Early Life

Charlie Parker was born on August 29,1920 in Kansas City, Kansas, to Charles and Addie Parker. As he was the only child, him and his parents moved to Kansas City, Missouri in 1927, when he was only seven years old. He was living in a very spirited city, particularly because it was the hub for African American music, such as jazz, blues and gospel. Surrounded by the sound of music in his city, Parker discovered his own taste for it by taking lessons at school. When he was a teenager, he learned how to play the baritone horn and ended up performing in the school marching band. However, by the age of 15, Parker found his love for the alto saxophone. Taking this talent and passion, Parker began playing with bands in the local dance hall combos. During this time, he heard the new sounds of jazz and passed his time by going to Kansas City Clubs and listening to new musicians. In 1935, he dropped out of school to pursue a full-time musical career. He soon married Rebecca Parker Davis and they had a child together. For four years after he dropped out of school Parker played the city’s nightclub scene with local jazz and blues bands. Amongst them was Buster Professor Smith’s band. Unfortunately, Kansas City was no longer the center for jazz, so Parker decided to go to New York. He sold his horn, left his family behind, and headed to New York City.

 

New York and ‘Bird’

After spending a little time in New York and meeting guitarist Biddy Fleet, Parker went back to Missouri for his father’s funeral. When he came back to New York, he rejoined Jay McShann’s band. In 1940, Parker made his first recording with the band. It was because of this band that Parker had the opportunity to develop his original solo style and perform it on their recordings. During his time in the band, Parker acquired the nickname “Bird” which is short for “Yardbird.” There are several conflicting stories about how this nickname came to be. One possibility is from his love of eating chicken or him accidentally hitting a chicken on tour. Another reason was because he was as free as a bird. Either way, Parker gained this iconic nickname that he carried with him throughout his career.

 

Bebop

In 1942, Charlie Parker was becoming the talk of the town. Jazz musicians Dizzy Gillespie and Thelonious Monk saw him perform with McShann’s band. They loved his unique playing style and were eager for him to join Earl Hines’ band.  He soon signed an eight-month gig with Earl Hines. Parker and Gillespie became close and both left the Hines band to join Billy Eckstine’s in 1944. In this new band, both musicians were able to experiment more with their music style. At the end of 1945, Parker and Gillespie launched a six-week nightclub tour of Hollywood. Working together, the two musicians created a new style of jazz, known as bebop (bop). Bebop is a more modern jazz style that features complex chord progressions with rapid chord changes and numerous changes of key. It also includes instrumental virtuosity, and improvisation.

 

Socio-Economic/Cultural Contexts

As stated before, Parker grew up in a city full of jazz and gospel musicians. However, he was more exposed to a musician’s lifestyle when he arrived in New York. The music in the 1940’s was built around jazz and big band styles, however, this was also the World War II era. Much of the music reflected the pain and fear the country was going through. Most artists were attempting to bring happiness and ease into people’s lives during these hard times. Parker’s new jazz style, bebop, introduced a livelier approach to jazz. His songs like “Ko Ko” and “Yardbird Suite” have a positive melody to them which helped people during the time forget the troubles of War. Sometimes musicians even performed for the troops in order to entertain them and “improve their morale.” Thus, the 1940’s was a time for many musicians to make their mark on history and Charlie Parker was one of them.

 

Seminar Themes:

New York City Characters and Lifestyle:

New York City provided opportunities to Parker that Missouri was not able to accomplish. Even though he had a hard time adjusting to the new city, he quickly found a band to perform with. This accessibility shows how New York City’s environment helps nourish people’s dreams. Jazz especially was highly performed in the city, which helped Parker explore his music style and gain more experience. His distinctive saxophone style, was drawn from blues and even latin influences. The reason he was able to incorporate such distinct music techniques into his work is due to the diverse atmosphere of New York City. He was exposed to people of different backgrounds. His work also became quickly recognized due to the compactness of the city and its residents. If he were to stay in Kansas City, his music would be acknowledged only after a longer period of time. In New York City, however, people even named places after him like the legendary 52nd Street club “Birdland.”

Meaningfulness: Parker’s Drug Abuse

Parker struggled with trying to be meaningful throughout his career. His abuse of heroin and alcohol only added to his mental downfall. Parker took a chance on his education and family to build his music career in New York. Thus, when people were not appreciating his music, it negatively impacted his mental state. He relied on it to be his mental escape, his song “Moose the Mooche” is assumed to be written about Parker’s drug dealer. Jazz critic Leonard Feather even said, “There was no serious attention paid to Charlie Parker as a great creative musician. It was just horrifying how really miserably he was treated.” People ignored the music and left people like Parker and Gillespie feeling unimportant. The majority of the people and the media were interested in the fashion side of the bebop style, like berets, goatees, horn-rimmed glasses. Parker took this criticism harshly and began increasing his drug use. In 1946, he was hospitalized after suffering a nervous breakdown during his tour in California. When he was almost clean, he married Doris Snyder in 1948 but she ended the marriage when he began using drugs again. His addiction became worse when his daughter Pree (two years old), from his girlfriend, passed away. From that point on, his life spiraled down as he was arrested and had his cabaret card revoked. Heroin damaged his reputation leaving him depressed. He was trying to find meaning in his life, but on March 12,1955, Charlie Parker died from lobar pneumonia and effects of long term substance abuse.

Works Cited

“Charlie Parker.” Edited by Biography.com, Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 24 Nov. 2014, www.biography.com/people/charlie-parker-9433413.

“Charlie Parker.” PBS, Public Broadcasting Service, 8 Oct. 2009, www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/charlie-parker-about-charlie-parker/678/.

“Moose the Mooche.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 26 Oct. 2017, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moose_the_Mooche.
The People History — Steve Pearson. “1940’s Music in the 40’s Bands Groups Singers.” 1940’s Music Played in the 40’s Bands Groups Singers Memories from The People History Site, www.thepeoplehistory.com/40smusic.html.
Rose, Elihu. “The Forties and the Music of World War II.” The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, History Now, 5 June 2012, www.gilderlehrman.org/history-by-era/world-war-ii/essays/forties-and-music-world-war-ii.