Home » Jazz Musicians » Ira Sullivan

Ira Sullivan

Sullivan is that rare thing, a true multi-instrumentalist, capable of improvising statements of worth on all his instruments. He was taught trumpet by his father, saxophone by his mother and played both in 50s Chicago with such seminal figures as Charlie "Bird" Parker, Lester Young, Wardell Gray and Roy Eldridge, garnering a reputation as a fearsome bebop soloist. After playing briefly with Art Blakey (1956), and mastering alto and baritone saxophone, Sullivan moved south to Florida and out of the spotlight in the early 60s. His reluctance to travel limited his opportunities to play with musicians of the first rank, but Sullivan continued to play in the Miami area, often in schools and churches. Contact with local younger players, notably Jaco Pastorius and Pat Metheny led to teaching and to a broadening of his own musical roots to include the lessons of John Coltrane's music and elements of jazz rock. With the addition of flute and soprano saxophone to his armoury, Sullivan moved to New York and in 1980 formed a quintet with legendary bop trumpeter Red Rodney. Resisting the temptation to follow current trends and play the music of their youth, Sullivan and Rodney worked on new material and fostered young talent to produce some fresh and stimulating music.

Tags

36
Profile

Ira Sullivan: The Lonely Revolutionary

Read "Ira Sullivan: The Lonely Revolutionary" reviewed by David Einhorn


A critic in jny: Chicago in September 2016 raved about multi-instrumentalist Ira Sullivan's performance at the Jazz Showcase but said that Ira “erred" in lecturing the audience not to applaud after solos. It sounded like the critic had never heard Ira perform live before, because saying he “erred" suggested that at a given moment Ira “misspoke" and impulsively said something he should not have said. If that's the case, then Ira, who will turn 89 this year and ...

29
Album Review

Roberto Magris Sextet: Sun Stone

Read "Sun Stone" reviewed by Jerome Wilson


Roberto Magris, the prolific Italian pianist who spends a lot of his time in America, has recorded with several different types of groups in his career. This is his first outing with a new straight--ahead sextet that includes Chicago legend Ira Sullivan on alto and soprano saxophones and flute, and it is a strong one. This particular group is steeped in the jazz traditions of the Fifties and Sixties, echoing McCoy Tyner, Art Blakey and Horace Silver at ...

27
Album Review

Roberto Magris Sextet: Sun Stone

Read "Sun Stone" reviewed by Jack Bowers


Italian-born pianist Roberto Magris likes to change things up. He can be seen and heard leading groups from trio to octet and beyond, and meshing quite comfortably into groups of all shapes and sizes. On Sun Stone, his fifteenth recording for JMood Records, Magris fronts an admirable sextet whose front-line includes the venerable Ira Sullivan on flute, soprano and alto saxophones, and the superb tenor saxophonist Mark Colby, abetted by trumpeter Shareef Clayton, bassist Jamie Ousley and drummer Roldolfo Zuniga. ...

147
Album Review

Ira Sullivan and Stu Katz: A Family Affair

Read "A Family Affair" reviewed by William Carey


Some numbers to ponder. Saxophonist/trumpeter Ira Sullivan is 80 years old; vibraphonist Stu Katz is 74. 57 years. That is how long Ira Sullivan and Stu Katz have been making music together. 64 years. The number of years that Joe Segal's the Jazz Showcase has been featuring great jazz. In 1954, the year Bill Haley and the Comets recorded “Rock Around the Clock," two fine young jazz musicians first got together in their adopted hometown of Chicago. Fast forward 57 ...

342
Album Review

Bob Albanese Trio: One Way/Detour

Read "One Way/Detour" reviewed by John Patten


In 2008, pianist Bob Albanese took his trio into a studio to do an unplanned recording while performing in Florida, spinning a collection of first and second takes with saxophonist Ira Sullivan that became One Way/Detour.

As a composer, Albanese uses rhythm to lay the groundwork for his compositions. He builds on spare harmonic and modal ideas, which are bolstered by steady support from Tom Kennedy on bass and Willard Dyson on drums, to create solid original works. ...

319
Album Review

Bob Albanese: One Way/Detour

Read "One Way/Detour" reviewed by John Barron


When Bob Albanese was accompanying singer Ben Vereen in Palm Beach, Florida in early 2008, the pianist seized the opportunity to document his distinctive approach to modern acoustic jazz. With the aid of bassist Tom Kennedy and drummer Willard Dyson, Albanese called on legendary saxophonist Ira Sullivan, a longtime resident of Florida, to record One Way/Detour. In trio and quartet settings, Albanese leads the way through a fiery set of original and standard material.

The disc opener, “Major Minority," maintains ...

231
Album Review

Bob Albanese: One Way / Detour

Read "One Way / Detour" reviewed by Warren Allen


For his Zoho debut, New York pianist Bob Albanese shows a nice array of colors and sides with some excellent original compositions and a few great standards. His love of classic jazz is evident throughout, but so too is a desire to push some limits. Throughout the album, he shows a touch for angular Latin rhythms and edgy feels, combining them with the effortless swing that fueled Red Garland, Horace Silver and Bud Powell.

Many of the trio's songs start ...

