Influential Artists
Charlie Parker
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If asked to name the first few Jazz musicians that come to mind, I’ll venture that most casual listeners would mention Miles Davis and John Coltrane. These are probably the two most popular names of the last 50 years. But there’s one legendary figure that was an enormous influence on both of these giants, in addition to generations of other musicians, and that man is Charles Parker.
Charlie “Bird” Parker is the original true virtuoso on the sax, and the measuring stick for every horn player since. He almost single-handedly altered the direction of Jazz, and also gave Miles his big break by taking him on as a protégé. Parker is one of the very few musicians in history to do something truly revolutionary that had important and lasting effects. In an era when solos were mostly confined to arpeggios and scales, he came out firing with the higher chord intervals, and not just in passing but as the basis of his melodic improvisations. Additionally, he created new rhythms which were simply unheard of at the time… effortlessly and off the top of his head. His contemporaries couldn’t even play his solos, let alone improvise them. He also defined a new sound for the saxophone, which became the model for all future players. Plus, he was one of the primary catalysts for the genesis of bebop, making him a godfather to most modern Jazz. These are some of the reasons why one of the most famous Jazz clubs in the world (Birdland in NYC) was named after him – while he was still alive nonetheless.
For a good live account of Parker’s blazing solos, check out the first five songs from Diz ‘N Bird at Carnegie Hall (the remaining tracks on this album feature Dizzy Gillespie with his big band, however). For the more tender side of Bird, seek out the studio recordings of “Parker’s Mood”, “K.C. Blues”, “Don’t Blame Me”, and “Now’s the Time”; these are among my favorite recordings of any genre of music, and they still give me goose bumps sometimes.
I chose an unorthodox format for the audio clips this time to emphasize my points. The first excerpt is from Lester Young, who was the best saxophonist before Parker in my opinion, and the second clip is the most famous cadenza from Louis Armstrong, who is undoubtedly the greatest trumpet player in the pre-bebop era. Listen closely, and compare them to the remaining excerpts from Parker. Notice that the complexity and variation in rhythm, the amount of melodic development, and the level of technical skill were all significantly raised to new planes.
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I’ll leave you with some quotes from a few Jazz greats:
“He had just what we needed. He had the line and he had the rhythm. The way he got from one note to the other and the way he played the rhythm fit what we were trying to do perfectly. We heard him and knew the music had to go his way.” – Dizzy Gillespie
“I, myself, came to enjoy the players who didn’t only just swing but who invented new rhythmic patterns, along with new melodic concepts. And those people are: …and Charles Parker, who is the greatest genius of all to me because he changed the whole era around.” – Charles Mingus
“The first time I heard Bird play, it hit me right between the eyes.” – John Coltrane
“Louis Armstrong, Charlie Parker.” – Miles Davis, summarizing the history of Jazz
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