Priestley/Chasin' the Bird, 4. Parker's mood

When Charlie emerged from Camarillo at the end of January 1947, he was in good health for the first time in ten years. After the rehabilitation effected by regular meals and an absence of drugs and alcohol (and the cure of a bout of syphilis), he had decided to treat his enforced stay as a welcome rest from the pressures of following his chosen profession. Bebop is on the ascendency and Charlie Charlie sets about assembling the quintet which was to be his regular working group for the next few years. To the essential ingredient of Max Roach on drums, he added Miles Davis and bassist Tommy Potter. Continues to make guest appearances outside of the quintet but he also become notorious as a heroin user. Nevertheless, it was at this period that Charlie made what are not only his finest studio recordings but some of the greatest in the history of jazz.