Sonny Rollins
@thesonnyrollins.bsky.social
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The official account of Sonny Rollins, the Saxophone Colossus.
https://sonnyrollins.com/
"Hardcore Jazz is political. It's real art, and it's got a lot to say about things that are happening. Unfortunately, a lot of forces don't want us to think about anything… just go along and consume & make money." Ted Panken's 4 profiles on Sonny Rollins:
tedpanken.substack.com/p/four-profi...
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Four profiles on the great Sonny Rollins: three for Downbeat (2000, 2007 and 2009) and one for Jazziz (2005)
Different perspectives on the Saxophone Colossus from consequential points during the last 12 years of his career
https://tedpanken.substack.com/p/four-profiles-on-the-great-sonny
about 7 hours ago
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"I loved my father… Whatever they did to him, they didn't turn me against America. There was still Coleman Hawkins and Charlie Parker. And nobody could top that." From The Nation: Sonny Rollins Lived to See Justice for His Wrongly Convicted Father
www.thenation.com/article/soci...
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Sonny Rollins Lived to See Justice for His Wrongly Convicted Father
https://www.thenation.com/article/society/sonny-rollins-exonerated-court-martial-racism/tnamp/
1 day ago
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"That first hour was devoted entirely to 'Sonnymoon for Two.' Imagine getting to play one blues for an hour with Sonny Rollins. Man." Christian McBride shares his experiences rehearsing, performing, and talking with the Saxophone Colossus:
substack.com/home/post/p-...
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Sonny Rollins: 1930-2026
My story of Sonny seems unlikely, but it happened.
https://substack.com/home/post/p-199786371
7 days ago
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"I just want the music to play itself... If I have to think about what I'm doing, then the moment is already gone, you know?" NPR's Fresh Air shares Sonny Rollins' interviews from 1994 and 2005:
www.npr.org/2026/05/29/n...
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Remembering tenor saxophonist Sonny Rollins, a titan of modern jazz
Rollins, who died May 25, had for decades been hailed as the greatest living jazz musician. Kevin Whitehead offers an appreciation, and we listen back to Rollins' 1994 interview with Terry Gross.
https://www.npr.org/2026/05/29/nx-s1-5837306/remembering-sonny-rollins
8 days ago
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"Jazz is as relevant today as the yearning of people to be free." The Jazz Session presents three conversations with Sonny Rollins, featuring interviews from 2008, 2010, and 2012:
www.patreon.com/posts/jazz-s...
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The Jazz Session #653: Three Conversations With Sonny Rollins | The Jazz Session
The Jazz Session #653: Three Conversations With Sonny Rollins by The Jazz Session on Patreon. Join The Jazz Session's community for exclusive content and updates.
https://www.patreon.com/posts/jazz-session-653-159670795
9 days ago
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"The Greatest Ever Is Gone": Mark Stryker on Sonny Rollins for Ethan Iverson's Transitional Technology:
iverson.substack.com/p/guest-post...
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GUEST POST: The Greatest Ever is Gone: Reflections on Sonny Rollins and a Desert Island List of Recordings
By Mark Stryker
https://iverson.substack.com/p/guest-post-the-greatest-ever-is-gone?r=1p3m1&utm_medium=ios&utm_id=97757_v0_s00_e233_tv2_tp1_a1demonyrgass3&triedRedirect=true
10 days ago
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"One of the greatest musicians in jazz history": Alyn Shipton of Jazzwise salutes Sonny Rollins:
www.jazzwise.com/content/news...
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Sonny Rollins: 09/09/1930 – 25/05/2026 - Jazzwise
Alyn Shipton salutes the great “saxophone colossus” Sonny Rollins, who has died aged 95
https://www.jazzwise.com/content/news/sonny-rollins-09091930-25052026
11 days ago
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From 1999, Sonny Rollins talks to Chris M. Slawecki of All About Jazz: "Music is a thing you never completely master... But this helped me to remain a student all of my life. I consider myself still a student."
www.allaboutjazz.com/sonny-rollin...
