Celebrating Bird: The Triumph of Charlie Parker

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CELEBRATING BIRD CELEBRATING BIRD GARY GIDDINS The Triumph of Charlie parker university of minnesota press minneapolis • london Revised Edition First published in 1987 by Beech Tree Books; second edition published in 1998 by Da Capo Press. First University of Minnesota Press edition, 2013 Copyright 1987, 2013 by Gary Giddins All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher. Published by the University of Minnesota Press 111 Third Avenue South, Suite 290 Minneapolis, MN 55401-2520 http://www.upress.umn.edu Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Giddins, Gary. Celebrating Bird : the triumph of Charlie Parker / Gary Giddins. First University of Minnesota Press edition. Includes discography, bibliographical references, and index. ISBN 978-0-8166-9041-1 (pb) 1. Parker, Charlie, 1920–1955. 2. Jazz musicians—United States—Biography. I. Title. ML419.P4G5 2013 788.7'3165092—dc23 2013030843 [B] Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper The University of Minnesota is an equal-opportunity educator and employer. 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 For Deborah Eve This page intentionally left blank For the grand destruction one must be worthy. I know noble accents And lucid, inescapable rhythms; But I know, too, That the blackbird is involved In what I know Some would hold . . . that music has some contribution to make to the cultivation of our minds and to the growth of moral wisdom. ELIZABETH HARDWICK WALLACE STEVENS ARISTOTLE This page intentionally left blank ...