Classic from the Vaults (2003) Jazz Musicians Are Insane – Official
A study of legendary jazz musicians published in 2003 discovered that the musical innovators were up to four times more likely to use drugs or suffer from mental illness, the Daily Telegraph revealed, with the genre’s highest rated player Miles Davis apparently regularly hearing imaginary voices.
“I am not saying all jazz musicians are crazy,” report author Dr Wills said in the British Journal of Psychiatry.
“But I have highlighted a trend that is comparable with other creative people.”
The study could shed light on why Britain remains such a hotbed of musical creativity, since according to Richard Bentall, author of Madness Explained, up to 6 million Brits could be crazy.
“Research shows that as many as one in ten Britons hears voices,” Mr Bentall told the Sunday Times in September 2003.
“But most are too scared to mention it.”
