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robertlashley's review against another edition
1.0
A 14 year got in a vicious accident. Instead of treatment, he got inhuman doses of morphine by a racist doctor and was thrown into the street like a slab of walking beef. Seeking a substitute, he turned to heroin.
These are the facts missing from this viciously phony biography of Charlie Parker, written by one of the most vicious con artists in the history of american literature. Instead of a believable biography of an artist, we get Stanley Crouch fitting his life into a "Hemingway/movable feast" formula, a tacky boys tale of fun, dope, and Crouch's sexual objectification/sneering of black women as vicious as the rappers he blames the black community's problems on. He got heaps of good press here, because people love a good dude-yarn and he kept his rages in check.
But only for the most part. When he gets to making jokes about prostitutes' vaginas, you are back in the gutter that critical readers of crouch are painfully familiar with; that same street he went to when he called Toni Morrison a racial and sexual slur in a review, termed Bell Hooks "a pit bull in a skirt", heckled Anita Hill's legs in an essay, and bragged about beating up a gay man because he didn't like his review. Stanley Crouch was a bridge troll, and this book was the most snidely trollish shit he's ever done.
These are the facts missing from this viciously phony biography of Charlie Parker, written by one of the most vicious con artists in the history of american literature. Instead of a believable biography of an artist, we get Stanley Crouch fitting his life into a "Hemingway/movable feast" formula, a tacky boys tale of fun, dope, and Crouch's sexual objectification/sneering of black women as vicious as the rappers he blames the black community's problems on. He got heaps of good press here, because people love a good dude-yarn and he kept his rages in check.
But only for the most part. When he gets to making jokes about prostitutes' vaginas, you are back in the gutter that critical readers of crouch are painfully familiar with; that same street he went to when he called Toni Morrison a racial and sexual slur in a review, termed Bell Hooks "a pit bull in a skirt", heckled Anita Hill's legs in an essay, and bragged about beating up a gay man because he didn't like his review. Stanley Crouch was a bridge troll, and this book was the most snidely trollish shit he's ever done.
erincataldi's review against another edition
4.0
A fascinating look at Charlie Parker's beginning. I assumed (wrongly) that this would be a full biography of Parker's life, but it stops before he truly hits the big time. It traces his rice in Kansas City, his hoboing to Chicago and then to New York to see the world and prove his worth, and ends with his eventual return to Kansas City. Included are many pictures, interviews with his first wife and a wonderful array of Jazz history and culture so that the reader can gain a better understanding of how Parker created a unique sound all his own while studying the Jazz masters of the day. A wonderfully informative book that makes me wonder if it's the first in a series. I want to know about his rise to fame, not just the beginnings!
ferrisscottr's review against another edition
No rating as I did not finish.
I was expecting a Charlie Parker bio and that is sooooo not what this is.
Not bad, just not what I am looking for at the moment.
I was expecting a Charlie Parker bio and that is sooooo not what this is.
Not bad, just not what I am looking for at the moment.
duffypratt's review against another edition
3.0
The subtitle of this book is accurate, so I guess it is shame on me to expect a full blown biography of Parker. It's not. It's not even really a biography of Parker's rise, although that story is strongly in the mix. Instead, its composed of a scattershot history of jazz and the Kansas City scene, drawing on just about anything that Crouch thinks might be relevant. A lot of this stuff is fascinating on its own, especially things like the glimpse of Lester Young and Count Basie, and even more so with the more extended treatment of lesser known sax player Buster Smith.
Another large part of it is Crouch's imaginings of how things "must have been" or "must have felt like" to Parker. This may even be intelligent extrapolation from things Crouch actually knows. But a good portion of the time it sounds like Crouch is simply making stuff up. That makes me think that there is a very large part of Parker's early days that is basically completely unknown. For example, it appears we don't know how or why he first started using hard drugs, what drugs they were, or who supplied them. Crouch makes some guesses and is upfront about it. In other areas, however, Crouch will delve directly into how Parker "must have felt" about something, and it sounds like bullshit to me.
A decent portion of the book is describing music, and for the most part, Crouch does very well. Then, when he gets into something technical, I have to wonder whether he has no idea what he is talking about, or whether he has deliberately dumbed things down for his readers. So this is a mixed bag, but for the most part I enjoy anyone intelligent and passionate who is talking about music I love.
And then there is more than a heaping helping of race talk. This seems to bear more on the scene itself than it does on Parker. And I understand why its here. But it seems strange to me that he dwells so long on Birth of a Nation and Gone With The Wind, when neither have much, if anything, to do with Parker. He also gives lip service to players paying attention to anyone who could play, regardless of race, and yet I'm left with the impression overall that he deeply feels that Jazz is a black man's field, and whites have no business having anything to do with it.
The rumor is that this is only the first part of a longer biography. If so, I will likely read the next part, but do so with different expectations.
Another large part of it is Crouch's imaginings of how things "must have been" or "must have felt like" to Parker. This may even be intelligent extrapolation from things Crouch actually knows. But a good portion of the time it sounds like Crouch is simply making stuff up. That makes me think that there is a very large part of Parker's early days that is basically completely unknown. For example, it appears we don't know how or why he first started using hard drugs, what drugs they were, or who supplied them. Crouch makes some guesses and is upfront about it. In other areas, however, Crouch will delve directly into how Parker "must have felt" about something, and it sounds like bullshit to me.
