“Milestones” (sometimes called “Miles”) is the title track of Miles Davis’s 1958 album, featuring Coltrane, Cannonball Adderley, Red Garland, Paul Chambers and Philly Joe Jones. It was one of Miles’s first modal compositions, paving the way for Kind of Blue.
The form is AABBA. The A sections are based on G Dorian, and the B sections on A Aeolian (A natural minor). Each section lasts several bars, giving soloists room to explore one mode at a time. It’s played at a fast tempo.
For improvisation, focus on modal playing: G Dorian over the A sections and A Aeolian over the B sections. Make the transition clear. Build solos from motifs rather than ii-V patterns.
Practice the transitions between modes with a play-along at a slower tempo first.
Section by section: in the A sections, use G Dorian and build phrases from small motifs. When the B section arrives, switch to A Aeolian; land on C, the minor third of A, to signal the change. Return to G Dorian for the final A. Because the tempo is fast, practice with a metronome and keep your lines relaxed. Cannonball Adderley’s solo on the original is bluesy and energetic, while Coltrane’s is intense and searching.
Practice tip: practice modal improvisation by playing only one mode for a whole minute, using it to create melodies rather than scales. This builds the creativity you need for modal tunes, where the harmony doesn’t hand you ideas.
Getting the most from the Milestones Lead Sheet PDF: start by reading the chord symbols without your instrument and humming the roots. Then circle any chord you can’t yet voice or arpeggiate, and make those your warm-up for the week before you play the whole form.
Is it hard to play? It’s intermediate, mainly due to tempo. Recordings to study: Milestones (1958). Learn more about the composer on Miles Davis’s Wikipedia page, and find more modal lead sheets on Minedit.