Member Since: 4/19/2007
Band Members: Earl Bostic played alto saxophone. The following is a list of some of the musicians with whom he recorded and/or played in his touring band:
Trumpet
Benny Harris
Blue Mitchell
Tommy Turrentine
Elmon Wright
John Coles
Trombone
Benny Morton
Tenor Saxophone
Don Byas
Walter "Foots" Thomas
John Hardee
Count Hastings
John Coltrane
Ray Felder
Stanley Turrentine
Benny Golson
Teddy Edwards
Plas Johnson
Alto Saxophone
Benny Carter
Reeds
Buddy Collette
Clarinet
Tony Scott
Rudy Powell
Vibraphone
Gene Redd
Teddy Charles
Guitar
Tiny Grimes
Al Casey
Rene Hall
Mickey Baker
George Barnes
Irving Ashby
Joe Pass
Organ
Richard "Groove" Holmes
Piano
Jackie Byard
Ernie Freeman
Sir Charles Thompson
Bass
Johnny Pate
Herbert Grody
Al McKibbon
Drums
Cozy Cole
Shep Shepard
Jimmy Cobb
Roy Porter
Earl Palmer
Isaac Holt
Shelly Manne
Sounds Like: EARL BOSTIC'S REMARKABLE SAXOPHONE TECHNIQUE
by Marty Jourard
Earl Bostic was inarguably a master of the alto saxophone and easily one of the finest sax players of all time. All notes were equal to Bostic, and his ability to leap giant intervals in his soloing was a key aspect of his style. Earl played with a joyous facility and feel and seemed to “sing†with his horn. From a musician’s point of view, here are some technical aspects of Bostic’s remarkable ability on the alto.
TONE
Bostic purposely achieved his trademark “buzz saw†tone through two techniques: he “growled†as he played, which added a rough, full, gutsy timbre similar to that of a tenor sax, and he used a tenor saxophone reed on his alto mouthpiece. As odd as this seems, the larger reed fits when attached properly, and the additional bamboo mass fattens the tone. He usually played a Martin Committee model alto and a hard rubber Beechler mouthpiece. (I learned this from Elmer Beechler himself who provided me with a promotional photo of Bostic using the above-named equipment.) Bostic also could play very sweetly when appropriate, on ballads and neo-classical tunes such as “Leibestraum.†Earl’s tone in all cases was lively, robust and full of life and energy.
RANGE
Earl mastered the altissimo range of the sax, pitches higher than the normal range that require alternate fingerings and tremendous embouchure control. He could play melodies several octaves above high F, into what can only be called “dog whistle†territory. For the definitive example of his virtuoso technique listen to “Up There in Orbit.†In response to the age-old musical question, "Who can play highest?" this track provides the answer: Earl Bostic.
SPEED
Bostic could play as fast as Charlie “Yardbird†Parker, Johnny Griffin or any of the speed demons, but only did so when appropriate. His knowledge of music theory was deep and his bag of tricks when soloing included a seemingly endless collection of melodic patterns built around his thorough understanding of chordal improvisation, arpeggios and exotic scales. He never played fast for effect, and if his fast solos are slowed down to half-speed, the notes he plays make perfect harmonic sense and are all played on pitch and with proper time value.
OVERBLOWING
Earl could achieve various tonal effects from one pitch by alternating fingerings and overblowing (producing a note a perfect fifth higher than the fingering was originally intended to produce). For example, fingering a low C but biting on the reed with additional pressure produced a G a fifth higher. This G had the same frequency as the previous G but a different tone and by alternating these two G notes an exciting variety of sound was the result. This is an old rhythm and blues “honking†trick used by Lester Young and others, a trick that Bostic mastered and took to another level.
DOUBLE- AND TRIPLE-TONGUING
Earl had complete control of the reed and could create a very fast “stuttering†sound by repeating a pitch twice or three times through stopping and starting the reed vibrations with the tip of his tongue.
VIBRATO
Sax vibrato is a technique that creates a periodic shift in pitch, similar to a singer’s vibrato. Two approaches to vibrato are: varying the air column through the diaphragm muscles or, more commonly, through variations in jaw pressure. Bostic had a wide, controlled vibrato similar to that of soprano saxophonist Sidney Bechet. The risk in playing with wide vibrato is that it can sound terrible if the pitch is not carefully controlled above and below the standard pitch of the note. Bostic’s control of vibrato was absolute. He could play melodies with vibrato throughout, or end melodic phrases with subtle vibrato.
CONCLUSION
To put it simply, Bostic had tremendous musical “feel,†vast knowledge of
chordal improvisation, impeccable timing, tremendous arranging skills and technical mastery of his instrument. His last album, the posthumously released The Song is NOT Ended showed that his technique stayed with him to the end. Listen to the first track, “Red Sails in the Sunset,†to hear Bostic chew up the chord changes. Earl lives.
--Note: for definitions of unfamiliar musical terms see this glossary of musical terms .
Record Label: King
Type of Label: Indie