Charlie Parker

American jazz saxophonist

Photo by: William P. Gottlieb · Public Domain · Wikimedia Commons

Born:August 29, 1920

Died:March 12, 1955

Age at death:34

Manner of death:Natural Causes

Cause of death:Pneumonia

Zodiac Sign:Virgo

Born in:Kansas City, United States

Buried in:United States

Languages:English

Saxophonist Composer Musician Jazz Musician

Links

Wikipedia Official Website IMDb Facebook X (Twitter)Instagram

Famous For

Bands

Howard McGhee Quintet

Movies & TV

Io sono Tony Scott, ovvero come l'Italia fece fuori il più grande clarinettista del jazz

Songs & Albums

OrnithologyLover ManYardbird SuiteBird on 52nd St.Billie's Bounce

Awards

Kansas Music Hall of Fame (2011)Grammy Hall of Fame (1994)Grammy Hall of Fame (1987)Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award (1984)Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award (1983)

Charlie Parker

American jazz saxophonist

Biography

Charles Parker Jr. (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), nicknamed "Bird" or "Yardbird", was an American jazz saxophonist, bandleader, and composer. Parker was a highly influential soloist and leading figure in the development of bebop, a form of jazz characterized by fast tempos, virtuosic technique, and advanced harmonies. He was a virtuoso and introduced revolutionary rhythmic and harmonic ideas into jazz, including rapid passing chords, new variants of altered chords, and chord substitutions. Parker primarily played the alto saxophone. Parker was an icon for the hipster subculture and later the Beat Generation, personifying the jazz musician as an uncompromising artist and intellectual rather than just an entertainer.

This biography uses content from the Wikipedia article “Charlie Parker”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License.

Quotes

“I realized by using the high notes of the chords as a melodic line, and by the right harmonic progression, I could play what I heard inside me. That's when I was born.”

— c. 1939 quoted in Masters of Jazz

“Any musician who says he is playing better either on tea, the needle, or when he is juiced, is a plain, straight liar. When I get too much to drink, I can't even finger well, let alone play decent ideas. ... You can miss the most important years of your life, the years of possible creation.”

— As quoted in Hear Me Talkin' to Ya: The Story of Jazz As Told by the Men Who Made It (1955) edited by by Nat Shapiro and Nat Hentoff, p. 379

“Music is your own experience, your own thoughts, your wisdom. If you don't live it, it won't come out of your horn. They teach you there's a boundary line to music. But, man, there's no boundary line to art.”

— As quoted in Bird : The Legend Of Charlie Parker (1977) by Robert George Reisner, p. 27

Quotes sourced from the Wikiquote article "Charlie Parker", available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License.

Photos

Portrait of Charlie Parker in the Three Deuces of New York (N.Y.), in August 1947. Parker is playing a Conn 6M alto saxophone. Standing next to him is Miles Davis.

Portrait of Tommy Potter, Charlie Parker, Max Roach (almost hidden by Parker), Miles Davis, and Duke Jordan (from left to right), Three Deuces, New York, N.Y.

Gottlieb, William P., 1917-, photographer. [Portrait of Charlie Parker, Carnegie Hall, New York, N.Y., ca. 1947] 1 negative : b&w ; 2 1/4 x 2 1/4 in. Notes: Gottlieb Collection Assignment No. 436 Reference print available in Music Division, Library of Congress. Purchase William P. Gottlieb Forms part of: William P. Gottlieb Collection (Library of Congress). Subjects: Parker, Charlie, 1920-1955 Jazz musicians--1940-1950. Saxophonists--1940-1950. Carnegie Hall Format: Portrait photographs--1940-1950. Film negatives--1940-1950. Rights Info: Mr. Gottlieb has dedicated these works to the public domain, but rights of privacy and publicity may apply. lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/ihas/html/gottlieb/gottlieb-copyrig... Repository: (negative) Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, Washington D.C. 20540 USA, hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print (reference print) Library of Congress, Music Division, Washington D.C. 20540 USA, loc.gov/rr/perform/ Part Of: William P. Gottlieb Collection (DLC) 99-401005 General information about the Gottlieb Collection is available at lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/ihas/html/gottlieb/gottlieb-home.html Persistent URL: hdl.loc.gov/loc.music/gottlieb.06901 Call Number: LC-GLB23- 0690 Public domainPublic domainfalsefalse This work is from the William P. Gottlieb collection at the Library of Congress. Rights and restrictions. In accordance with the wishes of William Gottlieb, the photographs in this collection entered into the public domain on February 16, 2010.

