Legend

Clarke Peters explores the life and legacy of a visionary artist whose relentless pursuit of the "new" often scorched his own life and the lives of those around him.
In September 1944, an 18-year-old Miles Davis arrives in New York with a trumpet in his hand and a secret mission. He may have first arrived in New York to take up a place at the prestigious Juilliard School, but in reality Miles was actually patrolling the smoke-filled jazz clubs of 52nd Street, chasing the high-speed sounds of his bebop heroes, Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie.
Across the series, Clarke charts Miles’s ever-evolving artform, starting with this first great transformation of a legend - when the young Miles chose to step into the unknown, seize control of his own creative destiny, and begin his journey as a leader.
Narrator, acclaimed actor and longtime fan, Clarke Peters (The Wire, Treme, Da 5 Bloods) reveals the restless genius and radical evolution of Miles Davis. Growing up in a New York household where his father’s jazz records were the permanent soundtrack, Clarke was captivated by Miles long before he fully appreciated the man behind the music. Across five episodes, Clarke traces a 50 year odyssey of constant reinvention - from a teenage outsider chasing the bebop revolution in 1944 to a global icon who redefined what it meant to be Black, to be cool, and to be an artist.
Blending archival recordings and legendary tracks with fresh perspectives from a range of creators, the series reveals how Miles’ influence ripples far beyond the world of jazz. We discover how his "take no shit" attitude and aesthetic fearlessness impacted on the likes of Oscar-winning filmmakers, celebrated designers and music icons like Prince, Joni Mitchell, Sting and even bands like Radiohead, as well as generations of now also legendary jazz musicians that he championed early in their careers - John Coltrane, Bill Evans, Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter, Keith Jarrett and Marcus Miller, to name a few.
The series also grapples with the darker side of Miles’ legacy, including the domestic abuse that left a trail of pain for those closest to him and the substance issues that took a deep toll on his health. It asks difficult questions about how to regard an artist capable of creating the most sublime aesthetic statements while engaging in brutal behaviour.
Clarke Peters, whose own creative journey as an actor was sparked by Miles’s music, leads a searching investigation into a man who refused to be palatable, refused to be a "legend", and simply refused to stop moving forward.
Miles Davis Interview: From Jazz Talking by Ben Sidran, 1986.
The Arsenio Hall Show, Paramount, originally broadcast in 1989.
60 Minutes, CBS News. Originally broadcast in 1989
Featured tracks (in order of appearance)
“So What” – Miles Davis
“Blue in Green” – Miles Davis (feat. John Coltrane & Bill Evans)
“Bitches Brew” – Miles Davis
"Miles Runs the Voodoo Down" - MIles Davis
“Agitation” – Miles Davis
“Flamenco Sketches” – Miles Davis & Bill Evans
“Ko Ko” – Charlie Parker
“Salt Peanuts” – Dizzy Gillespie
"Jivin with Jack the Bellboy" - Miles Davis
"Move" - Miles Davis
"Moon Dreams" - Miles Davis
"Boplicity" - Miles Davis
Presenter: Clarke Peters
Series Producer: Clem Hitchcock
Executive Producer: Rami Tzabar
Editor: Kirsten Lass
Production Manager: Emily Duffy
Music Consultant: Guy Barker
Additional Music: Guy Barker
Archivist: Simon Rooks
Script Consultant: Anne Harbin
Technical Production and Sound Design: Melvin Rickarby
Commissioning Editors for the BBC: Dan Clarke and Matthew Dodd
A Loftus Media production for BBC Radio 4

Trumpeter Miles Davis didn’t just change jazz; he redefined the sound of the 20th century. But that constant reinvention came at a price. Clarke Peters explores a visionary artist, to reveal the man behind the legend: a complicated genius whose relentless pursuit of the "new" often scorched his own life and the lives of those around him.

