Charlie Christian
As the man who popularized the guitar in a jazz setting, his legacy lives on.
Charlie Christian was born on July 29, 1916 in Bonham, Texas but was raised in Oklahoma City from the time he was two years old. Charlie's immediate family were all musically talented - his mother played the piano; his father sang and played the trumpet and guitar; his brother, Clarence, played the violin and the mandolin; and his oldest brother, Edward, played the string bass. His parents made a living writing accompaniments for silent movies. At the age of twelve, Charlie was playing on a guitar that he had made from a cigar box in a manual training class. Charlie was actually first trained on the trumpet which was a huge contribution to his fluid single-note guitar style. Then, his father and brothers formed a quartet and Charlie got a real guitar. They performed in Oklahoma City clubs and Charlie even met Lester Young (tenor saxophonist) during one of his performances. Charlie was fascinated by Lester's style which helped in shaping his own stylistic development.
At the age of twenty-one he was playing electric guitar and leading a jump band. At the age of 23 (1939), Charlie was discovered by a talent scout, John Hammond, who had stopped in Oklahoma city to attend Benny Goodman's first Columbia recording sessions. Pianist Mary Lou Williams had actually recommended Charlie to John Hammond. Goodman was not very excited, this was due to the fact that Charlie was an unknown musician playing an electric instrument. The amplified electric guitar was fairly new at the time (trombonist and arranger Eddie Durham began playing it as a solo instrument in Jimmie Lunceford's band in 1935). It was essentially an amplified f-hole, and it helped in making the jazz guitar solo a practical reality for the first time.
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Extended Analysis
From the Inside Out
Album Review
- The Genius of the Electric Guitar by Charlie B. Dahan
- The Genius Of The Electric Guitar by Jim Santella
- When Lights Are Low by Al Rearick
- The Complete Charlie Christian by Craig Jolley
July 29, 2021
Jazz Musician of the Day: Charlie Christian
July 29, 2020
Jazz Musician of the Day: Charlie Christian
July 29, 2019
Jazz Musician of the Day: Charlie Christian
July 29, 2018
Jazz Musician of the Day: Charlie Christian
July 29, 2017
Jazz Musician of the Day: Charlie Christian
July 29, 2016
Jazz Musician of the Day: Charlie Christian
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Jazz this week: STL Free Jazz Collective, Erin Bode, a tribute to...
July 28, 2015
Jazz Musician of the Day: Charlie Christian
July 29, 2014
Jazz Musician of the Day: Charlie Christian