Sonny Sharrock

Artist ∙ Jazz

One of the most dynamic guitarists in avant-garde jazz, the former doo-wop singer Sonny Sharrock was inspired to switch to jazz guitar at the height of the 1960s free-jazz movement. Sharrock released a string of solo albums after several stints playing for heavyweights like Miles Davis and Pharaoh Sanders. With a style that vacillated between delicate, traditional jazz and ferocious death-metal riffage (particularly in his work with avant supergroup Last Exit), Sharrock became a fixture of the Knitting Factory jazz scene centered on the New York City club of the same name. He passed away in 1994.

December 31, 1990 at PST
Ask the Ages
The last album Sonny Sharrock released before his premature death at 53, Ask the Ages feels like the culmination of the guitarist’s art, specifically his juxtaposition of opposing elements. Sharrock executes the perfect pairing of his fiery rock guitar and deep jazz composition, and his penchant for wild exorcism (“Once Upon a Time”) is tempered by a poignant lyricism on songs such as “Who Does She Hope To Be?” The band consists of John Coltrane’s legendary drummer Elvin Jones and his tenor apprentice Pharoah Sanders, while Charnett Moffett (son of free-jazz drummer Charles Moffett) forms a bridge to the younger generation. Even as Sharrock draws on the strength of the ‘60s with his band — Coltrane’s influence looms large over “Little Rock” and the devastating “Many Mansions”— his employment of forward-thinking producer Bill Laswell gives the album an audacious atmosphere that is anything but retrograde. As the siren cries of the final song ring out, “As We Used to Sing” forms a triumphant recessional not only for Ask the Ages, but for the entirety of Sharrock’s life and career.
6 Tracks
December 31, 1968 at GMT-8
Black Woman
Even among the countless innovative statements of 1969, Black Woman is unmistakable. Sharrock was a contemporary of Miles Davis, Pharoah Sanders, and Wayne Shorter, yet he developed a musical voice entirely outside of the jazz tradition. Like many free- jazz releases of the era, Black Woman is a torrential exploration of blues, gospel, and world music forms, but Sharrock’s guitar brought the proceedings much closer to rock ’n’ roll than other jazz musicians dared to go. Though they usually defy conventional pop music structure, the songs on Black Woman share a chiming, outpouring elation with Hendrix’s music. The title song here is a spiritual hymn as radical and righteous as Hendrix’s rendition of “The Star Spangled Banner.” Sharrock’s instrument is in constant duet with the shifting contours of his wife Linda’s voice; as confrontational as the music gets, Black Woman is a dance between two lovers, and at times feels like free jazz’s most romantic album. The album ends with Sharrock’s dedication to his wife, a leaping Spanish celebration that closes this colorful ceremony on a note of hope and fulfillment.
5 Tracks
December 31, 1985 at PST
Guitar
9 Tracks
August 31, 2007 at PDT
Improvised Music New York 1981
7 Tracks
December 31, 1988 at PST
Headfirst Into the Flames
9 Tracks
December 31, 1969 at PST
Monkey Pockie Boo
3 Tracks
December 31, 1989 at PST
Faith Moves
9 Tracks
July 13, 2014 at PDT
Whatthefuckdoyouwant
11 Tracks
July 31, 1989 at PDT
Sonogram
6 Tracks

Sonny Sharrock

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