John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie Fast Facts:
- Born October 21, 1917 in South Carolina - Began learning trumpet at age 12 from Roy Eldridge - Musician, Composer, and one of the greatest jazz trumpeters of all time - Professional jazz musician by 18 - Gained the nickname "Dizzy" from his on-stage shenanigans and light-hearted personality - Bebop was created by Dizzy and Charlie Parker during the 1930's, and was a style that consisted of fast, straight eighth notes. - Performed with some of the greatest jazz musicians of his time (Theloneous Munk, Charlie Parker, Louis Armstrong, and more) - Gillespie's music showed the middle east a side of America that they didn't know existed - Known for his complex trumpet solos, puffed cheeks, commitment to jazz, playful humor, and his bent trumpet - Died in 1993 from Pancreatic Cancer |