Jazz guitarist Pete Cosey used electronic distortion and innovative methods of stringing and tuning his guitar to impress his signature sound on recordings by artists from bluesmen Muddy Waters and Howlin’ Wolf to jazz great Miles Davis.
Mr. Cosey, 68, died Wednesday, May 30th in Chicago. He played on several Miles Davis albums in the 1970s, including “Get Up With It,” “Dark Magus,” “Agharta” and “Pangaea.” He also played on the Grammy-nominated 2008 tribute compilation “Miles from India,” which featured a number of former Davis sidemen and musicians from India.
“I always thought Pete was way ahead in his music. He was always moving forward,” said Davis’ nephew, drummer Vince Wilburn Jr., who with Mr. Cosey and others played a couple of tour dates in connection with the album.
Mr. Cosey is survived by daughters Mariama Cosey, Aribania Cosey-Ewing, Dunni CoseyGay and Karumah Cosey; a son, Ishmak; and six grandchildren.
A memorial is set for 4 to 6 p.m. Thursday, June 14, in the SGI-USA Culture Center, 1455 S. Wabash Ave., Chicago.
Read more at the Chicago Tribune.