Thus read the headline in the "Melody Maker" in England in 1955.I read the front page article on the top deck of the trolley bus going to school and determined to play the rare "Dial" 78 s my best friend had loaned me to wean me away from Louis Armstrong that had been languishing under the All - Stars' double sided "Basin St Blues" for some time. Shortly after that I heard the Massey Hall LP with Dizzy and Bud Powell and moved Bird right alongside Louis in my pantheon of musical gods where he remains over half a century later. I am a great admirer of Mr Clint Eastwood both as a director and an actor and am grateful to him for putting his money where his mouth was and making "Bird". Charlie Parker had the avid mind of the poorly - educated intelligence,he read widely,had eclectic musical tastes,improvised some of the most profoundly moving music of the second half of the 20th century but most of his adult life was ruled by a heroin habit. He stole,lied,cheated and pimped to satisfy it,alienated many who loved him and,of course,ultimately it killed him.The story of his life was never going to be the typical Hollywood biopic,rags to riches but still basically the nice guy/girl of childhood sort of stuff. Bird came from a world alien to most Americans of the 50s,harsh,violent divided along race lines,awash with alcohol and drugs,it would have been surprising indeed if he had passed through it unscathed. "Bird" is disturbing to watch,wonderful to listen to and required viewing for anyone wanting to know about the life of the second most influential jazz musician in history. Stan Kenton alumnus Mr Lennie Neihaus masterminded the soundtrack and isolated the Parker solos from their original background,re - recording them with contemporary musicians,arguably not particularly ethical perhaps,but the muddy 50 year old records still have some joyous saxophone playing mixed with pristine state of the art resources. Mr Eastwood doesn't bowdlerise Bird's life,he presents an uncompromising picture of an improvising genius unable to take control of his own life and unwilling to let others control it for him.
Review of Bird
