Sylvester Kyner Jr. (December 17, 1932 – March 20, 1981), known as Sonny Red, was an American jazz alto saxophonist and composer associated with the hard bop idiom among other styles.
In the late 1940s, when he was still in his teens, Sonny Red began to play professionally in Detroit with Barry Harris. He continued to play with Barry Harris until 1952.[1] He went on to play with Art Blakey in 1954, and in 1957 recorded with Curtis Fuller on three albums.[2]
Sonny Red first came on the greater jazz scene in the late 1950s with Art Pepper on the album Two Altos.
He made two albums as a leader in 1961; both were released by Jazzland Recordings, a subsidiary of Riverside Records.[3][4] He continued to record in the 1960s, including four albums with Donald Byrd in 1967.
By the 1970s, however, Sonny Red was falling into obscurity. He died in March 1981, at the age of 48.
