Thanks go to Pete Thomas at Taming the Saxophone for putting together a very helpful list of rhythm and blues saxophone players who have made an impact on the genre over the years. One of the old masters cited is Earl Bostic, maybe not as well known as some but an important part of the scene nonetheless.
Thomas writes:
[Earl Bostic (1912-1965) was a saxophonist who] came to New York in the 40s after studying composition at home in New Orleans. He was a regular on the bebop jam session scene [including at Minton’s nightclub] with Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie but went on to play a more commercial style when he became a band leader in the early 50s. (The young John Coltrane was one of his sidemen). He was an absolute master of the saxophone with a style that, although very definitely full of soul and gutsy R & B, had a formidable technique with an almost uncanny ability to formulate and place every note and every phrase of his improvisation perfectly.
His hits, mostly coming in the early 1950s, include “Flamingo”, “Harlem Nocturne”, “Temptation”, “Sleep”, “Special Delivery Stomp” and “Where or When.” You can find his full discography here.
AllMusic writes this:
Bostic initiated a very productive business arrangement with King Records in 1949 [and] soon became famous for being able to take any song in the world and transform it into ideal jukebox material for either slow-grind dip or rock & roll dancing.
As for proficiency on the horn, a quote from Art Blakey frequently cited is that “Nobody knew more about the saxophone than Bostic, I mean technically, and that includes Bird.”
Here’s an interesting comment posted at the Youtube clip below by Donald Morrow.
I think that Earl Bostic gets way too little credit for influencing how Rock and Roll and R&B sax sounds even today. As much as Illinois Jacquet put rhythmic accents into R&B sax vocabulary, Bostic brought bigness and attention to melody into it. When “Flamingo” hit #1 on the R&B chart, the sound of R&B sax changed forever and the sound of Rock and Roll sax was codified. You can hear his influence on sax players from King Curtis to Clarence Clemons. It’s time to give this guy a good listen.?
If anyone with knowledge of the genre wants to discuss, feel free.
Bostic’s signature song was Flamingo, recored in 1951. Love the growl.