Jazz Nation

“At age 50, Miles Davis’ album Kind of Blue has been officially and unanimously hailedby the US House of Representatives. Rep. John Conyers (D-Michigan) sponsored H.Res 894, which on Tuesday passed 409 to 0, recognizing the ‘unique contribution’ of the 37-minutes of modal improvisation trumpeter Davis and his stellar sextet recorded on March 2 and April 22, 1959. The honor is richly deserved, and if you have to ask why, spend some quality time with the music. To learn more about it, I recommend Ashley Kahn’s well-researched book of ‘the making of Miles Davis’ masterpiece.’ But back to our contentious Congress: As my colleague Philip Booth posted on his blog ‘Scribe Life’ the resolution reaffirms jazz as a national treasure (a point Conyers first made in 1987 with House Concurrent Resolution 57), upholds fair protection of recording artists under copyright laws, and encourages the U.S. government to take steps to ‘preserve and advance the art form of jazz.’”