TRANSCRIPT:
Hi, I am Mark Rapp, and this is Rapp on Jazz.
Charles Henry Christian, born July 29, 1916, was an American swing and jazz guitarist. He was among the first electric guitarists and was a key figure in the development of bebop and cool jazz. He gained national exposure as one of the first black members of the Benny Goodman Sextet and Orchestra from August 1939 to June 1941. His single-string technique and amplification helped bring the guitar out of the rhythm section and into the forefront as a solo instrument. He is often credited with developing the lead guitar role in musical ensembles and bands.
Sadly, he suffered from Tuberculosis and died on March 2, 1942, at the age of 25 and was buried in an unmarked grave in his birthplace of Bonham, Texas.
This has been Rapp On Jazz, a co-production of ColaJazz and SC Public Radio, made possible in part by Layman Poupard Publishers, producers of the Literary Criticism Series and the Dictionary of Literary Biography.