Music Friday
March 9th, 2007 |Bud Powell
An inspired piano player with a tragic life, all to typical in the world of the classic jazz musician.
Powell was known for his ability to play up tempo numbers and for incredibly creative soloing. His younger brother Richie also played piano, but was killed at the age of 25 in the same accident that killed Clifford Brown.
Bud Powell was a pioneer in the development of bebop, a fast and complex style of jazz that became popular in the 1940’s. Playing with such legends as Dexter Gordon, Sonny Stitt, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis and Sonny Rollins, Powell proved he had few equals during the prime of his career. He was incredibly talented and incredibly creative.
Powell suffered from mental illness throughout his life. A beating by police in 1945, the death of his brother a decade later, alcoholism, depression, schizophrenia, tuberculosis and self neglect all contributed to Powell’s death at the age of 42.
The Amazing Bud Powell Volumes One and Two would be a great place to start if you are interested in picking up some of his work.