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Sonny Rollins: Still a Student – Sonny Rollins | Interview | All About Jazz
Read Sonny Rollins: Still a Student by Chris M. Slawecki on All About Jazz. Discover in-depth jazz Interview coverage, artist features, and expert writing since 1995.
https://www.allaboutjazz.com/sonny-rollins-still-a-student-interview
12 days ago
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"These pictures take me back into a time which will never be like that again." Vanity Fair shares Sonny Rollins' foreword for the new book Jazz: Best of the Apollo, Village Vanguard, and Riverside Sessions, featuring photos by Steve Schapiro:
www.vanityfair.com/culture/phot...
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Sonny Rollins, the Sax Master Who Died This Week at 95, on Steve Schapiro’s Unseen Photos of Jazz Giants
In an homage, written months before his death at 95, the jazz legend recounts a magical era in Manhattan’s 1960s music scene.
https://www.vanityfair.com/culture/photos/sonny-rollins-jazz
13 days ago
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This Friday and Saturday May 29th and 30th, catch WKCR's Sonny Rollins Memorial Broadcast, featuring 48 non-stop hours of the Saxophone Colossus. Listen anywhere at
www.cc-seas.columbia.edu/wkcr/story/s...
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Sonny Rollins Memorial Broadcast | WKCR 89.9FM NY
https://www.cc-seas.columbia.edu/wkcr/story/sonny-rollins-memorial-broadcast
14 days ago
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The NY Times presents a multi-faceted look at the life and career of Sonny Rollins, featuring a biography, interviews, and essential albums:
www.nytimes.com/2026/05/25/a...
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Sonny Rollins: 12 Essential Albums
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/25/arts/music/sonny-rollins-albums.html?unlocked_article_code=1.llA.EuCv._TfJUONEFgUB&smid=url-share
15 days ago
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It is with deep sorrow and profound love that we announce the passing of Sonny Rollins. The Saxophone Colossus died this afternoon at his home in Woodstock, NY at the age of 95. 1/2
17 days ago
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On this day in 1956, John Coltrane accompanied Paul Chambers, Philly Joe Jones, and Red Garland to a Sonny Rollins recording session for Prestige. Sonny invited him to join the band for a tune, resulting in their blues showdown "Tenor Madness":
youtu.be/454YxQcUKgc?...
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Tenor Madness by Sonny Rollins from 'The Complete Prestige Recordings' Disc 5
YouTube video by Sonny Rollins
https://youtu.be/454YxQcUKgc?si=RK_iodhEZjgkOGLd
18 days ago
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Happy Birthday Fats Waller! After first hearing this track, as Sonny Rollins told Larry Appelbaum of the Smithsonian Jazz Oral History Project, "I knew I wanted to play jazz... It makes you feel that there is a God, and that things are okay."
youtu.be/f8SB0-BV4r0?...
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I'm Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter
YouTube video by Fats Waller - Topic
https://youtu.be/f8SB0-BV4r0?si=eIw1gYGM_jOJuu3t
21 days ago
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"I consider myself a 'stream of consciousness' player, or what was later to be known as a 'free jazz' player… So I had to learn how to play with the strictures of bebop and all these things… because I'm really just a natural player." –S.R., to the Academy of Achievement, 2006
29 days ago
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Now available for pre-order: Jazz: Best of the Apollo, Village Vanguard, and Riverside Sessions, featuring never-before-seen images by documentary photographer Steve Schapiro, with text by Richard Scheinin and a foreword by Sonny Rollins:
www.simonandschuster.com/books/Jazz/K...
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Jazz
Jazz is an essential volume of rare and previously unseen photos by Steve Schapiro, featuring the biggest 1960s jazz legends.One of the leading soc...
https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Jazz/Kurt-Elling/9781788843423
about 1 month ago
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Happy Birthday Ron Carter! Here's the bassist with Sonny Rollins and Roy McCurdy on Sonny's signature St. Thomas, from the 1964 RCA Victor LP Now's the Time!:
youtu.be/rFvG-cVdj98?...
