Cocktail Notes || EP. 6 “Freddie Freeloader", by Miles Davis || Improved Whiskey Cocktail

“Freddie Freeloader” is the second track on Miles Davis’ album, “Kind of Blue”. This laid-back song has a 12-bar blues structure, with a slight variation at the end where it does not resolve to the home chord. “Freddie Freeloader” triggers a lot of nostalgia. When I was younger and was exploring different open mics, this was a fall back song in case I did not have any material prepared. It was straightforward to improvise over and allowed me to creatively voice chords. The simplicity of the song made it difficult to ignore the temptation of a flashier and faster performance, a decision not respectful of the source material. I would opt for virtuosity over authenticity. Instead of attacking the song as I would have in my youth, I went for a more subtle approach this time around, one which is more authentic to the feel of the actual song. In this episode of the “Cocktail Notes” series, I finally heeded the lesson of restraint.

The “Improved Whiskey Cocktail” was paired with “Freddie Freeloader” because both are slight variations on a classic recipe without deviating too far from the original. This cocktail is very similar to an “Old-Fashioned”, but with a few more ingredients. Believe it or not, the “Improved Whiskey Cocktail” preceded the “Old-Fashioned”. The history goes that whiskey cocktails were first served in the style of a “sling”, which consists of whiskey, bitters, and water (late 1800s). As more foreign liqueur found its way to the US from Europe, bartenders started experimenting with them by adding small portions to the whiskey sling, making the flavors more complex. This led to the creation of the “Improved Whiskey Cocktail”, which was a whiskey sling with the addition of maraschino liqueur and absinthe. As people tired of the experimentation and new additions, they started asking the bartender for an “old-fashioned whiskey cocktail”---one that only consisted of the original ingredients. While I do enjoy a good “Old-Fashioned”, an “Improved Whiskey Cocktail” is an interesting riff on the night-out standard. Cheers!

[December 3, 2020]