Why Are There Ads in Your Music?

Simple! Slacker Radio needs to pay your favorite artists.

Please disable your ad blocker or, better yet, upgrade to Radio Plus.

For only $3.99/month we'll remove all ads and give you unlimited song skips.

The music will continue in seconds.

Select to cast music to your TV or stereo

Your browser is not supported by the Slacker Radio web site.

Update your browser to the latest available version to use the Slacker Radio web site:

Google Chrome

Firefox

An error has occurred. Please check your username and password.

Need an account?

We'll start the music back up once
you go through this security check.

Have an account?

Feedback

Choose the Right Membership For You

Basic

FREE

Personalize your radio experience.
Choose from our hand-crafted stations
Skip up to 6 songs per hour/station
Listen on multiple devices
Create stations based on artists, albums, or songs
Personalize stations and save your preferences

current membership

Plus

$3.99/month

Personalized radio with no interruptions or limits.
Enjoy an ad-free experience
Skip unlimited songs
Download stations and shows to listen data-free on your mobile device
Customize ESPN Radio (a Slacker exclusive)
Hear maximum audio quality (320kbps)

current membership

Premium

$9.99/month

You're in total control of the ultimate listening experience.
Play thousands of songs and albums on-demand
Jump to the favorite parts of songs
Download playlists and albums and listen data-free on your mobile device
Create playlists from our massive library of songs
Along with all benefits of Plus membership

current membership

Message

Charlie Christian

Top Related Artists

Biography

Charles Henry Christian was a hugely influential jazz and swing guitarist who set the standard during the early days of the form. One of the pioneers of electric guitar, during his short life Christian became one of the key figures in the development of cool jazz and bebop. Christian's time in the spotlight was tragically brief. He was playing piano in Oklahoma when he became a student of Eddie Durham, the jazz guitarist who invented the amplified guitar. Christian took up the instrument himself and by 1937 had become a regional attraction, touring the Midwest and travelling as far as North Dakota and Minnesota. Talent scout and producer John Hammond heard about Christian, allegedly from Mary Lou Williams, and brought the guitarist to Los Angeles to play for Benny Goodman in 1939. Goodman was originally turned off by Christian's parochial appearance but it only took a jamming session in the Rose Room to win him over. For two years Christian was a mainstay of Benny Goodman's Sextet, surviving a reorganisation to play with the all-star line-up that also included Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Cootie Williams, Dave Tough and Georgie Auld. During that period Christian topped the swing and jazz polls and made it into the Metronome All Stars twice. At the height of his powers in 1941, however, Christian contracted tuberculosis and died at the age of 25 in March 1942. 24 years after his death he was inducted into the Down Beat Jazz Hall of Fame and in 1989 he was among the first seven inductions to the Oklahoma Jazz Hall of Fame.

Read All Read Less

Albums