Jazz alto saxophonist Lou Donaldson dies at 98 as fans pay tribute to the Alligator Bogaloo hitmaker

Veteran jazz musician Lou Donaldson, a jazz alto saxophonist for more than 50 years, died on Sunday at the age of 98.

Donaldson’s family announced his death in a message on his website read: ‘The family of Sweet Poppa Lou Donaldson sadly confirms his death on November 9, 2024.

‘A private service will be held. Thank you for supporting Lou and his music throughout his career. Thanks to you, his legendary contributions to jazz will live on forever.”

The musician had a warm, flowing style and performed alongside artists such as Thelonius Monk, Milt Jackson, Art Blakey and George Benson.

Donaldson’s material was sampled, among others, by Dr. Dre, Kanye West, Nas, A$AP Rocky, De La Soul and the late Amy Winehouse.

A native of Badin, North Carolina and a World War II veteran, Donaldson was part of the bop scene that emerged after the war, recording with Monk, Jackson and others early in his career.

Donaldson also helped launch the career of Clifford Brown, the gifted trumpeter who was just 25 when he died in a road accident in 1956. Donaldson was also present at some of pianist Horace Silver’s early sessions.

For more than half a century he would blend soul, blues and pop, gaining some mainstream recognition with his 1967 cover of one of the biggest hits of the time, Ode to Billy Joe, featuring a young Benson on guitar.

His notable albums include Alligator Bogaloo, Lou Donaldson at His Best and Wailing With Lou.

Donaldson would open his shows with a cool, jazzy jam from 1958, Blues Walk.

“That’s my theme song,” he said in a 2013 interview with the National Endowment for the Arts, which named him a Jazz Master. ‘You gotta have a good groove, a good groove,’

Nine years later, his hometown renamed one of its roads to Lou Donaldson Boulevard.

Donaldson retired in 2018 after years of presence in jazz clubs and gatherings, mainly in New York City.

Donaldson, who celebrated his 98th birthday earlier this month, usually went to Dizzy’s Jazz Club to celebrate the milestone but had to cancel this year due to illness as he battled pneumonia before his death.

Donaldson was married to late wife Maker Neal Turner from 1950 until her death in 2006; they were the parents of late daughter Lydia Tutt-Jones and surviving daughter Carol.

Donaldson was fondly remembered by a number of fans, colleagues and musical organizations as news of his death spread.

Jazz tenor saxophonist Sonny Rollins said on X/Twitter: “Lou Donaldson: one of the best people God introduced me to. May his soul always be alive in this world.”

Jazz expert Mark Stryker noted that Donaldson was one in a string of recent deaths of musical mainstays.

‘Tough 9 days for music: Quincy Jones turned 91; George Bohanon, 87; Lou Donaldson, 98; Roy Haynes, 99,” Stryker said. ‘Yes – all very long and well-lived lives. Still, that’s 375 years of combined wisdom and history leaving the planet.’

The National Endowment for the Arts said, “It is with great sadness that @NEAarts recognizes the passing of saxophonist Lou Donaldson, recipient of a 2013 Jazz Master Fellowship, the nation’s highest honor in jazz.”

A number of fans also chimed in with memorials for Donaldson.

“Man…Rest in peace, the great Lou Donaldson. I’m so grateful for your music, insight and humor,” one person said.

Another added: “I saw him perform in the early 90s. He was excellent. Sad to this point, he passed away. RIP Lou.”

One user said: ‘RIP Lou Donaldson. I discovered his albums through this song ‘Pot Belly’ which appeared on one of the Ultimate Breaks and Beats Albums in the late 1980s. Many of his albums have since been heavily sampled.

“Hip-hop definitely wouldn’t have been the same without Lou.”