Song:Bird Of Paradise
Album:Birdsong
Charlie Parker invented bebop so Miles Davis went looking for him when he first came to New York in 1945. Davis was part of Parker's band through 1948 and then he went off and did his own thing. Davis first saw Parker when the Billy Eckstine Band played Davis' home town of East St. Louis, IL. Parker and Dizzy Gillespie were in Eckstine's band at the time. Davis was even hired to fill in when trumpeter Buddy Anderson got sick. Clearly Davis wanted to move to New York and play with his idol. But his parents wanted him to attend Juilliard and further his education. Davis agreed to do this but instead he went looking for Parker when he moved to New York. Coleman Hawkins was among those who tried to discourage Davis because of Parker's heroin addiction. Davis found Parker and jammed with him in Harlem while attending Juilliard during the day. But he didn't like school and his father let him quit. Davis replaced Dizzy Gillespie in Parker's band in 1945 after Gillespie was fed up with Parker's unreliability. Davis remained with Parker's band through 1948. Parker had a nervous breakdown while in Los Angeles and Davis was left stranded. He joined Billy Eckstine's band to get back to New York. He rejoined Parker's band until he left in Dec. 1948 due to a dispute over money. Not long after, Davis met Gil Evans which was a turning point in his career. Parker's recordings with Davis for Dial Records are essential for jazz fans. But it's tough to find them in good quality on CD. So I recommend this 2004 CD from Savoy Records and then you can get into one of the Parker box sets that are available. Bird Of Paradise was recorded on Oct. 28, 1947 in New York. Parker based Bird Of Paradise on the standard All The Things You Are. The musicians are Charlie Parker on alto sax, Miles Davis on trumpet, Duke Jordan on piano, Tommy Potter on bass and Max Roach on drums. Here's a video for Bird Of Paradise by Charlie Parker and Miles Davis.
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