Lou Donaldson, an accomplished jazz alto saxophonist, died over the weekend, according to a family statement. He was 98.
A pop-up message on Donaldson’s website states, “The Family of Sweet Poppa Lou Donaldson regrettably acknowledges his death on November 9, 2024. A private service will be held. Thank you for your continued support of Lou and his music throughout his career. Because of you, his famous contributions to jazz will live on in perpetuity.”
Donaldson was born in Badin, North Carolina, on November 1, 1926. He pursued a career as a saxophone after discovering bebop music while serving in the Navy during World War II. Some of his early records featured notable jazz players such as Milt Jackson, Thelonious Monk, Art Blakey, and others.
Donaldson’s nuanced, bluesy approach on the alto saxophone garnered admiration throughout his 50-plus-year career. His distinct approach won him multiple hits, including his well-known adaptation of Bobbie Gentry’s 1967 classic “Ode to Billie Joe,” a blues-country ballad about the suicide of a rural Mississippi youngster.
Over 200 songs have sampled Donaldson’s version of Gentry’s song, including Kanye West’s “Jesus Walks,” A Tribe Called Quest’s “Clap Your Hands,” and A$AP Rocky’s “L$D.” De La Soul, Amy Winehouse, and Dr. Dre, among others, have sampled some of his earlier tracks, including “Pot Belly” and his instrumental rendition of The Isley Brothers’ “It’s Your Thing.”
The 92-year-old saxophonist announced his retirement in 2018 after spending years performing at jazz festivals and bars, particularly in New York City. Donaldson continued to spend his birthday in various establishments, particularly Dizzy’s Jazz Club in New York, until shortly before his death. He had intended to celebrate his 98th birthday but canceled owing to an attack of pneumonia a little more than a week before he died.
Donaldson tied the knot with his beloved local, Maker Neal Turner, from 1950 until her passing in 2006. The couple also had two children: Lydia Tutt-Jones, who died in 1994, and his surviving daughter Carol.