In celebration of Charlie Parker's centenary on August 29, I'm spending the week posting on five major accomplishments by the alto saxophonist. On Monday, I posted about Parker's invention with Dizzy Gillespie in 1945 of a transformative genre of improvised jazz that became known as bebop. On Tuesday, I posted about Parker's popularization of high-speed and complex improvisation. Today, I'm looking at Parker's unique ability to make the blues charismatic and sensual with his round tone and fluidity.
In the late 1920s and '30s, exceptional and enterprising artists such as W.C. Handy, Bessie Smith, Blind Lemon Jefferson (above) and Lead Belly among hundreds of other blues musicians moved North to record and find work performing. Thousands of other blues musician did the same as part of the Great Migration. But not all wound up with their names on shellac 78s or in lights. Many Delta blues artists moved to cities with hopes of finding work and shared what they knew about the blues with other Black musicians.
One of these cities was Kansas City, which in the 1930s was known largely for two things: butchering livestock and vice. During the Depression, the city's political boss, Tom Pendergast, controlled the police and ensured that drinking and gambling flourished, allowing the city to thrive despite hard times. Like Chicago of the 1920s, Kansas City in the 1930s was a hotbed of clubs, and where there were clubs there was jazz and dancing.
Born in Kansas City in 1920, Charlie Parker practiced the saxophone voraciously before hanging around clubs listening to the upbeat swing blues of the Count Basie and Bennie Moten big bands. Parker played in territory bands, but an auto accident in 1936 resulted in the need for pain killers. So began a storied drug habit.
In New York in 1939, Parker washed dishes in a restaurant that showcased pianist Art Tatum (above). Seeing Tatum play at impossible speeds was another musical revelation for Parker. Back in Kansas City in 1940, Parker joined Jay McShann's band. He also met Dizzy Gillespie. Parker left McShann in 1942 to join Earl "Fatha" Hines's big band with Gillespie. The pair spent their free time at jam sessions in Harlem clubs.
Parker's exposure to Kansas City swing, Art Tatum and other exceptional musical experiences gave him a new feel for the blues. His approach was a fusing of country and city, taking what he heard in Kansas City and surrounding towns and adding the urbanity of New York and Los Angeles. The result was a new way of approaching the blues—not as a coarse folk form but a more polished, optimistic and cosmopolitan sound.
Here are 10 original blues by Parker that he infused with a new instrumental lyricism:
Here's Billie's Bounce from November 26, 1945, with Miles Davis (tp), Charlie Parker (as), Dizzy Gillespie (p), Curly Russell (b) and Max Roach (d)...
Here's Cool Blues from February 19, 1947, with Charlie Parker (as), Erroll Garner (p), Red Callender (b) and Harold "Doc" West (d)...
Here's Relaxin' at Camarillo, from February 26, 1947, with Howard McGhee (tp), Charlie Parker (as), Wardell Gray (ts), Dodo Marmarosa (p), Barney Kessel (g), Red Callender (b) and Don Lamond (d)...
Here's Parker's Mood from September 18, 1948, with Charlie Parker (as), John Lewis (p), Curly Russell (b) and Max Roach (d)...
Here's K.C. Blues from January 17, 1951, with Miles Davis (tp), Charlie Parker (as), Walter Bishop, Jr. (p), Teddy Kotick (b) and Max Roach (d)...
Here's Au Privave from January 17, 1951, with Miles Davis (tp), Charlie Parker (as), Walter Bishop, Jr. (p), Teddy Kotick (b) and Max Roach (d)...
Here's Blues for Alice from August 8, 1951, with Red Rodney (tp), Charlie Parker (as), John Lewis (p), Ray Brown (b) and Kenny Clarke (d)...
Here's Back Home Blues on August 8, 1951, with Red Rodney (tp), Charlie Parker (as), John Lewis (p), Ray Brown (b) and Kenny Clarke (d)...
Here's Laird Baird from December 30, 1952, with Charlie Parker (as), Hank Jones (p), Teddy Kotick (b) and Max Roach (d)...
Here's Now's the Time from July 30, 1953, with Charlie Parker (as), Al Haig (p), Percy Heath (b) and Max Roach (d)...
Parker tribute: Vocalist-pianist Champian Fulton will release Birdsong on Aug. 28, a Charlie Parker tribute album. She's backed by Stephen Fulton on flugelhorn, Scott Hamilton on tenor sax, Hide Tanaka on bass and Fukushi Tainaka on drums. Songs are Just Friends, Yardbird Suite, This Is Always, Star Eyes, Quasimodo, All God’s Chillun Got Rhythm, Dearly Beloved, Out of Nowhere, If I Should Lose You, My Old Flame and Bluebird. Champian digs in and shows off her bop chops on vocals and keyboard, all with Bird in mind. Go here.
