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Frank Paparelli
Pianist, Composer
(1917 - 1973)
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Frank Paparelli was a jazz pianist who played with a number of bands, most notably with Dizzy Gillespie in the 1940’s. In Dizzy Gillepsie’s autobiography, To Be or Not to Bop, Gillespie says that Paparelli transcribed some of his solos for publication and as a reward got a piece of “Night in Tunisia,” but he had nothing to do with composing it.* Regardless, Paparelli is now considered an underrated piano player who went on to play in nightclubs and who also published a number of songs and sheet music collections. Besides “Night in Tunisia,” Paparelli will be remembered for “Blue ‘n Boogie” (1944) and “Petootie Pie” (1945). Paprelli’s sheet music collections include Boogie Woogie and Boogie Woogie for Beginners.
- Sandra Burlingame
* Joan Kathryn Paparelli emailed JazzBiographies.com to disagree with this statement. At her website, frankpaparelli.com, is a biography, originally written by her mother, that states,
”Frank’s most important contribution to this composition was the tag at the end which originated from his piano arrangement in the Dizzy Gillespie Trumpet Book. ‘A Night in Tunisia’, never would have been a hit without Frank’s memorable tag.”
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