Sonny Stitt (born Edward Hammond Boatner Jr.; February 2, 1924 – July 22, 1982) was an American jazz saxophonist of the bebop/hard bop idiom.

He was nicknamed the "Lone Wolf" by jazz critic Dan Morgenstern because of his tendency to rarely work with the same musicians for long despite his relentless touring and devotion to the craft.

[6] When playing tenor saxophone Stitt seemed to break free from some of the criticism that he was imitating Parker's style, and began to develop a far more distinctive sound.

Stitt experimented with Afro-Cuban jazz in the late 1950s, and the results can be heard on his recordings for Roost and Verve, on which he teamed up with Thad Jones and Chick Corea[8] for Latin versions of such standards as "Autumn Leaves".

In 1952 Stitt played with pianist Jimmy Jones and the next year performed orchestral music with Johnny Richards.

However, Miles fired Stitt due to the excessive drinking habit he had developed, and replaced him with Hank Mobley.

[12] Just the Way It Was (Live at the Left Bank) which was released in 2000 also featured Stitt as an electric saxophone player, which was the first album which encompassed it.

[14] Stitt joined the all-star group The Giants of Jazz (which also featured Art Blakey, Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk, Kai Winding and bassist Al McKibbon) and made albums for Atlantic, Concord and EmArcy.

[6] In 1982, Stitt was diagnosed with cancer, and died on July 22 in Washington, D.C.[1] He is buried in a wall crypt at Fort Lincoln Cemetery, Brentwood, Maryland.

With Gene Ammons With Art Blakey With Miles Davis With Dizzy Gillespie With Milt Jackson With Don Patterson With Oscar Peterson With Zimbo Trio