His Finest Recordings

Charles "Charlie" Parker Jr, nicknamed "Bird" and "Yardbird", was perhaps the best remembered and important American jazz saxophonist of all. A highly influential soloist and leading figure in the development of bebop, Parker was a blazingly fast virtuoso and introduced revolutionary harmonic ideas into jazz, including rapid passing chords, new variants of altered chords, and chord substitutions. Primarily a player of the alto saxophone, Bird's tone ranged from clean and penetrating to sweet and sombre. 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. This 4CD Collection features the very best of Charlie Parker's recordings made during his short life, many of which were originally released as 78RPM 'singles' or on 10" albums. During his career Parker recorded largely for the Dial, Savoy and Verve labels, and this collection features selections from each of these tenures. Comprising eight albums largely released during his lifetime as collections from the various, legendary sessions and concerts in which he performed as leader or co-leader, this collection will satisfy any Charlie Parker fan, whether a new convert to the fold or a long-termer who's been flying the flag for decade