Charlie Parker

Charlie Parker, along with fellow musician Dizzy Gilespie, was one of the inventors of the musical style of bebop. From 1935-39 (ages 15-19), Parker played in different Missouri nightclubs and with local jazz bands. According to a biography about him, Parker’s mother had given him a saxophone as a gift to try and make up for his father leaving them when he was young. In 1945, Parker went on a six-week nightclub tour of Hollywood with Gilespie, and on that six week tour, they somehow managed to create bebop. Parker and Gilespie recorded the album “Bird and Diz”  in 1950.