The verdict
Cleared After Dispute
A real dual-authorship question, cleanly resolved: officially credited “Miles Davis & Bill Evans” per the Davis estate itself, tracing straight back to Evans’ own “Peace Piece” vamp — the same shape as Blue in Green’s resolution on the same album.
Quick Facts
Released1959
AlbumKind of Blue
GenreJazz, Modal Jazz
LabelColumbia Records
ProducerIrving Townsend
Recorded atColumbia's 30th Street Studio, New York
More infoWikipedia → · Discogs →
Who you need to ask
The songwriters of record — Miles Davis & Bill Evans (jointly, per the estate’s own credit)
Milesdavis → · checked Jul 2026
The current administrator — Not confirmed — needs a Songview/Discogs lookup
Unknown · checked Jul 2026
Has it been reused?
A widely-performed piece from the best-selling jazz album of all time; the authorship is settled (joint Davis/Evans).
Do they allow reuse?
No standalone policy found; authorship is settled and extensively performed — no open dispute.
Related Songs
Same album, answer records, and songs worth knowing about
Evans’ 1958 solo piece whose vamp Davis asked him to adapt as this song’s opening figure
Same album — its own Davis/Evans authorship question resolved the same way (already in this catalog)
Who Owns It
Licenses explained →The two permissions you need, and who holds them
The song itself (the writing)Miles Davis & Bill Evans (jointly)
Where it came fromGrew directly from Evans’ own earlier “Peace Piece” — Davis admired its hypnotic two-chord vamp and asked Evans to adapt it as this piece’s opening figure. Scholars also note harmonic ties to Bernstein’s “Some Other Time,” the same tune behind “Peace Piece.”
The recording (current administrator)Not confirmed
Receipts
Every public mention of terms, policy, or past deals we've found
A genuine printing error, not a conspiracy
On early pressings of “Kind of Blue,” the titles of “Flamenco Sketches” and “All Blues” were accidentally swapped in the liner notes — a real printing error that has confused discographies ever since.
AllSolos · read it →
The one true first-take on the album, despite the myth
Contrary to the legend that the whole album was cut in single takes, only this song’s initial take was complete on the first try — and even that wasn’t the master; a later take was used, with the first included as a 1997 CD bonus track.
Wikipedia (Kind of Blue) · read it →
Bill Evans arguably deserved co-composer credit here too
Jazz biographer Peter Pettinger has stated Bill Evans “should have been credited as co-composer” on this track specifically, since it was built on the same underlying harmonic pattern as his solo piece “Peace Piece” (now in this catalog) — the same pattern behind “Blue in Green.” A documented claim, not independently adjudicated.
Jerry Jazz Musician · read it →
Can You Use It for Free?
How to check PD →Is it public domain?No
Sample History
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Times sampled
A widely-performed “Kind of Blue” piece
Covers
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First flip
Who to Contact
FS
Miles Davis & Bill Evans (estates)
The jointly-credited writers, per the estate’s own credit
What they'll chargeNobody's shared numbers yet
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References
Every source cited on this page — 4 in total
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Page history · 2 updates
Jul 2026Page created — full research (Research Queue Batch 7)
Jul 2026BPM/Key pending the automated GetSongBPM/Deezer pass