Gottlieb, William P., 1917-, photographer. [Portrait of Charlie Parker, Carnegie Hall, New York, N.Y., ca. 1947] 1 negative : b&w ; 2 1/4 x 2 1/4 in. Notes: Gottlieb Collection Assignment No. 436 Reference print available in Music Division, Library of Congress. Purchase William P. Gottlieb Forms part of: William P. Gottlieb Collection (Library of Congress). Subjects: Parker, Charlie, 1920-1955 Jazz musicians--1940-1950. Saxophonists--1940-1950. Carnegie Hall Format: Portrait photographs--1940-1950. Film negatives--1940-1950. Rights Info: Mr. Gottlieb has dedicated these works to the public domain, but rights of privacy and publicity may apply. lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/ihas/html/gottlieb/gottlieb-copyrig... Repository: (negative) Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, Washington D.C. 20540 USA, hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print (reference print) Library of Congress, Music Division, Washington D.C. 20540 USA, loc.gov/rr/perform/ Part Of: William P. Gottlieb Collection (DLC) 99-401005 General information about the Gottlieb Collection is available at lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/ihas/html/gottlieb/gottlieb-home.html Persistent URL: hdl.loc.gov/loc.music/gottlieb.06911 Call Number: LC-GLB23- 0691 Public domainPublic domainfalsefalse This work is from the William P. Gottlieb collection at the Library of Congress. Rights and restrictions. In accordance with the wishes of William Gottlieb, the photographs in this collection entered into the public domain on February 16, 2010.

Gottlieb, William P., 1917-, photographer. [Portrait of Charlie Parker, Carnegie Hall, New York, N.Y., ca. 1947] 1 negative : b&w ; 2 1/4 x 2 1/4 in. Notes: Gottlieb Collection Assignment No. 436 Reference print available in Music Division, Library of Congress. Purchase William P. Gottlieb Forms part of: William P. Gottlieb Collection (Library of Congress). Subjects: Parker, Charlie, 1920-1955 Jazz musicians--1940-1950. Saxophonists--1940-1950. Carnegie Hall Format: Portrait photographs--1940-1950. Film negatives--1940-1950. Rights Info: Mr. Gottlieb has dedicated these works to the public domain, but rights of privacy and publicity may apply. lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/ihas/html/gottlieb/gottlieb-copyrig... Repository: (negative) Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, Washington D.C. 20540 USA, hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print (reference print) Library of Congress, Music Division, Washington D.C. 20540 USA, loc.gov/rr/perform/ Part Of: William P. Gottlieb Collection (DLC) 99-401005 General information about the Gottlieb Collection is available at lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/ihas/html/gottlieb/gottlieb-home.html Persistent URL: hdl.loc.gov/loc.music/gottlieb.06921 Call Number: LC-GLB23- 0692 Public domainPublic domainfalsefalse This work is from the William P. Gottlieb collection at the Library of Congress. Rights and restrictions. In accordance with the wishes of William Gottlieb, the photographs in this collection entered into the public domain on February 16, 2010.

Gottlieb, William P., 1917-, photographer. [Portrait of Charlie Parker, Three Deuces, New York, N.Y., ca. Aug. 1947] 1 negative : b&w ; 2 1/4 x 2 1/4 in. Notes: Gottlieb Collection Assignment No. 434 Reference print available in Music Division, Library of Congress. Purchase William P. Gottlieb Forms part of: William P. Gottlieb Collection (Library of Congress). In: "Despite bad acoustics, Gillespie concert offers some excellent music," Down Beat, v. 14, no. 22 (Oct. 22, 1947), p. 1. Subjects: Parker, Charlie, 1920-1955 Jazz musicians--1940-1950. Saxophonists--1940-1950. Fifty-second Street (New York, N.Y.)--1940-1950. Three Deuces Format: Portrait photographs--1940-1950. Film negatives--1940-1950. Rights Info: Mr. Gottlieb has dedicated these works to the public domain, but rights of privacy and publicity may apply. lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/ihas/html/gottlieb/gottlieb-copyrig... Repository: (negative) Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, Washington D.C. 20540 USA, hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print (reference print) Library of Congress, Music Division, Washington D.C. 20540 USA, loc.gov/rr/perform/ Part Of: William P. Gottlieb Collection (DLC) 99-401005 General information about the Gottlieb Collection is available at lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/ihas/html/gottlieb/gottlieb-home.html Persistent URL: hdl.loc.gov/loc.music/gottlieb.06881 Call Number: LC-GLB23- 0688 Public domainPublic domainfalsefalse This work is from the William P. Gottlieb collection at the Library of Congress. Rights and restrictions. In accordance with the wishes of William Gottlieb, the photographs in this collection entered into the public domain on February 16, 2010.