How did Bruce become The Boss, and what did it cost him to get there? Laura Barton explores the extraordinary life story of Bruce Springsteen, taking a front-row seat at five important gigs to reveal the life behind the legend.
In our final chapter, we trace Bruce’s journey to his latest tour - The Land of Hope and Dreams - where he speaks out on stage against the President of the United States. How did Bruce become the kind of artist who wears his politics so openly? And what impact has this had on his fan base?
Laura travels to Milan in the heat of July for the last stop on the tour at San Siro Stadium, where she meets fans who’ve journeyed from around the world to witness this moment.
~~~
“I'm here tonight to provide proof of life to that ever elusive, never completely believable, particularly these days, us. That's my magic trick.”
In Legend: The Bruce Springsteen Story, we uncover the magic trick to discover how a scrawny, long-haired introvert from small-town New Jersey became the iconic, muscular, and oft-misunderstood rock star of the 1980s, to the eloquent elder statesmen he is now. What can his story tell us about America today?
In each episode, Laura takes us to the front row of a live performance that reveals a different side of The Boss, and hears him across the decades in his own words from the archive. We'll also hear from fellow worshippers in the Church of Springsteen and disciples from the E Street Band, including drummer Max Weinberg, tributes from those influenced by Bruce, such as Bryce Dessner from The National, as well as Freehold town historian Kevin Coyne and music critics and biographers such as Richard Williams, Eric Alterman, Steven Hyden, Warren Zanes and Diane H. Winston.
The Bruce Springsteen Story comes from the production team behind BBC Radio 4’s award-winning Joni Mitchell Story, and the podcast Soul Music – “… the gold standard for music podcasts…” (Esquire).
Producer: Eliza Lomas
Sound Design and Original Music: Hannis Brown
Mix engineer: Ilse Lademann
Series Development: Mair Bosworth
Production Coordinator: Stuart Laws
Research: Sarah Goodman
Series Editor: Emma Harding
Commissioning Editors: Daniel Clarke and Matthew Dodd
Assistant Commissioner Podcasts: Will Drysdale

How did Bruce become The Boss, and what did it cost him to get there? Laura Barton explores the extraordinary life story of Bruce Springsteen, taking a front-row seat at five important gigs to reveal the life behind the legend.
Bruce is living in Hollywood, L.A, making music without his long-time bandmates. It's a time of Bruce being far away from his roots - and from some of his most loyal fans. But a homecoming concert in his school gym in Freehold, New Jersey marks a turning point.
~~~
“I'm here tonight to provide proof of life to that ever elusive, never completely believable, particularly these days, us. That's my magic trick.”
In Legend: The Bruce Springsteen Story, we uncover the magic trick to discover how a scrawny, long-haired introvert from small-town New Jersey became the iconic, muscular, and oft-misunderstood rock star of the 1980s, to the eloquent elder statesmen he is now. What can his story tell us about America today?
In each episode, Laura takes us to the front row of a live performance that reveals a different side of The Boss, and hears him across the decades in his own words from the archive. We'll also hear from fellow worshippers in the Church of Springsteen and disciples from the E Street Band, including drummer Max Weinberg, tributes from those influenced by Bruce, such as Bryce Dessner from The National, as well as Freehold town historian Kevin Coyne, former Asbury Park Press music critic Kelly Jane Cotter, and biographers such as Eric Alterman, Steven Hyden and Warren Zanes.
The Bruce Springsteen Story comes from the production team behind BBC Radio 4’s award-winning Joni Mitchell Story, and the podcast Soul Music – “… the gold standard for music podcasts…” (Esquire).
Producer: Eliza Lomas
Series Development: Mair Bosworth
Sound Design and Original Music: Hannis Brown
Production Coordinator: Stuart Laws
Research: Sarah Goodman
Series Editor: Emma Harding
Commissioning Editors: Daniel Clarke and Matthew Dodd

How did Bruce become The Boss, and what did it cost him to get there? Laura Barton explores the extraordinary life story of Bruce Springsteen, taking a front-row seat at five important gigs to reveal the life behind the legend.
Bruce's story continues in rural Holmdel, New Jersey, alone with a four-track tape recorder. He goes back into his childhood, drives the streets of his early years, searching for answers. Looking for meaning. The seminal album, Nebraska, is what comes out.
What happens next is an unravelling. And then a rebuilding. The Bruce who returns is unrecognisable. "He's got muscles now. Does that mean we have to get muscles now?!" - Warren Zanes. The album Born In The USA, with the anthemic album track and hit single Dancing In The Dark, takes Bruce stratospheric.
In October, 1985, after two years and 156 shows, the Born In The USA tour comes to a close at the Coliseum Los Angeles. Four sold out nights of 80,000 people. The final night is one of melancholy and of joy. And a foreboding of change to come.
~~~
“I'm here tonight to provide proof of life to that ever elusive, never completely believable, particularly these days, us. That's my magic trick.”
In Legend: The Bruce Springsteen Story, we uncover the magic trick to discover how a scrawny, long-haired introvert from small-town New Jersey became the iconic, muscular, and oft-misunderstood rock star of the 1980s, to the eloquent elder statesmen he is now. What can his story tell us about America today?
In each episode, Laura takes us to the front row of a live performance that reveals a different side of The Boss, and hears him across the decades in his own words from the archive. We'll also hear from fellow worshippers in the Church of Springsteen, and disciples from the E Street Band, including drummer Max Weinberg, tributes from those influenced by Bruce, such as Bryce Dessner from The National, as well as Freehold town historian Kevin Coyne and music critics and biographers such as Richard Williams, Eric Alterman, Steven Hyden, Warren Zanes and Diane H. Winston.
The Bruce Springsteen Story comes from the production team behind BBC Radio 4’s award-winning Joni Mitchell Story, and the podcast Soul Music – “… the gold standard for music podcasts…” (Esquire).
Producer: Eliza Lomas
Series Developer: Mair Bosworth
Production Coordinator: Stuart Laws
Research: Sarah Goodman
Series Editor: Emma Harding
Sound Design and Original Music: Hannis Brown
Commissioning Editors: Daniel Clarke and Matthew Dodd