Warren Harding "Sonny" Sharrock (August 27, 1940 – May 25, 1994)[1] was an American jazz guitarist. His first wife was singer Linda Sharrock, with whom he recorded and performed.
One of only a few prominent guitarists who participated in the first wave of free jazz during the 1960s, Sharrock was known for his heavily chorded attack, use of feedback, and distorted saxophone-like lines. His early work also features creative use of slide guitar.
Sharrock first wanted to play tenor saxophone after hearing John Coltrane on Davis' Kind of Blue at age 19, but his asthma prevented this. However, he considered himself "a horn player with a really fucked up axe."[2]
Three albums under Sharrock's name were released from the late 1960s to the mid-1970s: Black Woman,[1]Monkey-Pockie-Boo, and Paradise (which he later disavowed).[3][4]
After the release of Paradise, Sharrock semi-retired for much of the 1970s and early 1980s. Undergoing a divorce from his wife and collaborator Linda in 1978, he worked as a chauffeur and a caretaker for mentally challenged children. At bassist and producer Bill Laswell’s urging, Sharrock came out of retirement to appear on Material's 1981 album Memory Serves. Starting in 1986, Sharrock was a member of Last Exit with Laswell, saxophonist Peter Brötzmann, and drummer Ronald Shannon Jackson.[1] During the late 1980s, he performed extensively with the New York-based band Machine Gun and led his own band. Sharrock flourished with Laswell's help, noting in a 1991 interview that "the last five years have been pretty strange for me, because I went twelve years without making a record at all, and then in the last five years, I've made seven records under my own name. That's pretty strange."[5]
Laswell produced most of Sharrock's later recordings, including the entirely solo Guitar, the "metal-influenced" Seize the Rainbow, and Highlife. Sharrock's band at the time featured Abe Speller on percussion, Lance Carter on drums, Charles Baldwin on bass, and David Snider on keyboards. These albums were followed by Ask the Ages in 1991, which featured Pharoah Sanders and Elvin Jones. One writer described Ask the Ages as "hands down, Sharrock's finest hour, and the ideal album to play for those who claim to hate jazz guitar."[6] Sharrock recorded music for the adult animated television series Space Ghost Coast to Coast with drummer Lance Carter; this was one of the last projects he completed in the studio before his death.[1] The Space Ghost Coast to Coast episode "Sharrock" carried a dedication to him at the end, and previously unheard music that he had recorded for the show featured throughout most of the episode.[citation needed]
On May 25, 1994, Sharrock died of a heart attack in Ossining, as he was on the verge of signing his first major label contract.[1] He was 53 years old.[1] He is survived by his second wife, Dannette Hill, and their daughter Jasmyn.[citation needed]
French guitarist Noël Akchoté's 2004 album Sonny II features tracks written, performed and inspired by Sharrock.
In August 2010, S. Malcolm Street in Ossining was officially renamed "Sonny Sharrock Way".[7][8] A sign was erected on Saturday, October 2, 2010.[9] Sharrock was also inducted into Ossining High School's Hall of Fame.
^Stagener, Dave. (1998). Sound Practices Mailing List Files - Volume 1. Subject: Re: Jazz Tips. Retrieved January 5, 2008, from "Joelist Threaded Files". Archived from the original on 2004-10-10. Retrieved 2004-09-14.
^Flynn, Ed & Sharrock, Sonny. (1993). Sounds & Voices of the Avant-Garde: Excerpts from an Interview with Sonny Sharrock, Hosted, Edited and Produced by Ed Flynn, WPKN-FM, 89.5, Bridgeport, Air Date 6/9/93. Retrieved January 5, 2008, from "With Sonny Sharrock, hosted by ed Flynn, 1993". Archived from the original on 2006-07-17. Retrieved 2006-08-13.
