Stanley Turrentine Biography
One of the most distinctive tenor saxophonists of his generation, Stanley Turrentine (1934-2000) was famous for his distinctively thick tone and his groove-oriented sensibility. Affectionately known to his fans as “Mr. T” and “The Sugar Man,” Turrentine first rose to fame in the ’60s as the purveyor of a rousing soul-jazz style, but successfully reinvented himself as a prominent participant in the fusion explosion of the early ’70s.
Pittsburgh native Turrentine grew up in a musical family and found a key early inspiration in Illinois Jacquet. He began his career in the early 1950s playing with R&B and blues bands, backing such artists as Lowell Fulson (whose combo also included a young Ray Charles on piano) and Earl Bostic (in whose band Turrentine replaced John Coltrane).
After a stint in the military in the mid-’50s, Turrentine joined Max Roach’s band. In 1960—the same year that he married organist Shirley Scott—Turrentine made his first recordings as a leader, working with small groups as well as larger ensembles. He also began a productive working relationship with organist Jimmy Smith, on several of whose albums Turrentine played.
In the ’70s, Turrentine became a cornerstone of producer Creed Taylor’s new CTI label. He recorded a series of fusion-oriented albums for the company—including Sugar, Salt Song, and Don’t Mess With Mister T—that were both commercially savvy and critically respected, with contributions from such world-class musicians as George Benson, Ron Carter, Billy Cobham, Eric Gale, Freddie Hubbard, Milt Jackson, Bob James, Hubert Laws, Lonnie Liston Smith, Idris Muhammad and Richard Tee. Turrentine continued to record prolifically, eventually returning to his trademark soul-jazz style in the ’80s and ’90s.
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