday to the great Jack DeJohnette! Jack is usually labeled as a “jazz drummer,” and gigs with Charles Lloyd, Miles Davis, Keith Jarrett, John Abercrombie, Ornette Coleman, Pat Metheny, and others have put him at the top of the jazz elite. But he has also worked with members of the rock band Living Colour and a variety of world music artists, and much of the music he has released under his own name defies easy categorization, save for the fact that there is always an emphasis on improvisation.
DeJohnette was born in Chicago in 1942. He began studying piano at age four and later took piano lessons at the Chicago Conservatory of Music. He started playing drums with his high school concert band, and soon was leading his own groups and becoming in demand as both a pianist and as a drummer with R&B, hard bop, and avant-garde jazz groups around Chicago.
While in junior college he played with such future AACM (Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians) members as Muhal Richard Abrams, Roscoe Mitchell, and Joseph Jarman, and also had an opportunity to play alongside Rashied Ali in John Coltrane’s group. He moved to New York in 1966, where he played with Big John Patton and Jackie McLean. DeJohnette then gained widespread exposure during his two years in the Charles Lloyd Quartet, which included pianist Keith Jarrett and released such albums as Dream Weaver and Forest Flower.
Here is the Spotify playlist Damon referred to on Spotify to celebrate Jack’s birthday.
Gig Alerts
The NAMM 2021 show scheduled in January at the Anaheim Convention Center is canceled. Instead, an online event will take place. -Article
Saturday September 5th, at 3pm there will be a Rumba Festival, virtually for Hartford, CT and the rest of New England featuring friend of the show, Eddie Montalvo among others.
With outdoor concerts still canceled across California, the Outside Lands festival is going virtual. The Inside Lands virtual music festival will stream on Twitch later this month. -Article
Damon is playing with Morgan James on Tuesday August 18th, in Pawling, NY at Daryl’s House Club. Donations are accepted for this Live Streaming Concert. It starts at 8pm and you can get more info and tickets by CLICKING HERE.
Educational Spotlight
Drum Fantasy Camp is Now on ZOOM!
The 2020 Drum Fantasy Camp will not be taking place due to the COVID-19 pandemic. But dozens of the world's greatest drummers are running 3-hour ZOOM master classes all throughout the summer!
Most classes are just $149. Space is limited, usually to 12-15 participants. This ensures that each participant can ask questions and get feedback.
So far, classes have been selling out quickly! Click here to scroll through classes!
Drum Fantasy Camp will return in 2021 with another world-class program!
Iconic Recording
This week’s iconic recording “Railroad Man” by Bill Withers from the album ‘Justments, was chosen by Miles. It features two conga players, Chip Steen and José Feliciano alongside drummer James Gadson among others.
Music News
You can help now to save the live music community. Ask your legislators to support the Restart Act with the help of NITO (National Independent Talent Organization).
President Trump has issued an executive order calling for the extension of the weekly federal unemployment benefits initially earmarked within the CARES Act. However, eligible individuals will now receive $400 per week, in addition to their states’ respective unemployment aid. -Article
Roc Nation, the 50-year-old rapper and mogul’s entertainment company, recently detailed the college – officially named the Roc Nation School of Music, Sports & Entertainment – in a formal release. The result of a partnership between Roc Nation and Long Island University (LIU), Roc Nation School will start enrolling students at the LIU campus in Jay-Z’s native Brooklyn next fall. It’s unclear how many individuals the school will accommodate, but interested students can begin submitting their applications sometime this autumn. -Article
The song leading into the interview is called “Tribute” from Miles’ self-titled album.
Miles Bould Interview
Miles came recommended by friend of the show, Pete Lockett and Lea Mullen.
The show Damon was involved in at the Hammersmith Apollo in London was called Blast. While there he hung with Thomas Dyani Akuru and Williams Cumberbache among others.
The Lil Wayne line is “real G's move in silence like lasagna” from the song “6 Foot, 7 Foot”.
Miles' father grew up with Tubby Hayes and hung with a lot of heavy Jazz musicians and also produced some records like Stan Tracey’s “Under Milk Wood” Jazz Suite.
Miles got his first conga lesson and first set of conga drums from Dizzy Gillespie. Another push was listening to Art Blakey and The Stan Kenton Big Band.
Miles talks about how great Dizzy was with him as a kid. Damon mentions that he saw Dizzy on Sesame Street as a kid (on TV). He was also on the Muppet Show.
Dizzy met Chano Pozo and Mario Bauza.
Shout-out to Martin Cohen's Congahead website and his newly released book.
Damon brings up that Miles’ traits on stage might be considered being an extroverted introvert.
The face Damon brings up when everything is locked and grooving can be seen below.
Miles is a sideman, session musician and also a band leader. One of the groups he talks about is USonic.
He also did an album called “TRiBUTE” that took 16 years to complete. You can start listening to the album with the clip below…..
Miles talks about the Baka women from Gbiné who demonstrate some more Liquindi (water drumming) in the River Lupé, Cameroon.
Miles mentions how Jazz has evolved with a mixing of other different genres into it.
Miles talks about his relationship with his friend Dominic Miller. The percussionist he couldn’t remember who played with Sting was Cyro Baptista.
Miles and Damon talk about the genius of the great Gary Novak. Damon talks about the theme aspect of creating a solo. He mentions the solo theme Giovanni Hidalgo has used for several years.
Miles talks about limitations and instrument choices after seeing Airto Moreira and Damon also mentions the game Scott Pellegrom and his friends would play in college.
Miles and Damon talk about the demands of percussionists compared to other instrumentalists with the vast amount of instruments from different countries. One of the instruments Damon brings up is the Quitiplás from Venezuela. Another are the Cas Cas shaker from Senegal (or Asalato from Ghana).
If you’re interested in how to play the (Cuban) guiro properly. If you’re wondering about the (Dominican) guira, that is played differently.
Miles talks about the importance of playing smaller instruments really well for long periods of time, especially studio sessions. Miles mentions a small black maraca like shaker. If you want to learn the Venezuelan way to play maracas, you can start with this video.
Miles talks about being a percussionist and adapting to the singer or a loop pedal. He mentions John Martyn as a guitarist who used a loop pedal. This video (below) features Jeff Allen -drums, Danny Cummings -percussion, Alan Thomson -bass, and Max Middleton -keys along with John.
Miles picks the iconic recording for this week (mentioned above). The honorable mention is Jaco Pastorius’ album “Word of Mouth” that features Don Alias on percussion.
Miles talks about serving the song as a sideman, learning how to sing and also singing the melody with minimal embellishments.
Miles uses Gon Bops Percussion Instruments , Remo Drumheads, Vic Firth Sticks and Mallets, Protection Racket Cases and Sabian Cymbals.
You can follow Miles on his Website, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
if you’re interested in his new album, you can get it by CLICKING HERE. Here’s a VIDEO to go along with another of his new projects
The song leading out of the interview is called “Touch” by USonic.
