Charlie Parker - The Genius of Charlie Parker #3 - Now's the Time [Universal Japan 200g LP] 24-bit/96kHz & CD-format

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A masterpiece with surprisingly good sound...

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Charles Parker, Jr. (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), famously called Bird or Yardbird, was an American jazz saxophonist and composer.

Parker, with Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington, is widely considered to have been one of the most influential jazz musicians. Parker acquired the nickname "Yardbird" early in his career and the shortened form "Bird" remained Parker's sobriquet for the rest of his life, inspiring the titles of a number of Parker compositions, such as "Yardbird Suite", "Ornithology" and "Bird of Paradise."

Parker played a leading role in the development of bebop, a form of jazz characterized by fast tempos, virtuoso technique, and improvisation based on harmonic structure. Parker's innovative approaches to melody, rhythm, and harmony exercised enormous influence on his contemporaries. Several of Parker's songs have become standards, including "Billie's Bounce", "Anthropology", "Ornithology", and "Confirmation". He introduced revolutionary harmonic ideas including a tonal vocabulary employing 9ths, 11ths and 13ths of chords, rapidly implied passing chords, and new variants of altered chords and chord substitutions. His tone was clean and penetrating, but sweet and plaintive on ballads. Although many Parker recordings demonstrate dazzling virtuosic technique and complex melodic lines – such as "Ko-Ko", "Kim", and "Leap Frog" – he was also one of the great blues players. His themeless blues improvisation "Parker's Mood" represents one of the most deeply affecting recordings in jazz. At various times, Parker fused jazz with other musical styles, from classical to Latin music, blazing paths followed later by others.

Parker was an icon for the hipster subculture and later the Beat Generation, personifying the conception of the jazz musician as an uncompromising artist and intellectual, rather than just a popular entertainer. His style — from a rhythmic, harmonic and soloing perspective — has made a significant impact on musicians of all kinds.



Tracklist

A1 The Song Is You
A2 Lairnd Bairnd
A3 Kim
A4 Kim (Alternate Take)
A5 Cosmic Rays
A6 Cosmic Rays (Alternate Take)
B1 Chi Chi
B2 Chi Chi (Alternate Take)
B3 Chi Chi (Alternate Take)
B4 I Remember You
B5 Now's The Time
B6 Confirmation

Credits

Alto Saxophone – Charlie Parker
Bass – Percy Heath (tracks: B1 to B6), Teddy Kotick (tracks: A1 to A6)
Drums – Max Roach
Piano – Al Haig (tracks: B1 to B6), Hank Jones (tracks: A1 to A6)

Notes

Part of the "Jazz The Best" LP Collection.
Remastered on 180g vinyl, in a hardback cover, additional plain white sleeve, obi strip and info sheet (both in Japanese language).
The second time it was released in the series.

Recorded at Fulton Recording Studios, NYC on
December 30, 1952 (A-side) & August 4, 1953 (B-side).