Although Willis “Gator Tail” Jackson never enjoyed a chart hit under his own name, his honking saxophone graced many hits in the ’40s and ’50s. Jackson earned his nickname when a member of the Cootie Williams Orchestra heard his hard blowing solos on Williams’s Jukebox hit “Gator Tail.” He formed his own group while still playing with Williams and his screaming saxophone became a big attraction on jukeboxes and live appearances during the early ’50s. He married R&B singer Ruth Brown and naturally worked with her both live and in the studio, examples of which round out this overview of the early years of one of the all time great tenor saxophonists. Acrobat. 2005.

AKA WILLIS GATOR TAIL JACKSON