A decent portion of the book is describing music, and for the most part, Crouch does very well. Then, when he gets into something technical, I have to wonder whether he has no idea what he is talking about, or whether he has deliberately dumbed things down for his readers. So this is a mixed bag, but for the most part I enjoy anyone intelligent and passionate who is talking about music I love.
And then there is more than a heaping helping of race talk. This seems to bear more on the scene itself than it does on Parker. And I understand why its here. But it seems strange to me that he dwells so long on Birth of a Nation and Gone With The Wind, when neither have much, if anything, to do with Parker. He also gives lip service to players paying attention to anyone who could play, regardless of race, and yet I'm left with the impression overall that he deeply feels that Jazz is a black man's field, and whites have no business having anything to do with it.
The rumor is that this is only the first part of a longer biography. If so, I will likely read the next part, but do so with different expectations.
moustaki's review against another edition
5.0
Difficult to read because it made me keep flipping on music to hear the recordings. This is a great story of one of the great masters of music. A story thats tragic and triumphant. Worth reading.
brittdbean's review against another edition
5.0
Charlie Parker’s is a story that teaches. He was extreme and it is hard to tell if he was undone by music or by drugs. One thing is clear this man was genius and what is great about this book is that it isn’t JUST Charlie Parker this is the story of Basie, Moten, Young, Fleet, and so many others. The books paints a large and beautiful portrait of a time before mine.
jdscott50's review against another edition
4.0
There really isn't a definitive biography on Charlie Parker. He lives in myth and legend in Jazz culture. Stanley Crouch is able to unearth his story with the expertise of a professor, but with the familiarity of an old friend. The book isn't bogged down with academic footnotes and experts (even though he does have them referenced.) Crouch is able to give the story such a familiarity it's like he experienced it himself.
The first part of a two part biography doesn't detail Charlie Parker's success, but focuses on his struggles and failures. Crouch describes how Parker gets the music bug and obsessively watches his musical heroes (he even names his first born son after Leon Chu Berry.) He strives for success but is met with rejection time and time again. His handsome face and suave style get him the attention of some fans, but only breed resentment from his fellow musicians. It's heartbreaking to see him try and play with the bigger bands only to be loudly laughed off the stage (in one case a drummer throws his cymbal onto the stage to get him off). It seems his personal life is on track when he marries Rebecca, his first love, and they have a son. However, the rejection and the musician's life take its toll. Charlie develops a heroin addiction, one that he would have the rest of his life. He eventually leaves his wife and son to hobo to Chicago and New York to try to make it big. His beginning here is where this part of the book ends.
It is this time period that takes center stage in the biography. It's difficult to understand the struggle Charlie Parker had without showing the talent he learned from and how they were viewed by the jazz community. The familiarity and dialogue help get the reader immersed; we see how hyper competitive and ruthless jazz musicians could be. In one part Crouch quotes a musician stating that there was, "so much ass cut-up we was waste deep." The familiarity helps pierce the veil of the culture, bringing an insider's expertise to the wider world.
Generally, this will be the definitive biography on Charlie Parker since no other author has demonstrated the overall familiarity with the age, as well as the man. The opening scene to the book shows Charlie Parker dominating the New York stage in a one on one jazz competition in New York, merely the beginning of what he would become, but Crouch understands that struggle. In that struggle is the man behind the myth.
The first part of a two part biography doesn't detail Charlie Parker's success, but focuses on his struggles and failures. Crouch describes how Parker gets the music bug and obsessively watches his musical heroes (he even names his first born son after Leon Chu Berry.) He strives for success but is met with rejection time and time again. His handsome face and suave style get him the attention of some fans, but only breed resentment from his fellow musicians. It's heartbreaking to see him try and play with the bigger bands only to be loudly laughed off the stage (in one case a drummer throws his cymbal onto the stage to get him off). It seems his personal life is on track when he marries Rebecca, his first love, and they have a son. However, the rejection and the musician's life take its toll. Charlie develops a heroin addiction, one that he would have the rest of his life. He eventually leaves his wife and son to hobo to Chicago and New York to try to make it big. His beginning here is where this part of the book ends.
It is this time period that takes center stage in the biography. It's difficult to understand the struggle Charlie Parker had without showing the talent he learned from and how they were viewed by the jazz community. The familiarity and dialogue help get the reader immersed; we see how hyper competitive and ruthless jazz musicians could be. In one part Crouch quotes a musician stating that there was, "so much ass cut-up we was waste deep." The familiarity helps pierce the veil of the culture, bringing an insider's expertise to the wider world.
Generally, this will be the definitive biography on Charlie Parker since no other author has demonstrated the overall familiarity with the age, as well as the man. The opening scene to the book shows Charlie Parker dominating the New York stage in a one on one jazz competition in New York, merely the beginning of what he would become, but Crouch understands that struggle. In that struggle is the man behind the myth.