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Earl Bostic (April 25, 1913 – October 28, 1965) was an American jazz and rhythm and blues alto saxophonist.
Bostic was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He turned professional at age 18 when he joined Terrence Holder's band. He made his first recording with Lionel Hampton in 1942 where he played along with Red Allen, J.C. Higginbotham, Sid Catlett, Teddy Wilson and Hampton. Before that he performed with Fate Marable on New Orleans riverboats. Bostic graduated from Xavier University in New Orleans. He worked with territory bands as well as Arnett Cobb, Hot Lips Page, Rex Stewart, Don Byas, Charlie Christian, Thelonious Monk and other jazz luminaries. In 1938, and in 1944, Bostic lead the house band at Small's Paradise. During the early 1940's, he was a well respected regular at the famous jam sessions held at Minton's Playhouse. He formed his own band in 1945, and turned to rhythm and blues in the late 1940s. His biggest hits were "Temptation," "Sleep," "Flamingo," "You Go to My Head" and "Cherokee." At various times his band included Jaki Byard, John Coltrane, Benny Golson, Blue Mitchell, Stanley Turrentine, Tommy Turrentine, Keter Betts, Sir Charles Thompson, Teddy Edwards, Tony Scott, Benny Carter and other musicians who rose to prominence in jazz. Bostic held his musicians to a high standard and demanded that they read music faultlessly. He was influenced by the great Sidney Bechet. John Coltrane in turn was influenced by Earl Bostic. James Moody said that Bostic was the chief influence on John Coltrane. Moody mentioned that "Bostic knew his instrument inside out, back to front and upside down."
His virtuosity is documented in records such as Up There In Orbit, Earl's Imagination, Apollo Theater Jump, All On, Artistry by Bostic, Telestar Drive, Liza, Lady Be Good and Tiger Rag. Bostic was a master of the blues and he used this skill in a variety of musical settings. Although Bostic recorded many commercial albums, some notable jazz based exceptions on the King label include Bostic Rocks Hits of the Swing Age, Jazz As I Feel It and A New Sound.
Bostic's King album titled Jazz As I Feel It featured Shelly Manne on drums, Joe Pass on guitar and Groove Holmes on organ. Bostic recorded the King Album "A New Sound" about one month later again, featuring Holmes and Pass. These recordings allowed Bostic to stretch out beyond the 3 minute limit imposed by the 45 RPM format. Bostic was pleased with the sessions which highlight his total mastery of the blues but they also foreshadowed musical advances that were later evident in the work of John Coltrane and Eric Dolphy.
He wrote arrangements for Paul Whiteman, Louis Prima, Lionel Hampton, Gene Krupa, Artie Shaw,Hot Lips Page, Jack Teagarden and Alvino Rey.
Bostic was famous as a peerless jammer and held his own against Charlie Parker. The alto saxophonist Sweet Papa Lou Donaldson recalled seeing Parker get burned by Bostic during one such jam session. Art Blakey remarked that "Nobody knew more about the saxophone than Bostic, I mean technically, and that includes Bird. Working with Bostic was like attending a university of the saxophone." Victor Schonfield pointed out that "...his greatest gift was the way he communicated through his horn a triumphant joy in playing and being, much like Louis Armstrong and only a few others have done." He was able to control the horn from low B flat up into the altissimo range years before other saxophonists dared to stray. Bostic was able to play melodies in the altissimo range with perfect execution. He could play wonderfully in any key at any tempo over any changes. Benny Golson mentioned that "He could start from the bottom of the horn and skip over notes, voicing it up the horn like a guitar would. He had circular breathing before I even knew what circular breathing was-we're talking about the early '50s. He had innumerable ways of playing one particular note. He could double tongue, triple tongue. It was incredible what he could do, and he helped me by showing me many technical things." Compositions like The Major and the Minor and Earl's Imagination display a solid knowledge of harmony. Bostic was described as a very precise man and that shows in his playing, one rarely hears errors in his solos. In 1951, Bostic successfully toured with Dinah Washington on the R&B circuit. Bostic was always well dressed and articulate during interviews. Always the consummate showman, he appeared on the Soupy Sales TV show and performed the Soupy Shuffle better than Soupy while playing the saxophone. Bostic was known to drive audiences into a frenzy with fantastic stop time chorus after chorus.
His popular hits such as "Flamingo", "Harlem Nocturne", "Temptation", "Sleep" and "Where or When" showed off his characteristic growl on the horn. He adopted a danceable beat for these commercial successes while employing less notes than on his jazz based recordings. Gene Redd on vibes provided an important background for Bostic's hits. Bostic used a Beechler mouthpiece with a tenor saxophone reed on his Martin Committee model alto sax.
Bostic's signature hit, "Flamingo" was recorded in 1951 and remains a favorite among followers of Carolina Beach Music in South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia. Their style of Beach Music is heavily influenced by Rhythm-and-Blues music from the 40's, 50's and 60's. A popular dance to Bostic's tunes, and other Beach Music songs, is the "Shag", which borrows heavily from the "Jitterbug". Many Shag contests continue to be held along the "Grand Strand" of the Myrtle Beach area in South Carolina, as well as other beach music venues in the Mid-Atlantic states. Bostic recorded for Cincinnati-based King Records, a small label that was well known for releasing "R and B" and Bluegrass records. In fact, the biggest star on the King label was "the Godfather of Soul", James Brown. Bostic was also popular among R&B and jazz followers in the United Kingdom, thanks to his records that were released on the Parlophone label.
During the early 1950's Bostic lived with his wife in fashionable Addisleigh Park in St Albans Queens where many other jazz stars made their home.
Bostic's recording career was diverse and it includes jump blues, big band jazz, early rock and roll, purely commercial sides, and soul/jazz organ quintets.
Bostic was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma; and died from a heart attack in Rochester, New York, while performing with his band in 1965. His widow, Hildegarde, was still living in San Francisco as of the mid-1990s.
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