Terni’s Piazza Europa saw the return of large crowds of jazz enthusiasts, with more than ten thousand people turning out to listen to Miles Davis, back playing in public after a lengthy absence. His willingness to play was surprising: he felt good again after years away from the public, he liked how he played, and indeed he played quite brilliantly, launching into what was to become one of his classics, “Time After Time” , a pop song taken from Cindy Lauper’s collection of ballads.
Then the Festival went back from Terni to Perugia, with a list of famous names from the world of jazz, including J.J. Johnson, the divine Sarah Vaughan, Dizzy Gillespie, the former members of Mingus’ band Don Pullen and George Adams together in a quartet, and the guitar maestro Tal Farlow. There were also excellent jazz fusion groups led by Weather Report, back together again eleven years on, and the magnificent Steps Ahead featuring Michael Brecker and Mike Mainieri.
