Radio
Jazzy

Some playlists require a little more homework than others. Under the Influence is one of them. Here, we aren't just tracing an artist's roots, but following what happened to their music in the hands of others.

Today's subject? Dizzy Gillespie — jazz legend, bebop pioneer and a musician whose ideas travelled far beyond his own trumpet.

So, who made it onto the playlist?

  • Fats Navarro, who wasn't simply a follower. He helped shape early bebop alongside Gillespie, bringing a smoother, rounder sound without sacrificing any virtuosity.
  • Miles Davis, who started out speaking the same bebop language before developing his own, much cooler and more spacious style.
  • Clifford Brown, who took bebop's technical brilliance and harmonic complexity and gave it an irresistible melodic touch.
  • And Tito Puente? He takes us into Afro-Cuban rhythms, a musical world Gillespie also helped bring into jazz.

The result is more than a playlist about influence. It is a journey through jazz from the 1940s to the 1960s, showing how one musical revolution can take on a life of its own. After all, the best ideas rarely stay with the people who started them.