New biography of charlie parkers crosby

Stanley Crouch’s much-anticipated biography of Charlie Parker is finally here. Or rather, the first of two scheduled volumes has arrived, this installment bringing Bird from his Kansas City roots to the cusp of stardom and the creation of bebop in New York City.

In Crouch’s hands, that relatively short period makes for a riveting read.

This certainly isn’t the first Parker biography. In fact, in September the University of Minnesota Press brought out a revised edition of one of the earlier ones, Celebrating Bird: The Triumph of Charlie Parker,by Crouch’s onetime Village Voice colleague Gary Giddins.

New biography of charlie parkers crosby

The two books complement each other nicely. Giddins’ is lavishly illustrated and focuses on Parker’s music; Crouch’s digs deeper into the narrative of Parker’s life, both its professional and personal sides, and pays closer attention to historical and sociological context.

It’s more of a storyteller’s take than a criticR