Charles Parker Jr. (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), also known as Yardbird and Bird, was an American jazz saxophonist and composer. Parker was a highly influential jazz soloist and a leading figure in the development of bebop, a form of jazz characterized by fast tempos, virtuosic technique and advanced harmonies. Parker was a blazingly fast virtuoso, and he introduced revolutionary harmonic ideas including rapid passing chords, new variants of altered chords, and chord substitutions. His tone ranged from clean and penetrating to sweet and somber. Parker acquired the nickname “Yardbird” early in his career on the road with Jay McShann.
This, and the shortened form “Bird”, continued to be used for the rest of his life, inspiring the titles of a number of Parker compositions, such as “Yardbird Suite”, “Ornithology”, “Bird Gets the Worm”, and “Bird of Paradise”. 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. (by wikipedia)
And this album was released in 1955 on the occasion of his death.
Charlie Parker – still absolutely “Magnificent” after 70 years:
With two top-class ensembles, Charlie Parker recorded the brilliant 1951
recordings of “The Magnificent Charlie Parker”.
Although Charlie Parker is widely regarded as the incarnation of bebop, his music was also often deeply deeply imbued with the blues. Perhaps nowhere was this more evident
than on the album “The Magnificent Charlie Parker”, which occasionally circulates under the alternative title “The Genius of Charlie Parker #8: Swedish Schnapps”. in circulation. It brought together single recordings from two sessions in 1955, that the brilliant alto saxophonist recorded in 1951 with completely different but equally but equally top-class quintet line-ups.
The first recording session on 17 January 1951 saw a reunion with Miles Davis and Max Roach, who had already worked on many of Parker’s groundbreaking recordings between 1945 and 1947.
The chemistry between the three was right from the start. The quintet, which in addition to the Parker originals “Au Privave”, “She Rote” and “K.C. Blues” as well as the standard “Star Eyes”, was completed by pianist Walter Bishop Jr. and bassist Teddy Kotick. On the same day, Miles made his first solo recordings for Prestige Records in another New York studio.
The second session took place on 8 August of the same year. This time Parker’s partners were the great Red Rodney on trumpet, the young pianist John Lewis, bassist Ray Brown and drummer Kenny Clarke. The programme again consisted of brilliant Parker compositions (“Blues For Alice”, “Si Si” and “Back Home Blues”) and Charlie Shavers’ “Swedish Schnapps”.
The recordings of these two quintet sessions were supplemented by three more
which had also only been released as singles at the time: With Walter Bishop Jr. (piano), Teddy Kotick (bass), Roy Haynes (drums), José Mangual (bongos) and Ralph Miranda (congas), Charlie Parker recorded a groovy version of Cal Massey’s Latin number “Fiesta” on 12 March 1951. “In The Still Of The Night” and “Old Folks” were finally recorded on 25 May 1953 with an octet arranged by Gil Evans (who featured Charles Mingus and Max Roach) and a mixed choir arranged by Dave Lambert. (jazzecho.de)
And …check the line-up !
Personnel:
Tony Aless (piano)
Walter Bishop, Jr. (piano)
Al Block (flute)
Ray Brown (bass)
Kenny Clarke (drums)
Junior Collins (french horn)
Miles Davis (trumpet)
Gil Evans (piano)
Roy Haynes (drums)
Teddy Kotick (bass)
John Lewis (piano)
Tommy Mace (oboe)
Jose Mangual (pecussion)
Hal McKusick (clarinet)
Charles Mingus (bass)
Luis Miranda (percussion)
Charlie Parker (saxophone)
Max Roach (drums)
Red Rodney (trumpet)
Manny Thaler (bassoon)
+
Dave Lambert & His Singers (vocals)
Tracklist:
01. Au Privave (Parker) 2.43
02. She Rote (Parker) 3.06
03. K.C. Blues (Parker) 3.25
04. Star Eyes (DePaul/Raye) 3.32
05. In The Still Of The Night (Porter) 3.23
06. Old Folks (Hill/Robison) 3.34
07. Blues For Alice (Parker) 2.46
08. Si Si (Parker) 2.39
09. Swedish Schnapps (Parker) 3.10
10. Back Home Blues (Parker) 2.47
11. Lover Man (Davis/Ramirez/Sherman) 3.24
12. Why Do I Love You? (Hammerstein II/Kern) 3.06