He's really the only American artist that I wish to shake his hand before I die. A Sonny Rollins concert from the 60's to the 21rst Century was always an event.
So much to enjoy and learn here... The sound, the time feel, the phrasing, the clear playing of the harmony, the total mastery and easyness of playing the horn, the quotes, the bluesy feel at times. phew.
I love how toward the end, when he’s playing backgrounds for Kenny, Sonny stumbles onto the “shout” phrase of this tune and then plays it THIRTEEN more times, with amazing variations but keeping to the rhythm of that phrase. Genius
Sonny quotes the '47 Bird tenor solo that he said formed the basis of his tenor conceptualization. Obviously, he'd learned that solo and played it numerous times, so much so that it's burned into his memory.
Sonny used to practice on the middle of the Williamsburg Bridge (Corrected by Kurt Ralske- Thank you Sir) . Outstanding improv artist he would call Trane on the phone and blow a couple of riffs with out saying a word. Trane would reply with his axe. The bond between these two Artists was unique. Sonny prevailed and Trane exited all too soon. Lady Bird ain't about LBJ's Old Lady! :-)
Nah man, not Brooklyn Bridge: it was the Williamsburg Bridge. He used to live right nearby it: they tore the building down and put up a high-rise apartment complex, but they named it "The Rollins"
Newk is the man! He outlasted so many Greats. It must be difficult as so many of his previous colleagues have departed. Thinkin mainly, Monk, Miles, Trane to name a few. Keep on keepen on Sonny! God Bless! :-)
Banging my head on the table at how good this is! His swing sounds like the way an interpolated image looks. This is the best version of this song I've ever heard, let alone live performances. Holy shit.
Quizás cada vez que Rollins se alejaba por varios años de la escena musical, lo hacía porque comprendía y aceptaba que el individuo era un complemento sustancia entre mente y cuerpo y que el intelecto que este poseía debía de ser intuido en la soledad, donde el Arte fluye y los ideales buscan y toman riesgos, también donde el yo potenciado se reinventa sonidos retumbantes desde el interior y el caos, quizás la Avenida Lenox y la Séptima buscaban respuestas de un inquietante Sonny cuyos interrogantes filosóficos y espirituales lo hacían voraz y receptor de los alaridos de un Harlem místico, donde el hibrido constante de ropajes, máscaras, alcohol, drogas y múltiples culturas desembocarían en un fugaz y contundente sonido catártico y rico en esencia melódica y una gran talento natural. Quizás el sonido Rollins sea un conglomerado de situaciones y caminos que hacen de este un verdadero símbolo de libertad. Carlos Loaiza
This never gets old to me ♡ ruru hope things will soon be better out West. Still praying for relief. God Bless you Darling. Hope the typhoon / hurricane season leaves us both unscathed. Love, Peace & Jazz ♡♡♡
Can you pick up on, aside from Half Nelson, Alexander's Rag Time Band 8:56 , Hello Mudda, Hello Fadda 10:03, (11:21) St. Thomas 10:21: Love this Tadd Dameron Composition! Klook is really kicken it! I know that I missed some Folks! Newk is at Chop City here lol! ooops, my link times are off, close but no cigar! sorry folks ~
Dragony: Cool cats just don't happen but the best ones seem to fall into place right from the start like this. They are the best cat's meow if meow is spoken here.
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.
You have very valid points. His reputation was more based on his ability to improvise and play than to write and compose. Dexter Gordon is one of my favorites when it comes to Jazz Tenor Sax because of his ability to actually play rather than blowing a ton of notes. Not to say you can't do both (Michael Brecker) but players at the time just didn't do it. Sonny said in an interview that "when practicing at home I was trying to get into my sub-conscious." Rollins was a stepping stone for jazz(In terms of phrasing and new Melodies) but it became mostly a precedent for the next generation. Your right, many others including Cannonball Adderley had a better rap sheet than Rollins. So is he overrated a bit, Indeed.
A spiritual player who moved from bop, which he played very well…into the more dissonant and pentatonic 60 s. I don’t really think he’s overrated …This guy doesn’t really know a lot about your Jazz ..This gentleman “-‘post this lugubrious statement about the overrated Sonny-posts this same diatribe everywhere he goes like he’s obsessed. May be Sonny dunked his girlfriend.
@@jayclarke9611 ok, my ass size is huge ok, my brain size is tiny ok, my penis size is very tiny ok, I am ignorant ok, the education received by my parents is zero ok, Rollins fucked my mom ok, Rollins fucks my wife ok, I'm jealous I said "yeah ok" to all of that, but back on topic: Sonny Rollins isn't that great.
@@muhammadslostcousin4568 don't agree - I have almost the opposite idea: thayt is a bit underrated, overshadowed by Coltrane whose influence on later musicians and jazz at all is obviously more relevant. I won't discuss all the points of the above "guy" -- it would take too much time and "he" probabily is a bot (the same comment appears in countless comment sections, is ability to discuss is limited to "prove it" or such things...) - and yes: if it is an he, he doesn't know much about music. and composition (that's not just writeing tunes - Sonny is a composer: the way he builds up in soloes, the whole conception of the music tell that - these things are no less important than writeing themes and/or chord sequences - and, by the way he did that, too - think to Airegin, Freedom suite - a seminal work - just to name 2 - who cares about St.Thomas? - this trio performance demonstrates compositional skills in formal balance...)
@@jayclarke9611 he's not obssessed: I think it's just a bot or troll ("he" can't discuss his point of view - that, by the way, is made up also with personal considaration about the man: what if we had to evaluate Miles Davis discussing his personality and not his music? or Mingus? )
