Dizzy Gillespie 1947. He and his big bands, with arrangements provided by Tadd Dameron, Gil Fuller, and George Russell, popularized bebop and made him a symbol of the new music. His big bands of the late 1940s also featured Cuban "rumberos" Chano Pozo and Sabu Martinez, sparking interest in Afro-Cuban jazz. He appeared frequently as a soloist with Norman Granz's Jazz at the Philharmonic. In 1948, Gillespie was involved in a traffic accident when the bicycle he was riding was bumped by an automobile. He was slightly injured and found that he could no longer hit the B-flat above high C. He
Mingus: Charlie Mingus 1968 Charlie Parker, John Coltrane, Miles Davis and many more lived and breathed the music. In order to be a true musician’s musician, which Mingus definitely was, there had to be immense dedication. When asked about Mingus, trumpet player Dizzy Gillespie said “Sometimes he plays and his fingers start bleedin.’” He also said that Mingus had a “lack of peers” because not many were up to his caliber and able to make music successfully with him. As a talented jazz bassist, Mingus was an amazing artist who played small clubs and ensembles throughout his professional career. Later in life, during the