Dizzy Gillespie Dizzy Gillespie John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie (; October 21, 1917 – January 6, 1993) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, composer, and singer. Gillespie was a trumpet virtuoso and improviser, building on the virtuoso style of Roy Eldridge but adding layers of harmonic and rhythmic complexity previously unheard in jazz. His combination of musicianship, showmanship, and wit made him a leading popularizer of the new music called bebop. His beret and horn-rimmed spectacles, his scat singing, his bent horn, pouched cheeks, and his light-hearted personality provided some of bebop's most prominent symbols. In the 1940s Gillespie, with Charlie Parker, became
Dizzy Gillespie suspecting that he would not play again. Each musician gave tribute to their friend, this great soul and innovator in the world of jazz." A longtime resident of Englewood, New Jersey he died of pancreatic cancer on January 6, 1993 at the age of 75 and was buried in Flushing Cemetery, Queens, New York City. Mike Longo delivered a eulogy at his funeral. He starred in a film called "The Winter in Lisbon" that was released in 2004. Gillespie has been described as the "sound of surprise". "The Rough Guide to Jazz" describes his musical style: In Gillespie's obituary, Peter