Until listening to it for the first time in a while yesterday, I'd forgotten that Miles Davis covered the traditional folk tune, "Billy Boy." I remember one of my grade school vocal music teachers leading the class in singing the original arrangement. The lyric, "Can she make a cherry pie, Billy Boy, Billy Boy?," still comes to mind unexpectedly.
It's an unlikely choice for an instrumental jazz cover, but Red Garland ups the tempo of it on piano, gives the melody a bit of a kick, and makes it work in a surprising context. It stands out in a set of modern-for-their-time, i.e. 1958, Miles Davis jazz tracks. I've heard plenty of Davis tracks on the radio over the years, but I've never heard any station play this surprisingly jazz-adaptable cover.
