Kind of Blue
Kind of Blue is a studio album by American jazz trumpeter-composer Miles Davis. It was recorded on March 2 and April 22, 1959, at Columbia's 30th Street Studio in New York City, and released on August 17 of that year by Columbia Records. For the recording, Davis led a sextet featuring saxophonists John Coltrane and Julian "Cannonball" Adderley, pianist Bill Evans, bassist Paul Chambers, and drummer Jimmy Cobb, with new band pianist Wynton Kelly appearing on one track – "Freddie Freeloader" – in place of Evans.

In part owing to Evans' joining the ensemble in 1958, Davis departed further from his early work's hard bop style in favor of greater experimentation with musical modes, as he had on his previous album "Milestones" (1958). In basing "Kind of Blue" entirely on modality, he gave each performer a set of scales that encompassed the parameters of their improvisation and style, and consequently more creative freedom with melodies. Coltrane later expanded on this modal approach in his solo career.

"Kind of Blue" has been regarded by many critics as the greatest jazz record, Davis's masterpiece, and one of the best albums of all time. Its influence on music, including jazz, rock, and classical genres, has led writers to also deem it one of the most influential albums ever recorded. The album was one of fifty recordings chosen in 2002 by the Library of Congress to be added to the National Recording Registry, and in 2003 it was ranked number 12 on "Rolling Stone" magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.

Though precise figures have been disputed, "Kind of Blue" is often cited as the best-selling jazz record of all time. In 2019, it was certified 5× Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments of over five million copies.
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