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CHARLIE PARKER Yardbird Suite Le Chant du Monde 274 2455.57

CD 1

1. Tiny's tempo

2. Red cross

3. Warming up a riff

4. Billie's bounce

5. Now's the time

6. Anthropology

7. Meandering

8. Ko-Ko

9. Moose the mooche

10. Yardbird suite

11. Ornithology

12. A Night in Tunisia

13. Bebop [Dizzy's Fingers]

14. Bird's nest

15. Cool blues

16. Relaxin' at Camarillo

17. Carvin' the Bird

18. Donna Lee

19. Chasin' the Bird

20. Cheryl

21. Buzzy

22. Dexterity

23. The Hymn

24. Bird feathers

25. Klact-overseeds-tene

26. Scrapple from the apple

Charlie Parker - Alto sax

Clyde Hart - Piano (tracks 1-2)

Tiny Grimes - Guitar (tracks 1-2)

Jimmy Butts - Bass (tracks 1-2)

Doc West - Drums (tracks 1-2, 14-15)

Miles Davis - Trumpet (tracks 3-12, 18-26)

Dizzy Gillespie -Trumpet, piano (tracks 3-8)

Sadik Hakim - Piano (tracks 3-8)

Curly Russell - Bass (tracks 3-8)

Max Roach - Drums (tracks 3-8,18-26)

Lucky Thompson - Tenor sax (tracks 9-12)

Arvin Garrison - Guitar (tracks 9-12)

Dodo Marmarosa - Piano (tracks 9-12, 16-17)

Vic McMillan - Bass (tracks 9-12)

Roy Porter - Drums (tracks 9-13)

Howard McGhee - Trumpet (tracks 13, 16-17)

Jimmy Bunn - Piano (track 13)

Bob Kesterson - Bass (track 13)

Erroll Garner - Piano (tracks 14-15)

Red Callender - Bass (tracks 14-15)

Wardell Gray - Tenor sax (tracks 16-17)

Barney Kessel - Guitar (tracks 16-17)

Don Lamond - Drums (tracks 16-17)

Bud Powell - Piano (tracks 18-21)

Tommy Potter - Bass (tracks 18-26)

Duke Jordan - Piano (tracks 18-26)

CD 2

1. Charlie's wig

2. Bongo beep

3. Crazeology

4. Another hair-do

5. Bluebird

6. Klaunstance

7. Bird gets the worm

8. Barbados

9. Ah-leu-cha

10. Constellation

11. Parker's mood

12. Perhaps

13. Marmaduke

14. Steeplechase

15. Merry-go-round

16. Cardboard

17. Visa

18. Segment [Diverse 1]

19. Passport [Tune Z]

20. Blues [Fast]

21. Bloomdido

22. An Oscar for Treadwell

23. Mohawk

24. My melancholy baby

25. Leap frog

26. Relaxing with Lee

Charlie Parker - Alto sax

Miles Davis - Trumpet (tracks 1-15)

J.J. Johnson - Trombone (tracks 1-3)

Duke Jordan - Piano (tracks 1-7)

Tommy Potter - Bass (tracks 1-7, 16-19)

Max Roach - Drums (tracks 1-19)

John Lewis - Piano (tracks 8-15)

Curly Russell - Bass (tracks 8-15, 21-26)

Kenny Dorham - Trumpet (tracks 16-19)

Tommy Turk - Trombone (tracks 16-19)

Al Haig - Piano (tracks 16-19)

Carlos Vidal - Conga (tracks 16-17)

Hank Jones - Piano (track 20)

Ray Brown - Bass (track 20)

Buddy Rich - Drums (tracks 20-26)

Dizzy Gillespie - Trumpet (tracks 21-26)

Thelonious Monk - Piano (tracks 21-26)

CD3

1. Au Privave

2. She rote

3. K.C. blues

4. Star eyes

5. My little suede shoes

6. Blues for Alice

7. Si si

8. Swedish schnapps

9. Back home blues

10. Lover man

11. Begin the beguine

12. The song is you

13. Laird baird

14. Kim

15. Cosmic rays

16. Chi-chi

17. I remember you

18. Now's the time

19. Confirmation

20. I get a kick out of you

21. Just one of those things

22. My heart belongs to daddy

23. I've got you under my skin

24. Summertime

25. If I should lose you

Charlie Parker - Alto sax

Miles Davis - Trumpet (tracks 1-4)

Walter Bishop Jnr. - Piano (tracks 1-5, 20-23)

Teddy Kotick - Bass (tracks 1-5, 11-15, 20-23)

Max Roach - Drums (tracks 1-4, 11-19)

Roy Haynes - Drums (tracks 5, 20-23)

Luis Miranda - Conga (track 5)

José Mangual - Bongoes (track 5)

Red Rodney - Trumpet (tracks 6-10)

John Lewis - Piano (tracks 6-10)

Ray Brown - Bass (tracks 6-10, 24-25)

Kenny Clarke - Drums (tracks 6-10)

Hank Jones - Piano (tracks 12-15)

Al Haig - Piano (tracks 16-19)

Percy Heath - Bass (tracks 16-19)

Jerome Darr - Guitar (tracks 20-23)

Stan Freeman - Piano (tracks 24-25)

Buddy Rich - Drums (tracks 24-25)

