"While highly regarded in soul jazz circles,
Stanley Turrentine was one of the finest
tenor saxophonists in any style in modern times. He excelled at uptempo compositions,
jam sessions, interpreting standards, blues, and ballads. His rich,
booming and huge tone, with its strong swing influence, was one of the most striking of
any tenor stylist, and during the '70s and '80s made otherwise horrendous mood music
worth enduring.
Early on, he toured with the R&B band of Lowell Fulson (1950-1951) whose featured
pianist at the time was a young Ray Charles. From 1953-1954 he worked with Earl
Bostic (perhaps the greatest R&B
sax player of all time), where he replaced John Coltrane. He also worked and cut
his first albums with Max Roach (1959-1960). Turrentine started recording as a
leader on Blue Note in 1959 and 1960, while also participating in some landmark
Jimmy Smith sessions such as Midnight Special, Back at the Chicken Shack and
Prayer Meeting.
His decade plus association with organist/pianist Shirley Scott was both professional and personal,
as they were married most of the time they were also playing together. They frequently
recorded, with the featured leader's name often depending on the session's label
affiliation. When they divorced and split musically in the early '70s, Turrentine
became a crossover star on CTI. Several of his CTI, Fantasy, Elektra and Blue Note
albums in the '70s and '80s made the charts. Though their jazz content became
proportionally lower, Turrentine's playing remained consistently superb. He returned
to straight ahead and soul jazz in the '80s, cutting more albums for Fantasy and
Elektra, then returning to Blue Note. He's currently on the Musicmasters label.
Almost anything Turrentine's recorded, even albums with Stevie Wonder cover songs,
are worth hearing for his solos. Many of his classic dates, as well as recent
material, is available on CD.
Turrentine will always be an original, a one-of-a-kind. He does not fit neatly into ordinary
jazz categories. What makes Turrentine great is his deep love of the roots of
jazz -- blues and groove music. He never abandoned these roots to join the more
cerebral set of jazz soloists. His recording partnership with Jimmy Smith has given
us some of the finest funk groove music of all time, a high-water mark for both
artists. This man loved to groove and play funky music! He couldn't be tamed!"
-- Bob Porter, Michael Erlewine, and Ron Wynn, All Music Guide
"The Turrentine tenor displays none of the weak-kneed and frazzle-buttocked
bleatings of many tenor sax deviates, but relies on the truly large tone of the
big tenor sounds of the old masters." -- Dudley Williams, reviewer for Bluenote.
Pictured above right: Stanley Turrentine with Tevis and Rod Baltimore (store owner)