Stan Kenton tour Worcester, MA 1954 Photo by Mel Levine (1924-2007)

Charlie Parker, Downbeat, New York, N.Y., ca. 1947 (Photograph by William P. Gottlieb)

Gottlieb, William P., 1917-, photographer. [Portrait of Charlie Parker, Tommy Potter, and Max Roach, Three Deuces, New York, N.Y., ca. Aug. 1947] 1 negative : b&w ; 2 1/4 x 2 1/4 in. Notes: Gottlieb Collection Assignment No. 434 Reference print available in Music Division, Library of Congress. Purchase William P. Gottlieb Forms part of: William P. Gottlieb Collection (Library of Congress). Subjects: Parker, Charlie, 1920-1955 Potter, Tommy, 1918- Roach, Max, 1924- Jazz musicians--1940-1950. Saxophonists--1940-1950. Double bassists--1940-1950. Fifty-second Street (New York, N.Y.)--1940-1950. Three Deuces Format: Portrait photographs--1940-1950. Cityscape photographs--1940-1950. Film negatives--1940-1950. Rights Info: Mr. Gottlieb has dedicated these works to the public domain, but rights of privacy and publicity may apply. lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/ihas/html/gottlieb/gottlieb-copyrig... Repository: (negative) Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, Washington D.C. 20540 USA, hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print (reference print) Library of Congress, Music Division, Washington D.C. 20540 USA, loc.gov/rr/perform/ Part Of: William P. Gottlieb Collection (DLC) 99-401005 General information about the Gottlieb Collection is available at lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/ihas/html/gottlieb/gottlieb-home.html Persistent URL: hdl.loc.gov/loc.music/gottlieb.06931 Call Number: LC-GLB23- 0693 Public domainPublic domainfalsefalse This work is from the William P. Gottlieb collection at the Library of Congress. Rights and restrictions. In accordance with the wishes of William Gottlieb, the photographs in this collection entered into the public domain on February 16, 2010.

Gottlieb, William P., 1917-, photographer. [Portrait of Charlie Parker and Tommy Potter, Three Deuces, New York, N.Y., ca. Aug. 1947] 1 negative : b&w ; 2 1/4 x 2 1/4 in. Caption from Down Beat: High priest Parker has an other-world look as he plays at the Deuces here. Face framing Charlie's belongs to bassist Tommy Potter. Notes: Gottlieb Collection Assignment No. 434 Reference print available in Music Division, Library of Congress. Purchase William P. Gottlieb Forms part of: William P. Gottlieb Collection (Library of Congress). In: "Weird wizard," Down Beat, v. 14, no. 19 (Sept. 10, 1947), p. 1. Subjects: Parker, Charlie, 1920-1955 Potter, Tommy, 1918- Jazz musicians--1940-1950. Saxophonists--1940-1950. Double bassists--1940-1950. Fifty-second Street (New York, N.Y.)--1940-1950. Three Deuces Format: Portrait photographs--1940-1950. Cityscape photographs--1940-1950. Film negatives--1940-1950. Rights Info: Mr. Gottlieb has dedicated these works to the public domain, but rights of privacy and publicity may apply. lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/ihas/html/gottlieb/gottlieb-copyrig... Repository: (negative) Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, Washington D.C. 20540 USA, hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print (reference print) Library of Congress, Music Division, Washington D.C. 20540 USA, loc.gov/rr/perform/ Part Of: William P. Gottlieb Collection (DLC) 99-401005 General information about the Gottlieb Collection is available at lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/ihas/html/gottlieb/gottlieb-home.html Persistent URL: hdl.loc.gov/loc.music/gottlieb.06831 Call Number: LC-GLB23- 0683 Public domainPublic domainfalsefalse This work is from the William P. Gottlieb collection at the Library of Congress. Rights and restrictions. In accordance with the wishes of William Gottlieb, the photographs in this collection entered into the public domain on February 16, 2010.