GRGR(4) Cherokee

[Thomas Eckhardt]

Thanks for providing some very interesting posts from the archive upon the
topic of "Cherokee". Made me curious. What exactly are the lyrics to that
song? Why is the song "one more lie about white crimes"? Does Charlie
Parker's art, in a way, create a truth out of the lie? What does this mean
for notions of artistic "authenticity"? Parker's procedure here seems to be
similar to Pynchon's in M&D where the author takes "standards" (the
adventure novel, the bodice-ripping novel, the cloak-and-dagger novel, the
Gothic novel) and creates something new and contemporary out of them.  

As for the "fucking machine gun" Parker's music sounds like according to
Pynchon's narrator, the last track on Neil Young's underrated
"Reactor"-album, aptly entitled "Shots" and a truly unbelievable piece of
music, proves convincingly that this can be done with a guitar, too.

Thomas


P.S.: If I had just enough money to buy three CDs and I'd decide that now
finally the time has come to listen to some Charlie Parker, which ones would
I choose? Neil?