Edward "Sonny" Stitt (born Edward Boatner, Jr.; February 2, 1924 – July 22, 1982) was an American jazz saxophonist

Edward Boatner, Jr. was born in Boston, Massachusetts, and grew up in Saginaw, Michigan. He had a musical background; his father, Edward Boatner, was a baritone singer, composer and college music professor, his brother was a classically trained pianist, and his mother was a piano teacher. Boatner was soon adopted by another family, the Stitts, who gave him his new surname. He later began calling himself "Sonny". While in high school in Saginaw, Stitt played in the Len Francke Band, a local popular swing band. In 1943, Stitt first met Charlie Parker, and as he often later recalled, the two men found that their styles had an extraordinary similarity that was partly coincidental and not merely due to Stitt's emulation. Parker is alleged to have remarked, "Well I'll be damned, you sound just like me", to which Stitt responded "Well, I can't help the way I sound. It's only way I know how to play." Kenny Clarke remarked of Stitt's approach that, "Even if there had not been a Bird, there would have been a Sonny Stitt".He was one of the best-documented saxophonists of his generation, recording over 100 albums. He was nicknamed the "Lone Wolf" by jazz critic Dan Morgenstern, in reference to his relentless touring and devotion to jazz.

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