Celebrating an incredible lifetime in music. Today, the legendary Mr. Charlie Gabriel turns 90. Happy birthday, @chess_with_charlie!! Repost @preservationhall: Charlie Gabriel's professional career as a musician began at age 11, when he first filled in for his father with the Eureka Brass Band, during World War II. As a third-generation musician himself, Charlie's father, clarinetist and drummer Martin Manuel “Manny” Gabriel often sent his son as a substitute on gigs. Charlie grew up among legends of New Orleans music, like T-Boy Remy, Kid Humphrey, Kid Sheik, Kid Shots, Kid Clayton, and Kid Howard, who mentored him and brought him home after gigs. When Charlie was a teenager, the family moved to Detroit, where Mr. Gabriel established his musical career and remained, until the rebirth of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina beckoned him home, to the city of his birth. “I never did anything in my life but play music. I’ve been blessed with that gift that God gave me, and I’ve tried to nurse it the best way I knew how.” Thank you for sharing your boundless joy in music. Happy birthday, sir!