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Joe Stanley -- the godfather of the down-and-dirty R&B sax of the '50s and '60s. He led the great Bill Black Combo (Elvis' backup band), toured with Marvin Gaye , and mentored countless Maryland musicians including Danny Gatton and Roy Buchanan .Some musical history about Joe Stanley:
To the roadhouses of the Atlantic coast, Brewster Avenue and King Records in Cincy, the Apollo and 125th Street in New York, and Dave Bartholomew in the Crescent City, saxophonist Joe Stanley trods the fertile musical fields that were the backbone of R&B in The Fabulous Fifties. Playing alongside Roy Clark, Roy Buchanan and Danny Gatton , Stanley plays tenor sax with a burry tone and a big heart.
Joe was a member of the Big Joe & the Dynaflows and Big Four Combo (with Big Joe Maher ) but when you piece together his history, you ask yourself, why has he not received more recognition?
Joe is cousin to Jerry Lee Lewis and Mickey Gilley and he started playing the Washington DC clubs in the '50s.
He was one of the handful that would cross the color line to play with the black musicians uptown (in DC) around 14th and U.
He was an original member of the Rainbows with Marvin Gaye, Don Covay and Billy Stewart . He was with Billy Stewart at a birthday party the night before Billy was killed in an auto accident.
Joe could go from playing one night with Link Wray the next night to Roy Clark and the next the Orioles . He toured regularly with all of them.
He had his own band, The Saxtons that backed Big Joe Turner, Sam Cooke, Little Anthony, The Ames Brothers, Lloyd Price, The Drifters, Bobby Darin, Bobby Rydell, Jackie Wilson, Dion & the Belmonts, Freddie Cannon and many many others.
The Saxtons would alternate sets on a double bill with Jimmy Dean , his band providing the rock & roll as a counter to Jimmy's country. He joined Roy Clark's band for a couple tours and played the Arthur Godfrey show with him.
He was in Dale Hawkins' band with Roy Buchanon . He and Roy left Dale at the same time and Roy became a member of The Saxtons.
In the early '60s Joe became a member of the Bill Black Combo and ended up leading the band when Bill Black died.
Joe joined with Charlie Daniels when Charlie would be dressed in black tux, bow tie and black patent leather shoes with his hair slicked back for his weekend gigs around DC.
Joe had a standing invitation from David Bartholomew to come join in when Fats Domino would come to town.
Joe Stanley helped Danny Gatton get his first gigs and was part of the Danny and the Fat Boys band and the two of them were in Robert Gordon's band. Joe & Danny were roommates.
He was also part of the Red Hot Swinging Johnsons with Derek Huston and Jeff Lodsun .
Joe has one CD, King of the Honky-Tonk Sax on Mapleshade. http://www.mapleshaderecords.com/cds/03852.php
Joe is called a Lieber & Stoller kind of guy and the following thoughts from a number of other musicians can give you a picture of him:
Rusty Bogart , musician - I first saw him at Yesterdays around 1990 playing everything from Deep Purple (the song) to Honky Tonk- standards to blues it was great
Roy Clark - Joe was a great part of my musical education. Even back then, (the 50's) he could really get down. He was one of the trailblazers in good sax playing in the DC area.
Charlie Daniels - In the late 50's and early 60's when I was coming around, I remember Joe Stanley being one of the mainstays of the DC music scene. He always had a band and was always working at one place or another.
Gary Gregg - musician - First time I saw him was in 90 or 91 at the Sunset Grill. I am a big Texas Tenor fan and I was knocked out - here was this guy, playing live, everything I had only had a chance to hear on record. I am so jealous of his ability to take the most beat up and ratty instrument and produce the sweetest sounds with it.
Billy Hancock , musician - I first saw Joe in one of his Saxtons lineups in 1964 in a bar that I was too young to get in to. I became a member of The Saxtons later in the 60's. Without a doubt, when it comes to Honky-tonk, R&B and blues Joe is one of the most influential people you will find in the DC area.
Rolph Hansen , musician - He's not the only one but there are very few players out there that can blow that Earl Bostic 50's style of sax so correctly. His phrasing is right on.
Charlie Hubel , musician - Joe is that link back to when music was vital and played with no holds barred. You just don't hear many sax players that come at it with that approach - it is not premeditated and it comes from the heart.
Big Joe Maher - I first saw him with his band at Buzzy's Crabhouse in 1982. It was like listening to an old jukebox but the guy was right there in front of me performing live. I was blown away.
Bobby Manriquez , musician - Some of the first nightclub gigs I ever did were w/ Joe. I always liked his weathered, rather cynical views, his jokes and his mirror kept things interesting. When I think of Joe Stanley, I think of a pro; he showed me the meaning of being professional (I was a teen) in a manner that appealed to my sense of humor.
Ed Monti , musician Saxtons alum - I can't think of anyone that Joe didn't play with through the 50's and 60's. He has always been a mover and a shaker as far as the DC rock & roll thing goes. If I grumbled about the type of club or pay we were getting he would growl back "you're working aren't you".
Gene Newport , musician Saxtons alum - He's a survivor. I always called Joe a white black man the way he played his music. We learned to play in an alley.
John O'Connor , musician - I first say Joe play about 25 years ago at Desperado's. He is both a great soloist, and superb section player; he can play any style of music well. He never looked down on those of us who are younger and less skilled. If Joe Stanley told you that you played well, you knew you had done something right. I would use words like "fixture", "contributor" and "survivor". Joe has given more to the audiences and young players of this town than 99% of the players on the circuit, and he's done it without pomposity, self-aggrandizement or ego. If I live to be a hundred I'll never meet another like him.
Sam Paladino , musician Saxtons alum - Joe is an institution of the DC scene. He was one of the first to take his band (The Saxtons) on the road when others were scared to.
Nap "Don't Forget the Blues" Turner , musician- I used to go see Billy Stewart's band at the Spa on 14th and U it must have been around 1961 and there he would be fitting right in.
Chris Watling , musician - Joe is one of the last of the great stylists ala Sam Butera . He has that R&B rock & roll thing down.
Stan Weinberg , drummer with the Saxtons circa 1960 - very influential as far as tenors go, he paved the way for a lot of the rock & roll bands that sprouted up around DC in the 50's. Everyone looked up to him.
Phil Zavarella . Zavarella Music - I have been repairing that old Bundy Sax for 30 years and I want that instrument for my wall of shame. There is no other like Joe Stanley in this town. He basically taught everyone to play.
Dave Reynolds , former classmate & drummer of the The Saxtons, circa 1957-58 - I think it was Wynton Marsalis, who used the metaphor "Life is one big gumbo." All the ingredients - the people you encounter, the events both good and bad, every experience we have - are all connected and essential. Take one ingredient out, and it's a whole other stew. Joe Stanley was one of the main ingredients in my Gumbo. Joe has left an indelible mark on the scene down there in MD/VA/D.C. area- a feat we'd all like to accomplish. "Joe, you playing your ass off, Jack!"