Chris Woods (musician) Chris Woods (musician) Chris Woods (December 25, 1925, Memphis, Tennessee – July 4, 1985, New York City) was an American jazz alto saxophonist. Woods played locally in Memphis early in his career before moving to St. Louis to play with the Jeter-Pillars Orchestra and trumpeter George Hudson. He then joined Tommy Dean's combo, recording with them for Town and Country, Miracle, and States. Striking out on his own, he first recorded as a leader in 1953 for United Records. In 1962 he moved to New York, where he played with Dizzy Gillespie, Clark Terry, Sy Oliver, and Ted Curson. He
Dizzy Gillespie Dizzy Gillespie and his Rebop Six, which included Parker, started an extended gig at Billy Berg's club in Los Angeles in December 1945. Reception was mixed and the band broke up. In February 1946 he signed a contract with Bluebird, gaining the distribution power of RCA for his music. He and his big band headlined the 1946 film "Jivin' in Be-Bop". After his work with Parker, Gillespie led other small combos (including ones with Milt Jackson, John Coltrane, Lalo Schifrin, Ray Brown, Kenny Clarke, James Moody, J.J. Johnson, and Yusef Lateef) and put together his successful big bands starting in