Wednesday, May 30, 2012
RIP / Music / Post No Bills Chicago guitar genius Pete Cosey dead at 68
Posted by Peter Margasak on 05.30.12 at 12:26 PM
Pete Cosey, on the other hand, was a classic musician's musician; he's not especially well-known, though he played on tons of classic records. As such, word of his passing is traveling rather more slowly.
Cosey was a key session musician at Chess Records in the 60s, appearing on sides by Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, the Rotary Connection, and Etta James, and he worked with the great Phil Cohran in the latter's Artistic Heritage Ensemble. He's probably most famous, though (to the extent that he's famous at all), for his mind-melting work with Miles Davis in the early 70s: he played on the trumpeter's heaviest, most electric albums, including Agharta, Pangaea, and Get Up With It. After Davis broke up the band in 1975 and went into semi-retirement, Cosey was never able to build the solo career he so richly deserved. He used his guitar like an abstract expressionist painter, creating thick, richly textured solos with fierce rhythmic power, dazzling colors, and nonchalant violence. He continued to appear on records here and there, including Herbie Hancock's Future Shock and an album with Japanese saxophonist Akira Sakata, but he always seemed to be planning his own next project, which never quite materialized.
I've written two columns about Cosey during my tenure at the Reader, one in 1997 and one in 2003, and the interviews I had with him over the years were some of the most enjoyable, cordial, and informative I've ever conducted. Cosey had remarkable recall, peppering every talk we had with fascinating, hilarious anecdotes. Below you can check out a clip of him with Davis in 1973—he's the seated guy with the large beard and cool shades. When his playing (on a 12-string!) kicks in at the five-minute mark, prepare to be blown away.
Today's playlist:
Cindytalk, Hold Everything Dear (Editions Mego)
Jenny Hval, Viscera (Rune Grammofon)
Duke Ellington, Blues in Orbit (Columbia/Legacy)
Sambrasa Trio, Em Som Maior (Som Maior/Som Livre)
Cheer-Accident, No Ifs, Ands, or Dogs (Cuneiform)
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