Song written by Sonny Rollins - Off Album - Next Album - 1972 - Milestone Records - Recorded (July 1972 & Mixed August 1972) at Mercury Sound Studios - New York City - Sonny Rollins - Tenor Sax - George Cables - Electric Piano - Bob Cranshaw - Bass - Jack DeJohnette - Drums - Arthur Jenkins - Congas - Percussion - Produced by Orrin Keepnews
I just listened to a 10h European podcast radio show on Sonny Rollins (yes, 10x 1h, covering 1951-2001 !!!). My opinion of Rollins is that it seems very overrated to me. First of all as a player, he does not seem to me better than Johnny Griffin, Stitt, Roland Kirk, Phil Woods, Lateef ... but enjoys a much more important reputation ... and unjustified in my opinion. Ok he plays well, but not better than the musicians I mentioned. In terms of composition, he did not compose anything, everyone knows that St Thomas is a Caribbean folklore already recorded by Randy Weston in 1955 under the title Fire Down There. His other compositions from the 50s ... well, Oleo, Airegin etc ... this can in no way be compared to the compositions of Trane, Bird, Monk or Shorter ... also, his playing and his sound are terribly degraded after 1966 (36 years). It seems that he was traumatized by the arrival of Ornette, Trane, Ayler ... In the 60's he tried to be more free than Ayler, more calypso / blues than Ornette, and more mystical than Trane, but he didn't. did not succeed. Then in the 70s / 80s he tried to be funky, disco ... with really ridiculous and cheesy results ... Did he want to be funkier than James Brown himself? Also, in the radio show they say that he was paid current $ 300,000 for himself to record the Nucleus album (so listen to the result !!!!), and that, for his concerts, his financial claims were unrealistic, only the big festivals could afford it. He played with the Stones but didn't want to go on tour with them because, according to Jagger himself, he wanted too much money! I mean, I'm not making anything up here. In my opinion, he should have remained what he was before, a disciple of Bird at the Tenor, and quit at the age of 40 to leave a quality job, and without trying to follow fashion. Thank you for not insulting me because I have documented myself on Rollins and I like to have constructive discussions without being attacked on my person.
This reminds me of recent conversation I fell into on social media. It was on the question of whether or not Miles Davis was over rated as a trumpet player. It was a chance for Hubbard and Byrd fans to let off steam, ultimately the discussion is fatuous. There is no objective measure of a musicians prowess. Its really all about how much you like it. I listen to Jazz music pretty much every day and its been my go-to music for over forty years. The early Rollins recordings are formidable because of his powers of improvisation, his inventiveness, playfulness, and his emotional range, unusually, at the cheerful end of the spectrum . The albums he made in the 50s are superb. In my opinion he was in a league of his own during these years, before Coltrane really stepped-up into his power. Way Out West is a triumph. I happen to feel the same way about Sonny Rollins On Impulse (1965). Your point about the post 66 output is a bit harder to dismiss. I think he was a bit too keen not to be marginalised as belonging to a previous era, and there is sometimes something self-consciously 'out there' in this period. I admire Coltrane's ability to play with humility and listen respectfully in collaborations even after his 'new thing' was already underway. As I said, I think Rollins's strength is his inventiveness, and I think this meant he slipped into a kind of 'showing off' headspace, which works best when the music is more structured. I feel sure his unique contributions were pre-66. But, I cannot agree with you when you state that these were only of similar significance to the contributions of any of the other great players you list. Of these Johnny Griffin is the most under-rated. My opinion of Rollins's stature was corroborated by Coltrane's remark in an interview when asked about other players, ''Sonny Rollins is exceptional''.
