Sonny Phillips
Encyclopedia
Sonny Phillips is an American jazz
keyboardist. His primary instrument is electric organ
but he often played piano.
Phillips began playing jazz organ after hearing Jimmy Smith
in his twenties. He studied under Ahmad Jamal
, and played in the 1960s and 1970s with Lou Donaldson
, Nicky Hill
, Eddie Harris
, Houston Person
, and Gene Ammons
. His debut album was released in 1969, and he released several further records as a leader before suffering a long illness in 1980. He went into semi-retirement after this and moved to Los Angeles
; since then he has performed and taught occasionally.
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
keyboardist. His primary instrument is electric organ
Electric organ
In biology, the electric organ is an organ common to all electric fish used for the purposes of creating an electric field. The electric organ is derived from modified nerve or muscle tissue...
but he often played piano.
Phillips began playing jazz organ after hearing Jimmy Smith
Jimmy Smith (musician)
Jimmy Smith was a jazz musician whose performances on the Hammond B-3 electric organ helped to popularize this instrument...
in his twenties. He studied under Ahmad Jamal
Ahmad Jamal
Ahmad Jamal is an innovative and influential American jazz pianist, composer, and educator. According to Stanley Crouch, Jamal is second in importance in the development of jazz after 1945 only to Charlie Parker...
, and played in the 1960s and 1970s with Lou Donaldson
Lou Donaldson
Lou Donaldson is a jazz alto saxophonist. He was born in Badin, North Carolina. He is best known for his soulful, bluesy approach to playing the alto saxophone, although in his formative years he was, as many were of the bebop era, heavily influenced by Charlie Parker.His first recordings were...
, Nicky Hill
Nicky Hill
Nicky Hill in Accrington, England, is a retired English professional footballer who played as a defender for Bury in the Football League.-External links:...
, Eddie Harris
Eddie Harris
Eddie Harris was an American jazz musician, best known for playing tenor saxophone and for introducing the electrically amplified saxophone. He was also fluent on the electric piano and organ...
, Houston Person
Houston Person
Houston Person is an American jazz tenor saxophonist and record producer. Although he has performed in the hard bop and swing genres, he is most experienced in and best known for his work in soul jazz. Person is also known for his distinctive sassy sound and his expressive style of playing...
, and Gene Ammons
Gene Ammons
Eugene "Jug" Ammons also known as "The Boss," was an American jazz tenor saxophonist, and the son of boogie-woogie pianist Albert Ammons.-Biography:...
. His debut album was released in 1969, and he released several further records as a leader before suffering a long illness in 1980. He went into semi-retirement after this and moved to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
; since then he has performed and taught occasionally.
Leader Discography
- Sure 'Nuff (Prestige RecordsPrestige RecordsPrestige Records was a jazz record label founded in 1949 by Bob Weinstock. The company was located at 203 South Washington Avenue in Bergenfield, New Jersey, and recorded hundreds of albums by many of the leading jazz musicians of the day, sometimes issuing them under the names of several...
, 1969) - Black Magic (Prestige, 1970)
- Black on Black (Prestige, 1970)
- My Black Flower (Muse RecordsMuse RecordsMuse Records was an American record label which released jazz and blues music.Muse was founded in the early 1970s by Joe Fields, who had previously worked as an executive for Prestige Records in the 1960s...
, 1976) - I Concentrate on You (Muse, 1977)
Sideman Discography
- with Rusty BryantRusty BryantRoyal G. "Rusty" Bryant was an American jazz tenor and alto saxophonist....
Rusty Bryant Returns (Prestige, 1969) - with Ivan "Boogaloo Joe" Jones Boogaloo Joe (Prestige, 1969)
- with Houston PersonHouston PersonHouston Person is an American jazz tenor saxophonist and record producer. Although he has performed in the hard bop and swing genres, he is most experienced in and best known for his work in soul jazz. Person is also known for his distinctive sassy sound and his expressive style of playing...
Goodness (Prestige, 1969) - with Billy ButlerBilly ButlerWilliam Butler was an English professional footballer who was most famously a winger for Bolton Wanderers in the 1920s....
Guitar Soul (Prestige, 1969) - with Gene AmmonsGene AmmonsEugene "Jug" Ammons also known as "The Boss," was an American jazz tenor saxophonist, and the son of boogie-woogie pianist Albert Ammons.-Biography:...
Brother Jug (Prestige, 1969) - with Houston PersonHouston PersonHouston Person is an American jazz tenor saxophonist and record producer. Although he has performed in the hard bop and swing genres, he is most experienced in and best known for his work in soul jazz. Person is also known for his distinctive sassy sound and his expressive style of playing...
The Truth (Prestige, 1970) - with Houston PersonHouston PersonHouston Person is an American jazz tenor saxophonist and record producer. Although he has performed in the hard bop and swing genres, he is most experienced in and best known for his work in soul jazz. Person is also known for his distinctive sassy sound and his expressive style of playing...
Person to Person (Prestige, 1970) - with Houston PersonHouston PersonHouston Person is an American jazz tenor saxophonist and record producer. Although he has performed in the hard bop and swing genres, he is most experienced in and best known for his work in soul jazz. Person is also known for his distinctive sassy sound and his expressive style of playing...
The Real Thing (Eastbound, 1973) - with Ivan "Boogaloo Joe" Jones Black Whip (Prestige, 1973)
- with Willis JacksonWillis JacksonWillis "Gator" Jackson was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. Born in Miami, Florida, Jackson joined Duke Ellington alumnus Cootie Williams's band in 1949 as a teenager, after being discovered by Eddie Vinson. During the 1950s he participated in R&B and jazz recordings, primarily as a session...
In The Alley (Muse, 1976) - with Houston PersonHouston PersonHouston Person is an American jazz tenor saxophonist and record producer. Although he has performed in the hard bop and swing genres, he is most experienced in and best known for his work in soul jazz. Person is also known for his distinctive sassy sound and his expressive style of playing...
Stolen Sweets (Prestige, 1976) - with Houston PersonHouston PersonHouston Person is an American jazz tenor saxophonist and record producer. Although he has performed in the hard bop and swing genres, he is most experienced in and best known for his work in soul jazz. Person is also known for his distinctive sassy sound and his expressive style of playing...
Wild Flower (Prestige, 1977) - with Etta JonesEtta JonesEtta Jones was an American jazz singer. She is not to be confused with the more popular singer Etta James nor her namesake, a member of the Dandridge Sisters, who recorded with Jimmy Lunceford and was Gerald Wilson's first wife. Her best known recordings were "Don't Go To Strangers" and "Save...
Don't Misundertand - Live In New York (High Note, 1980) - with Bernard PurdieBernard PurdieBernard Lee "Pretty" Purdie is an American session drummer, and is considered an influential and innovative exponent of funk...
Coolin' and Groovin' (Lexington, 1993)