Early life
Edward Boatner was born in Boston, Massachusetts[1] and grew up in Saginaw, Michigan. He had a musical background; his father, Edward Boatner, was a baritone singer, composer and college music professor, his brother was a classically trained pianist, and his mother was a piano teacher.[1] Boatner was soon adopted by another family, the Stitts, who gave him his new surname. He later began calling himself "Sonny".
In 1943, Stitt first met Charlie Parker, and as he often later recalled, the two men found that their styles had an extraordinary similarity that was partly coincidental and not merely due to Stitt's emulation. Stitt's improvisations were more melodic/less dissonant than those of Parker. Stitt's earliest recordings were made in 1945 with Stan Getz and Dizzy Gillespie. He had also played in some swing bands, though he mainly played in bop bands. Stitt was featured in Tiny Bradshaw's big band in the early forties. Stitt replaced Charlie Parker in Dizzy Gillespie's band in 1945.[2]
Stitt played alto saxophone in Billy Eckstine's big band alongside future bop pioneers Dexter Gordon and Gene Ammons from 1945 until 1956, when he started to play tenor saxophone more frequently, in order to avoid being referred to as a Charlie Parker imitator. Later on, he played with Gene Ammons and Bud Powell. Stitt spent time in a Lexington prison between 1948–49 for selling narcotics.
Stitt, when playing tenor saxophone, seemed to break free from some of the criticism that he was imitating Charlie Parker's style, although it appears in the instance with Ammons above that the availability of the larger instrument was a factor. Indeed, Stitt began to develop a far more distinctive sound on tenor.[1] He played with other bop musicians Bud Powell and Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, a fellow tenor with a distinctly tough tone in comparison to Stitt, in the 1950s and recorded a number of sides for Prestige Records label as well as albums for Argo, Verve and Roost. Stitt experimented with Afro-Cuban jazz in the late 1950s, and the results can be heard on his recordings for Roost and Verve, on which he teamed up with Thad Jones and Chick Corea for Latin versions of such standards as "Autumn Leaves."
Stitt joined Miles Davis briefly in 1960, and recordings with Davis' quintet can be found only in live settings on the tour of 1960. Concerts in Manchester and Paris are available commercially and also a number of concerts (which include sets by the earlier quintet with John Coltrane) on the record Live at Stockholm (Dragon), all of which featured Wynton Kelly, Jimmy Cobb and Paul Chambers. However, Miles fired Stitt due to the excessive drinking habit he had developed, and replaced him with fellow tenor saxophonist Hank Mobley. Stitt, later in the 1960s, paid homage to one of his main influences, Charlie Parker, on the album Stitt Plays Bird, which features Jim Hall on guitar and at Newport in 1964 with other bebop players including J.J. Johnson.
He recorded a number of memorable records with his friend and fellow saxophonist Gene Ammons, interrupted by Ammons' own imprisonment for narcotics possession. The records recorded by these two saxophonists are regarded by many as some of both Ammons and Stitt's best work, thus the Ammons/Stitt partnership went down in posterity as one of the best duelling partnerships in jazz, alongside Zoot Sims and Al Cohn, and Johnny Griffin with Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis. Stitt would venture into soul jazz, and he recorded with fellow tenor saxophonist Booker Ervin in 1964 on the Soul People album. Stitt also recorded with Duke Ellington alumnus Paul Gonsalves in 1963 for Impulse! on the Salt And Pepper album in 1963. Around that time he also appeared regularly at Ronnie Scott's in London, a live 1964 encounter with Ronnie Scott, The Night Has A Thousand Eyes, eventually surfaced, and another in 1966 with resident guitarist Ernest Ranglin and British tenor saxophonist Dick Morrissey. Stitt was one of the first jazz musicians to experiment with an electric saxophone (the instrument was called a Varitone), as heard on the albums What's New in 1966 and Parallel-A-Stitt in 1967.
Later life
In the 1970s, Stitt slowed his recording output slightly, and in 1972, he produced another classic, Tune Up, which was and still is regarded by many jazz critics, such as Scott Yanow, as his definitive record. Indeed, his fiery and ebullient soloing was quite reminiscent of his earlier playing. He also recorded another album with Varitone, Just The Way It Was - Live At The Left Bank in 1971 which was released in 2000.
Stitt joined the all-star group Giants of Jazz, which also featured Art Blakey, Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk, Kai Winding and bassist Al McKibbon) and made albums for Atlantic Records, Concord Records and Emarcy Records. His last recordings were made in Japan. In 1982, Stitt suffered a heart attack, and he died on July 22 in Washington, D.C..[2]
Star Eyes
Sonny Stitt Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
That to me is what your eyes are,
Soft as stars in April skies are,
Tell me some day you'll fulfill
Their promise of a thrill.
