Sonny Stitt played alto sax in Charlie Parker's style, but with such personal conviction, such emotional sureness and without any hint of slickness, popularization, or stylistic immaturity, that he created a dilemma about originality or individuality in jazz. The picture was further complicated by the fact that his tenor style was quite different and yet played with equal individuality and feeling. And, of course, he knew that what Parker did was not "run the changes" but play melodic ideas.
In these recordings Stitt is all over both his horns, communicating directly and deeply. All the alto sax performances he plays tenor only on 5 tracks are full of fire and brimstone. The tunes are for the most part Stitt's originals, plus two classic Bird pieces and seven standards, but they never sound tired, no matter how many times they've been heard before, when they are played with such intensity, vibrancy and imagination as here.
Recorded 1958. |