Charlie Parker on CD - Where to go from here?

[colinmce]

I'm sure this thread has been done before, but if you'll humor me, I'm wondering if there are any particularly notable Bird CDs you'd recommend for someone such as myself who already has the following:

Label Box Sets:
-Complete Savoy & Dial (official Savoy and Stash issues, respectively)
-Complete Verve (official issue)
-Complete Live Performances on Savoy (official issue)

Blue Note Issue CDs:
-Washington Concerts 
-Bird At The Hi Hat
-Bird & Diz At Carnegie Hall
-Charlie Parker At Storyville

Various other:
-The Quintet - Jazz At Massey Hall
-Charlie Parker (Bird At St. Nicks/Bird On 52nd Street)
-Live Performances (ESP)
-Rara Avis (Stash)
-Bird You Never Heard (Stash)
-Town Hall, New York City June 22, 1945 (Uptown)

Not looking to go the total completist route, but always open to having more to hear.

Edited 24 Mar 2021 by colinmce

[JSngry]

Freestyle time, baby!

although, no idea how it comes now, but the Open Door stuff is exquisite.

[felser]

[colinmce]

16 minutes ago, felser said:

Definitely have this!

[JSngry]

yeah, get that, THEN start freestyling.

[mjzee]

This would be a good supplement to what you have:

A 4-CD set from Proper.  You'd get early recordings from 1942 and 1943, stuff from L.A. in 1945 and 1946, the "One Night In Birdland" material, Carnegie Hall in 1949 with Red Rodney, Birdland with Dizzy from 1951, and some Rockland Palace material.

[medjuck]

If you ever see this for a reasonable price get it. 

Since  that's unlikely to happen get this: 

 

Edited 23 Mar 2021 by medjuck

[JSngry]

This is the Open Door set I've got, 2CDs: https://www.discogs.com/Charlie-Parker-At-The-Open-Door/release/10622622

https://www.amazon.com/At-Open-Door-Charlie-Parker/dp/B000050IG7

http://www.plosin.com/milesAhead/BirdDisco.aspx?id=ParkerOpenDoor

1953 was a pretty magic year for Bird overall, the Verve records don't really do that justice. If you want to do a deep dive, use this as a guide: http://www.plosin.com/milesAhead/BirdQuery.aspx

Truth be told, though, if it's Bird, get it. He's one of the very few people in any walk of life to whom the word "genius" truly applies. Not always "perfect", but always genius.

 

[medjuck]

What he said.   I once thought of starting a thread about what Bird records were not worth hearing but I couldn't think of any. 

[JSngry]

7 minutes ago, medjuck said:

If you ever see this for a reasonable price get it. 

Snsd since that's unlikely to happen get this: 

Yeah, that too. That Ember Birdland set (which I don't have, arrrgh) is some simply wondermous packaging, even if there's no place for it on any rational shelving system.

[JSngry]

32 minutes ago, medjuck said:

What he said.   I once thought of starting a thread about what Bird records were not worth hearing but I couldn't think of any. 

Cumulatively. the later strings sessions kind of numb me after a while, but any given track is delightful enough for me.

Again, thre are some very VERY good Mercury Verve sides, but on the whole, the best of those years seems to have been done live. No idea what's out there now, probably a whole new generation of newly new stuff, but in the LP/early CD days, hell, unless it was obviously something l already had...buy first, figure it out later.

[Chuck Nessa]

This set is nutso on Amazon but the music is spectacular - snoop around.

 

[Brad]

I’d also recommend these but if I was going to recommend only two, I’d say get the Jass and Stash one  

Charlie Parker - Boston 1952 - Uptown Records 27.42

Charlie Parker - The Complete “Birth of the Bebop” - Stash 535

Charlie Parker – Montreal 1953 – Uptown 27.36

Charlie Parker - One Night in Birdland - Sony Records 

Charlie Parker and the Stars of Modern Jazz at Carnegie Hall, Christmas 1949 (Jass Records 16)

Depending on how deep you want to go there’s also Jay McShann and Red Norvo material. 

Edited 24 Mar 2021 by Brad

[Gheorghe]

How about "Bird at St. Nick´s" ? 

Though the solos of the other musicians were edited, this is Bird at his best. And he is wonderful on those ballads, which he didn´t play often "Smoke Get´s in Your Eyes", "What´s New", "I didn´t know what time it was"....... really wonderful

Edited 24 Mar 2021 by Gheorghe

[romualdo]

Second the Open Door, Rockland Palace.

The Tristano/Parker material is also a favourite

[colinmce]

7 hours ago, Gheorghe said:

How about "Bird at St. Nick´s" ? 

Though the solos of the other musicians were edited, this is Bird at his best. And he is wonderful on those ballads, which he didn´t play often "Smoke Get´s in Your Eyes", "What´s New", "I didn´t know what time it was"....... really wonderful

Knew I was forgetting something! I do have this on the Prestige twofer CD with Bird On 52nd St.

Much appreciation for the various recommendations! Some good leads to follow.

[mhatta]

My personal favorites are Rockland Palace (an incredible Lester Leaps In!) , Summit Meeting/One Night At Birdland (wonderful Bud & Diz/Fats too) and Bird at St. Nicks (some vintage Bird solos).

Also, I like the so-called "the Apartment Jam Sessions".  Sounds awful, but it still contains very relaxed but intense Bird playing.  I think Bird's Eye CD Vol. 12 contains most of it.

 

Edited 24 Mar 2021 by mhatta

[JSngry]

With Rockland Palace, make sure you get a speed-corrected version. Some run fast. But past that, another no-brainer.

[kh1958]

Also: At Cafe Society Downtown and Birdland (Ember)

New Bird (Royal Roost performances not on the Savoy box)

Both are absurdly priced on Amazon.

[JSngry]

Alamac LPs can bring you some true delights...they turn up in odd places at oddly affordable prices...Café Society, Carnegie Hall (w/Rodney), Sweden, Bird with the Herd, Alamac is a garden of bootleg delights for the diligent jazz record collector. It's all been on CD, but at what price today, it varies.

[OliverM]

Interesting recommendations which I was also inspired by. Just purchased one of those Ember Birdland longboxes locally at a reasonable price.