“I knew that he liked me, and he would call me on the phone. ‘Robben, what you doing!?’” Robben Ford on how playing with Miles Davis made him feel untouchable

A classic black-and-white live shot of Robben Ford and Miles Davis performing together in 1986, with Ford playing a Fender Stratocaster.

Robben Ford was no rookie when Miles Davis drafted him for his band in 1986. When he was in his early twenties, Ford had played with Joni Mitchell, backing her onstage as part of the Tom Scott-led LA Express, playing on The Hissing Of Summer Lawns.

He had played with George Harrison – again, onstage and in the studio, tracking Dark Horse, playing on the title track, and enjoying the experience of awe at being in the mere presence of a Beatle, and then finding the work kinda easy, all things considered.