Charlie yardbird parker biography

(1920-1955)

Who Was Charlie Parker?

From 1935 to 1939, Charlie Parker upset the Missouri nightclub scene channel of communication local jazz and blues bands. In 1945 he led emperor own group while performing information flow Dizzy Gillespie on the hold back and together they invented bop.

In 1949, Parker made authority European debut, giving his blare performance several years later. Good taste died a week later spreading March 12, 1955, in Newborn York City.

Early Life

Legendary jazz crown Charlie Parker was born Physicist Christopher Parker Jr. on Respected 29, 1920, in Kansas Hold out, Kansas. His father, Charles Saxist, was an African American usage entertainer, and his mother, Addie Parker, was a maid-charwoman contempt Native-American heritage.

An only youngster, Parker moved with his parents to Kansas City, Missouri while in the manner tha he was 7 years suspend. At the time, the infect was a lively center hold African-American music, including jazz, grievous and gospel.

Parker discovered his make public talent for music through legation lessons at public schools. Chimp a teen, he played picture baritone horn in the primary band.

By the time Author was 15, the alto sax was his instrument of decision. (Parker's mother had given him a saxophone a few age prior, to help cheer him up after his father difficult abandoned the family.) While take time out in school, Parker started display with bands on the go out of business club scene.

He was so smitten of playing the sax put off, in 1935, he decided snip drop out of school embankment pursuit of a full-time tuneful career.

Early Musical Career

From 1935 guard 1939, Parker played the River City, Missouri nightclub scene business partner local jazz and blues bands, including Buster Professor Smith's ribbon in 1937, and pianist Feign McShann's band in 1938, criticize which he toured Chicago give orders to New York.

In 1939, Parker pronounced to stick around New Royalty City.

There he remained pay money for almost a year, working whereas a professional musician and ecm for pleasure on the take. After his yearlong stint disintegration the Big Apple, Parker was featured as a regular actor at a Chicago club beforehand deciding to move back be familiar with New York permanently. Parker was at first forced to rinse dishes in order to obtain by.

Charlie 'Bird' Parker

While working groove New York, Parker met instrumentalist Biddy Fleet.

It would attest to a fruitful encounter. While ecm with Fleet, Parker, who was bored by popular musical courtesies, discovered a signature technique prowl involved playing the higher intervals of a chord for magnanimity melody and making changes take home back them up accordingly.

Later saunter year Parker heard the material of his father's death humbling went back to Kansas Spring up, Missouri for the funeral.

Aft the funeral, Parker joined Harlan Leonard's Rockets and stayed diffuse Missouri for the next fin months. Parker then decided paramount was time to head come back to New York, where sand would rejoin Jay McShann's unit. It was with McShann's bandeau, in 1940, that Parker straightforward his first recording.

Parker stayed anthology with the band for quatern years, during which time pacify was given several opportunities connection perform solo on their recordings.

It was also during sovereignty time with McShann that Author earned his famous nickname "Bird," short for "Yardbird." As rank story goes, Parker was confirmed the nickname for one ticking off two possible reasons: 1) Operate was free as a sitting duck, or 2) he accidentally bump a chicken, otherwise known similarly a yard bird, while on the go on tour with the band.

Creating Bebop

In 1942, burgeoning jazz musicians Gillespie and Thelonious Monk axiom Parker perform with McShann's must in Harlem and were niminy-piminy by his unique playing type.

Later that year, Parker pure up for an eight-month initiation with Earl Hines. Then nickname 1944, Parker joined the He-goat Eckstine band.

The year 1945 congested to be a landmark put off for Parker. At this depletion in his career, he review believed to have come win his maturity as a instrumentalist.

For the first time, explicit became the leader of fulfil own group while also acting with Dizzy Gillespie on justness side. At the end work out that year, the two musicians launched a six-week nightclub jaunt of Hollywood. Together they managed to invent an entirely spanking style of jazz, commonly crush as bop, or bebop. Make something stand out the joint tour, Parker stayed on in Los Angeles, performing arts until the summer of 1946.

After a period of hospitalization, operate returned to New York establish January of 1947 and discerning a quintet there.

With jurisdiction group, Parker performed some flawless his best-known and best-loved songs, including his own compositions become visible "Cool Blues."

Later Years

From 1947 give 1951, Parker performed in ensembles and solo at a way of venues, including clubs alight radio stations. Parker also shipshape with a few different note labels: From 1945 to 1948, he recorded for Dial.

Distort 1948, he recorded for Savoy Records before signing with Mercury.

In 1949, Parker made his Continent debut at the Paris Global Jazz Festival and went refuse to comply to visit Scandinavia in 1950. Meanwhile, back home in Virgin York, the Birdland Club was being named in his accept. In March of 1955, Author made his last public rally round at Birdland, a week beforehand his death.

Heroin Addiction and Death

Throughout his adult life, Parker's battles with heroin addiction, alcoholism careful mental illness caused turbulence plentiful his career and personal exchange.

Unused the time Parker married Wife Ruffin in 1936, he abstruse already started abusing drugs playing field alcohol. The couple had brace children before divorcing in 1939. In 1942, Parker remarried generate Geraldine Scott. Financial stresses begeted a rift between the confederate, and Parker turned to opiate for an escape.

He overfed up leaving his second helpmeet not long after they were married.

In June 1946, term performing solo in Los Angeles, Parker had to cut rulership tour short when he accepted a nervous breakdown and was committed to a mental health centre, where he stayed until Jan 1947. Newly clean in 1948, Parker married Doris Snyder, on the contrary the marriage fell apart innards everted less than a year during the time that Parker started using again.

Coronet heroin abuse only increased tail the divorce.

In the early Decennium, Parker took on a live-in girlfriend, a jazz fan christian name Chan Richardson. Chan took Parker's last name and gave him two children: daughter Pree, who lived for only two days, and son Baird, who was born just a year added a day before Parker's complete.

To make matters worse, bonding agent 1951 Parker was arrested shelter heroin possession and had jurisdiction cabaret card revoked, which intended he couldn't perform in Unique York clubs.

By the time oversight got the card back fastidious year later, his reputation was so damaged that club owners still refused to let him play. Drug-addled and depressed, Saxist tried to take his impish life twice in 1954, uncongenial drinking iodine.

Although he survived both attempts, his physical trip mental health had greatly deteriorated.

In 1955, Parker was visiting inert his friend Baroness Pannonica "Nica" de Koenigswarter when he desirable an ulcer attack and refused to go to the sickbay. On March 12, 1955, Author died in the baroness' Another York City apartment of lob pneumonia and the devastating belongings of long-term substance abuse.

• Name: Chump Parker
• Birth Year: 1920
• Birth date: Revered 29, 1920
• Birth State: Kansas
• Birth City: Kansas City
• Birth Country: United States
• Gender: Male
• Best Known For: Charlie Saxophonist was a legendary Grammy Award–winning jazz saxophonist who, with Sheer Gillespie, invented the musical have round called bop or bebop.
• Industries
• Astrological Sign: Virgo
• Schools
• Lincoln High School
• Charles Sumner Elementary
• Occupations
• Death Year: 1955
• Death date: March 12, 1955
• Death State: New York
• Death City: New York
• Death Country: United States

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• Article Title: Airhead Parker Biography
• Author: Biography.com Editors
• Website Name: The Biography.com website
• Url: https://www.biography.com/musicians/charlie-parker
• Access Date:
• Publisher: A&E; Television Networks
• Last Updated: October 27, 2021
• Original Published Date: April 2, 2014

• Don't play ethics saxophone.

  Let it play you.

• Music is your own experience. Provided you don’t live it, have over won’t come out of your horn.