Mitch Miller - Oboe (tracks 24-25)

Myor Rosen - Harp (tracks 24-25)

Bronislaw Gimpel - Violin (tracks 24-25)

Max Hollander - Violin (tracks 24-25)

Milt Lomask - Violin (tracks 24-25)

Frank Brieff - Viola (tracks 24-25)

Frank Miller - Cello (tracks 24-25)

Jimmy Carroll - Arrangement & Direction (tracks 24-25)

It seems that whenever change occurs in jazz (or indeed, in music generally) controversy rides in on its coat-tails, inviting resistance from some and a sense of liberation for others. Bebop was one of those seismic occurrences, after which nothing ever seemed precisely the same again. The alto saxophonist Charlie Parker (known as Bird) was an outrider of a musical revolution. This three-CD set will convey some of what the fuss was about. The discs cover the period from late 1944, when Bird was playing in the Tiny Grimes Quintet, to the end of March 1954. The earlier years of Bird's career, in various groups and big bands, are understandably omitted since the years from 1947 through to 1951 are generally regarded as his creative peak. Anyone who is unfamiliar with the music of that era should note that the timings of the tracks range between just over two minutes and just under four minutes. This has the effect of restricting the length of solos, particularly of sidemen who get a few bars if they're lucky. Max Roach, for instance, who was Parker's drummer of choice appears on about 45 tracks here but rarely gets the chance to shine, other than through providing solid background support. Another feature on some tracks is abrupt endings.

Much of the material on these CDs is credited to Bird himself but many of the numbers ascribed to him are based on chord progressions which are appropriated from 12-bar blues or Broadway show tunes (for example, Scrapple from the apple features the “A” section from I got rhythm and the bridge from Honeysuckle Rose.) Although there are also a fair number of Parker originals here, too, and despite the classic status accorded to many of his compositions, his real potency lay in the brilliance of his improvisation, the speed and sustained attack which marked much of his playing and the invention and poignancy he brought to ballads. On the best of the ballads his tone and clarity were nothing short of majestic. Not that he was beyond criticism as a musician. There are tracks which seem to be merely exhibitions of technique or where the performance is perfunctory, even, perish the thought, descending into triteness. Bird was fond of dropping musical quotations into his playing from a wide range of sources, including classical pieces. Lover man and My melancholy baby both receive a burst of An English Country Garden while The Woody Woodpecker Song surfaces on My heart belongs to daddy.

The personnel listed on these three discs constitute a roll call of jazz talent – Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis, for instance, though Dizzy only plays on a few tracks while Miles is still serving his apprenticeship as a future jazz great. He is, therefore, quite raw and hesitant at times but there are also strong hints of the style and calibre of his coming maturity. It is good to hear John Lewis playing piano with a blues-tinged assurance on several tracks. Lewis is only one of a cohort of gifted pianists who played alongside Bird – Hank Jones, Al Haig, Erroll Garner, Thelonious Monk, the great Bud Powell and the under-rated Walter Bishop Jnr., among others.

The first CD contains several classic performances on, for instance, Billie's bounce, Now's the time, Moose the Mooche and particularly, for me, on Ornithology – a great tune offering excellent interplay between the main protagonists. A Night in Tunisia has a marvellous collective sound, too – Lucky Thompson is on tenor here. Chasin' the Bird (one of numerous titles which word-play on Charlie's nickname) is reminiscent of West Coast jazz – Bird was no stranger to California – and certainly appealed to me. Klact-overseeds-tene, based, I believe, on the chord progressions of Perdido, gives scope for the Quintet members (Parker, Davis, Jordan, Potter and Roach) to shine. The concluding track, Scrapple from the apple, another top number, features a supple Bird, with Miles also on song and Duke Jordan proving effective support on the piano.

The second CD has much that is listenable but there were three stand-out tracks. Ah-leu-cha is enjoyably swinging with some adept counterpoint. Parker's mood is another favourite, relaxed and blues-tinged, slower than other tracks and the better for it. Blues [Fast] is true to it's title and is taken at a lick by an all-star quartet (Bird, Hank Jones, Ray Brown and Buddy Rich). One of the highlights of the third disc, for me, is Au Privave, a jaunty melody with a relaxed solo from Bird, though Miles sounds somewhat brittle. Then, K.C. Blues has Parker in mellow form, playing with real feeling and a deep sense of the blues. Lover man is beautifully and emotionally rendered by Bird, accompanied by a muted Red Rodney on trumpet. Kenny Clarke, one of bebop's trail-blazers, is on drums for this, part of the first session Bird and he played together. Another appealing number is Chi-chi which Charlie takes by the scruff of the neck, hurtling along, ably assisted by Al Haig, Percy Heath and Max Roach. I remember you has an inventive solo by Bird, supported by the same rhythm section. Now's the time is an immaculate, driving version of a piece which will be forever associated with the name of Charlie Parker, while Confirmation is another Parker standard, delivered stylishly and with energy. I particularly liked Al Haig's piano playing on this one. Most of all, though, I responded to If I should lose you. A fine ballad played with sensitivity and poignancy by Bird. How much the strings added is open to debate.

In summary, this is a nicely-packaged set of CDs containing a number of gems and accompanied by an attractively produced and informative booklet with an excellent essay on one of the all-time jazz greats.

James Poore

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