George Allen "Buddy" Miles Jr. (September 5, 1947 – February 26, 2008), was an American rock drummer, vocalist, composer, and producer best remembered for his work with Jimi Hendrix in the Band of Gypsys. However, in a career lasting nearly 50 years, he played in many styles including blues, jazz, doowop and funk, and while never quite a superstar himself, he performed alongside some of the most illustrious musicians of his era.
Born George Miles in Omaha, Nebraska, his exposure to music began early in his life, since his father George Sr led a jazz band called the Bebops. George Jr developed an urge to play the drums, and was sitting in with his father's group by the time he was nine. News of his precocious skills earned him gigs with acts including the Ink Spots, the Delfonics and Ruby and the Romantics, as well as with soul giants Otis Redding and Wilson Pickett.It was while playing at a Pickett gig in Brooklyn in 1967 that Miles was spotted by guitarist Mike Bloomfield, who was impressed by his beefy, bottom-heavy beat and recruited him for his new band, the Electric Flag. Bloomfield was already well known for his work with the Paul Butterfield Blues Band, who
![]()
had backed Bob Dylan at his "Bob goes electric" gig at the Newport folk festival, and expectations were high for his new venture. Unfortunately, despite its ambitious mix of soul,
rock, blues and psychedelia, the Flag failed to fly, and while Bloomfield's early departure left Miles in control, the band's days were numbered.
had backed Bob Dylan at his "Bob goes electric" gig at the Newport folk festival, and expectations were high for his new venture. Unfortunately, despite its ambitious mix of soul, rock, blues and psychedelia, the Flag failed to fly, and while Bloomfield's early departure left Miles in control, the band's days were numbered.
Miles dragged himself from the wreckage to form his own unit, the Buddy Miles Express. This proved another brief experiment, since he quickly became caught up in the irresistible slipstream of Hendrix, whom he had met when they both performed at the Monterey pop festival in 1967. Miles played on a couple of tracks
![]()
on Hendrix's Electric Ladyland album (Rainy Day, Dream Away
and Still Raining, Still Dreaming), then was recruited full-time by Hendrix when his band, the Experience, disintegrated in 1969. With bassist Billy Cox, the new outfit became the Band of Gypsys, who could claim to be the first all-black rock band. Although their recorded legacy comprises a solitary album, recorded live at the Fillmore East in New York on December 31 1969, it happened to catch Hendrix in spectacular form, notably on the album's centrepiece, Machine Gun. The album also included a couple of Miles's songs, Them Changes and We Gotta Live Together, and climbed to No 5 on the American charts.
and Still Raining, Still Dreaming), then was recruited full-time by Hendrix when his band, the Experience, disintegrated in 1969. With bassist Billy Cox, the new outfit became the Band of Gypsys, who could claim to be the first all-black rock band. Although their recorded legacy comprises a solitary album, recorded live at the Fillmore East in New York on December 31 1969, it happened to catch Hendrix in spectacular form, notably on the album's centrepiece, Machine Gun. The album also included a couple of Miles's songs, Them Changes and We Gotta Live Together, and climbed to No 5 on the American charts.
Despite its success, Hendrix terminated the Band of Gypsys project a month later. Miles felt that the guitarist had been under management pressure not to continue with an all-black group.
![]()
"It had to be a racial thing," Miles commented in 1988. "I think it had to scare them because of the political aspect at the time." He then formed the Buddy Miles Band and recorded the album Them Changes, whose title track became a hit and helped glue the album into the Billboard charts for 74 weeks. He revisited the track in 1972 when he teamed up with Carlos Santana for a live album recorded inside a Hawaiian volcano, and the same year he played drums on the Muddy Waters album, Fathers and Sons.
Ironically, having sung "I feel just like commitin' a crime" in Them Changes, Miles was jailed for grand theft in 1978, but by the following year was back outside and working with Santana, with whom he continued until the mid-80s. He picked up regular session work with a variety of top names including David Bowie, Eric Clapton and Stevie Wonder, and in 1986 made a surprising detour into the lucrative world of TV advertising. He appeared in commercials for the California Raisin Advisory Board, singing I Heard It Through the Grapevine in the guise of the animated character Buddy Raisin. This proved so successful that it generated a spin-off album, The California Raisins Sing the Hit Songs.
In 2005, Miles began collaborating with Florida-based guitar virtuoso Tony Smotherman, and the two toured the Southeast with a blues-rock band performing various pieces from Miles' collaborations with Jimi Hendrix. Miles and Smotherman last performed at the Austin Convention Center at the 2007 Summer NAMM Show with Vernon Reid of Living Colour.
![]()
At the age of 60, Buddy Miles died on February 26, 2008, at his home in Austin, Texas, with his family by his side. According to his website, he died of congestive heart disease.
(Edited from Wikipedia but mainly from article by Adam Sweeting @ The Guardian)