The drummer tells the whole story with his eyes.

I was once alone with Miles Davis in the elevator of his building on 5th Ave. He was wearing his techno Porsche sunglasses and we didn't speak. It felt like forever. Shortly after I saw him perform at Carnegie Hall, double-bill with B.B. King, third row center, great show. He played with his back to the audience. Never said a word.

When Herbie is the weak link you know you have the best band ever assembled.

As Herbie tells the story, he knew he made a mistake as soon as he played, and he was embarrassed. And he thought Miles was furious at him.

Turns out Miles wasn't that mad, he was just trying to figure out how to turn the mistake into something useful so they could carry on.

I've seen some really amazing jazz groups and they will never let a 'mistake' get in the way. They have such an accomplished sense of teamwork, and they will play it off so well that unless you really knew jazz or the tune, you'd never know.

Jazz is an underrated art form.