Star eyes,
Flashing eyes in which my hopes rise,
Let me prove that it adores
That loveliness of yours.
All my life I've felt
Content to stargaze at the skies.
Now I only want to to melt
The stardust in your eyes.
Star eyes,
When if ever, will my lips know
If it's me for whom those eyes glow?
Makes no diff'rence where you are,
Your eyes still hold my wishing star,
Oh, star eyes, how lovely you are.
In Sonny Stitt's rendition of "Star Eyes," he sings of a love interest whom he sees with "star eyes." To him, the eyes of this person are soft as stars in April skies, and he encourages this person to fulfill the promise of a thrill. Stitt refers to the flashing eyes of this love interest, a striking characteristic that makes his hopes rise. He wants to show this person where his heart lies and prove that he adores the loveliness that emanates from them.
In the song, Stitt sings that his life's content has been to stargaze at the skies until he met this person. He now desires to melt the stardust in their eyes, a metaphor for wanting to reveal the person behind the eyes. He wonders when his lips will know if it's for him that those eyes glow; that there's no difference where this person is because their eyes still sustain his wishing star. The song concludes with Stitt proclaiming his love interest's loveliness and how lovely their "star eyes" are.
Line by Line Meaning
Star eyes,
The singer is admiring the eyes of the person they are addressing
That to me is what your eyes are,
The singer believes that the other person's eyes are like stars
Soft as stars in April skies are,
The singer is describing how soft and gentle the other person's eyes seem to them
Tell me some day you'll fulfill
The artist is asking the other person to promise to fulfill the potential they see in their eyes
Their promise of a thrill.
The artist believes that the other person's eyes have the potential to bring them great excitement or joy
Flashing eyes in which my hopes rise,
The singer is describing how hopeful they feel when they look into the other person's eyes
Let me show you where my heart lies.
The singer is asking for the opportunity to express their feelings for the other person
Let me prove that it adores
The artist wants to demonstrate their deep affection for the other person
That loveliness of yours.
The artist is praising the other person's beauty and expressing admiration for them
All my life I've felt
The artist is reflecting on their past experiences
Content to stargaze at the skies.
The singer has been satisfied with simply looking at the stars and dreaming
Now I only want to to melt
The artist's desires have changed, and they now want something more
The stardust in your eyes.
The singer wants to be intimately connected with the other person and experience the magic they see in their eyes
When if ever, will my lips know
The singer is wondering when they will finally be able to express their love for the other person
If it's me for whom those eyes glow?
The singer wants to know if the other person's feelings are reciprocated
Makes no diff'rence where you are,
The artist's feelings for the other person are constant regardless of their physical location
Your eyes still hold my wishing star,
The artist believes that the other person's eyes have the power to grant their wishes
Oh, star eyes, how lovely you are.
The singer is expressing their admiration and love for the other person's eyes
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, ANTHEM ENTERTAINMENT LP, Songtrust Ave
Written by: Gene De Paul, Don Raye
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
vova47
I cannot agree more, Stitt is the greatest on any sax. Pepper Adams told me he was as great on baritone as on the alto or tenor but he just stopped playing it. Thanks for sharing!
Geshmake
I will NEVER forget what a badass Alto/Tenor Sax player Sonny Stitt was!
treeman Micool Jacksonn
Love it. Star eyes is one of my favorite standards
nobodady1
Love Cedar Walton's comping on this.
caponsacchi
"Star Eyes" is one of those gorgeous, aria-like pop tunes of the '40s. Ken Burns includes Bird's version on his Charlie Parker anthology--absurd, because Bird improvises only on the bridge, a total of 8 bars! Richie made dueling alto albums with Phil Woods and Art Pepper, but this one with Stitt is his best. On Diz' "Sonny Side Up" Stitt picks up his tenor and goes after Rollins. A tuff call. Roberta Gambarini sings the solos of all 3 players, which may make it easier.
Cliff Works
I used to worship Sonny when I was a pup watching him play at The Lighthouse in Hermosa Beach, they had a French Door they'd keep the top part open and I used to peer in and see all the greats, RIP.
jmspiro
Hard to believe this is a c. 1981 performance. I mean, I hear some more modern, post 60s influence (unison horns a la master musicians of joujouka), but the commanding riffs indicate this guy really possessed the fire. Classic elements of a master solo... Thanks for the post.
amir antar
Stitt was the only alto player I would dare mention with Bird. Thanks Sonny for your beautiful music,
Israel Humphrey
amir antar cannonball? art pepper? Ernie Watts?
Stephen Mohrbacher
Phil Woods?