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Buddy Miles was an American rock and funk drummer and vocalist, best known for his work with The Electric Flag and Jimi Hendrix's Band of Gypsies.
Buddy Miles' friendship with Jimi Hendrix came to its fruition in late 1969, after he had broken up his band Buddy Miles Express. For three months Miles and bassist Billy Cox joined with Hendrix to form Band Of Gypsies - a live album was released in 1970, and it has come to be seen as among Hendrix's most highly regarded work. The album featured Miles' song "Them Changes", which he sang lead on.
The album Them Changes came out in 1970 shortly after the breakup of Band of Gypsies, and presumably after Hendrix's death the same year. The title track appeared again in a funky horn-driven arrangement, and the rest of the album mostly followed this rock/funk/soul formula. It was Miles' first true solo album released under his own name (his first two had been credited to Buddy Miles Express). Also includes great covers of The Allman Brothers Band's "Dreams", Neil Young's "Down By The River" and Otis Redding's "Your Feeling Is Mine".
Electric Church (1969) <|> We Got To Live Together (1970)
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Buddy Miles was an American rock and funk drummer and vocalist, best known for his work with The Electric Flag and Jimi Hendrix's Band of Gypsies.
His second album released as the Buddy Miles Express was a continuation of the sound he had forged with Expressway To Your Skull - a psychedelic blend of heavy rock, funk, soul and blues. Like its predecessor, Electric Church was partly produced by Jimi Hendrix, and again it bridged the gap between the late 60s psychedelic rock scene and Miles' R&B roots, though Electric Church perhaps had a looser, more jam-orientated vibe than the first album. This was still before Miles joined Hendrix's Band Of Gypsies. Contains a great version of "Texas", which he co-wrote with Mike Bloomfield, and had originally appeared on The Electric Flag's debut album.
Expressway To Your Skull (1968) <|> Them Changes (1970)
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Buddy Miles was an American rock and funk drummer and vocalist, best known for his work with The Electric Flag and Jimi Hendrix's Band of Gypsies.
Buddy Miles was a teenage prodigy, and played with numerous bands in the 60s, including a stint with soul singer Wilson Pickett. His first big break was as drummer with The Electric Flag, the soul/blues band formed by Mike Bloomfield. When Bloomfield left after their first album, Miles took on a leadership role, and sang on many songs as well as playing the drums. After the Electric Flag broke up he formed his own group, Buddy Miles Express, with guitarist Jim McCarty (later of Cactus) and the brothers Billy and Herbie Rich, on bass and keyboards respectively (Herbie Rich had been with him in the Electric Flag). By this time he had become associated with Jimi Hendrix, who came to produce their debut album.
Expressway To Your Skull was a big, muscular mix of psychedelic rock, soul and funk. The horn arrangements and Miles' solid drumming provided the funk backbone, his powerful voice brought the soul and McCarty's bluesy fuzz guitar gave it its psychdelic edge. It's a really great mix - Miles was from a soul background, but was playing in the midst of the psychedelic counterculture under Hendrix's guiding hand, and his music bridged the gap between the two scenes.
|> Electric Church (1969)
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Buddy Miles' friendship with Jimi Hendrix came to its fruition in late 1969, after he had broken up his band Buddy Miles Express. For three months Miles and bassist Billy Cox joined with Hendrix to form Band Of Gypsies - a live album was released in 1970, and it has come to be seen as among Hendrix's most highly regarded work. The album featured Miles' song "Them Changes", which he sang lead on.
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