Read more articles

Video / DVD

Ira Sullivan: Modern Music From Chicago

Ira Sullivan: Modern Music From Chicago

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers

Ira Sullivan's first album as a sideman was on Red Rodney's Modern Music From Chicago. Recorded in June 1955 for the Fantasy label, the album featured Red Rodney (tp,vcl), Ira Sullivan (tp,ts,as), Norman Simmons (p), Victor Sproles (b) and Roy Haynes (d). At the time Rodney was appearing at Chicago's Bee-Hive Club along with the musicians on this record date. It's a bebop session, and what all of these tigers have in common is that they all had played with ...

Recording

Ira Sullivan: Blue Stroll

Ira Sullivan: Blue Stroll

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers

Ira Sullivan, a trumpeter and saxophonist who played in Chicago in the 1950s and Miami in the 1960s and beyond, recording largely with Red Rodney and Lin Halliday, died September 21, 2020. He was 89. Among his finest albums as a leader was Blue Stroll. Recorded for Chicago's Delmark label in July 1959, Blue Stroll featured Sullivan (tp-1,as-2,ts-3,bar-4,peck hrn-5), Johnny Griffin (as-6,ts-7,bar-8), Jodie Christian (p), Victor Sproles (b) and Wilbur Campbell (d). The tracks are Campbell's Wilbur's Tune, My Old ...

1

Event

Legendary Multi-instrumentalist Ira Sullivan Pays Homage To Former Bandmate And Trumpet Great Red Rodney

Legendary Multi-instrumentalist Ira Sullivan Pays Homage To Former Bandmate And Trumpet Great Red Rodney

Source: Charles Carlini Presents

New York, NY – Legendary multi-instrumentalist Ira Sullivan will make a rare appearance next month (April 22-23) at New York’s Zinc Bar (82 West 3rd Street) to celebrate the life of the late jazz trumpet great Red Rodney. Sullivan, who turns 84 in May, was a longtime colleague of Red's since the early 50s and co-led the Red Rodney/Ira Sullivan Quintet during the 80s recording a handful of critically acclaimed records while touring extensively throughout the US and abroad. Beside ...

132

Recording

Drummer Mike Reed Completes People, Places and Things Trilogy with "Stories and Negotiations" (482 Music) Feat. Jeb Bishop, Art Hoyle, Julian Priester, Ira Sullivan

Drummer Mike Reed Completes People, Places and Things Trilogy with "Stories and Negotiations" (482 Music) Feat. Jeb Bishop, Art Hoyle, Julian Priester, Ira Sullivan

Source: Fully Altered Media

Mike Reed's People, Places & Things Latest Recording, Stories and Negotiations featuring Art Hoyle, Julian Priester & Ira Sullivan

Stories & Negotiations is Third Installment In A Trilogy of Recordings Devoted to the Remarkable Period of 1954-1960 Chicago Jazz, And Its Relation to Chicago Jazz Today

Release Date: April 20, 2010 Catalog #482-107 Recorded live in Chicago's Millennium Park in Summer 2008, Stories and Negotiations is the latest vibrant installment in drummer/composer Mike Reed's ...

227

Event

August 6 Full Moon Jazz Excitement on Hollywood Beach, Florida

August 6 Full Moon Jazz Excitement on Hollywood Beach, Florida

Source: Michael Ricci

Full Moon Jazz on Hollywood Beach, Florida, on August 6, 2009 will feature very special artists Madd Jazz Quartet, Ira Sullivan and Oriente in the monthly free public performance series. Madd Jazz Quartet includes three young siblings from the family Maddox: Kevin (17), Chase (16), and Emily (14). Each began playing piano at an early age and picked up their second instrument, alto sax, guitar, and drums respectively, about 5 years ago. Their mentors include some of South Florida's premier ...

153

Recording

Bob Albanese Trio with Ira Sullivan Releases One Way/Detour on Zoho Records

Bob Albanese Trio with Ira Sullivan Releases One Way/Detour on Zoho Records

Source: Jim Eigo, Jazz Promo Services

The Bob Albanese Trio with Ira Sullivan is ready to send lovers of jazz on a One Way/Detour. Their first release on Zoho Records (distributed by Allegro) is certain to satisfy the jazz purists and garner new listeners at the same time.

With a multitude of experience in jazz, classical, Latin, world, and theater, Albanese has few rivals when it comes to a well rounded career. He took his literal melting pot of piano experiences and wrapped it all into ...

104

Performance / Tour

Eric Alexander Quintet featuring Ira Sullivan at Dizzy's Coca-Cola in NYC

Eric Alexander Quintet featuring Ira Sullivan at Dizzy's Coca-Cola in NYC

Source: All About Jazz


Photos

Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

Sun Stone

JMood Records
2019

buy

A Family Affair

Origin Records
2011

buy

One Way / Detour

Zoho Music
2009

buy

After Hours

Go Jazz Records
2007

buy

Blue Stroll

Delmark Records
1988

buy

Does It All

Narada Lotus
1983

buy

Sun Stone

From: Sun Stone
By Ira Sullivan

Blues Two Views

From: A Family Affair
By Ira Sullivan

Videos

Similar

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.