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Ron Carter - St. Thomas from Now's the Time by Sonny Rollins #roncarterbassist
YouTube video by Ron Carter Bassist
https://youtu.be/rFvG-cVdj98?si=lHPVfV2Y7NjQ-EVx
about 1 month ago
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Happy Birthday Edward Kennedy Ellington! Here's Duke's "Solitude" played by Sonny Rollins with Ray Brown and Shelly Manne, from the 1957 Contemporary LP Way Out West:
youtu.be/_D3zqnokaVI?...
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Solitude by Sonny Rollins from 'Way Out West'
YouTube video by Sonny Rollins
https://youtu.be/_D3zqnokaVI?si=NOyXISdzCpdqmxbq
about 1 month ago
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Aidan Levy's Saxophone Colossus: The Life and Music of Sonny Rollins is now available in Japanese! Translated by Yuji Odanaka and published by Aki Shobo, available here:
www.akishobo.com/book/detail....
about 2 months ago
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Sonny Rollins' first recording of "Don't Stop the Carnival," arr. by Jimmy Jones and featuring Jim Hall, Bob Cranshaw, Ben Riley, Dennis Charles, Frank Charles, Willie Rodriguez, and a vocal sextet led by Howard Roberts, rec. for RCA on this date in 1962:
youtu.be/Y6I9dUTh9vI?...
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Don't Stop the Carnival (1997 Remastered)
YouTube video by Sonny Rollins - Topic
https://youtu.be/Y6I9dUTh9vI?si=NTGDrymdKh7AROHS
about 2 months ago
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Raymond Hubbell and John L. Golden's "Poor Butterfly," by Sonny Rollins with Jay Jay Johnson, Horace Silver, Paul Chambers, and Art Blakey, recorded for the Blue Note album Sonny Rollins Vol. 2 on this day in 1957:
youtu.be/DARt8iU32Ww?...
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Poor Butterfly (Rudy Van Gelder Edition/1999 Remaster/24-Bit Mastering)
YouTube video by Sonny Rollins - Topic
https://youtu.be/DARt8iU32Ww?si=V6me0pEefReq-noD
about 2 months ago
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Happy Birthday Billie Holiday! Here's her composition (with Arthur Herzog) "God Bless the Child," played by Sonny Rollins with Jim Hall, Bob Cranshaw, and Harry Saunders, from the 1962 RCA Victor album The Bridge:
youtu.be/mZNEEKtA8hU?...
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God Bless the Child
YouTube video by Sonny Rollins - Topic
https://youtu.be/mZNEEKtA8hU?si=yBXVmTJbMBds2rUe
2 months ago
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"I'll Remember April" (dePaul, Johnston & Raye) by the Clifford Brown/Max Roach Quintet, with Sonny Rollins, George Morrow, and Richie Powell, from the 1956 EmArcy LP At Basin Street:
youtu.be/efD90XFbpsE?...
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I'll Remember April
YouTube video by Clifford Brown - Topic
https://youtu.be/efD90XFbpsE?si=GZHlgA23UmQALclG
2 months ago
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"All time, rhythm, and harmony are pulsating, sounding, resounding, & happening according to the grand symphony which is constantly being played. All sounds, when discerned in this context, are rhythmically & harmonically involved and fit." –The Notebooks of Sonny Rollins (NYRB)
3 months ago
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Happy Birthday Roy Haynes! Here's the drummer with Sonny Rollins, Sonny Clark, and Percy Heath on Comden & Green's "Just in Time," recorded for the 1957 Riverside LP The Sound of Sonny:
youtu.be/nP0u6n5UqIw?...
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Just In Time (2007 Re-master)
YouTube video by Sonny Rollins - Topic
https://youtu.be/nP0u6n5UqIw?si=JXGrCORLsO2V5XNg
3 months ago
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Happy Birthday Ornette Coleman! Here's the alto saxophonist joining Sonny Rollins, Christian McBride, and Roy Haynes, on "Sonnymoon for Two," recorded live at the Beacon Theater in NYC in 2010 and released on Road Shows, Vol. 2:
youtu.be/WhXlwdkcLc4?...
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Sonny Rollins & Ornette Coleman - Sonnymoon For Two (Live 2010)
YouTube video by dixiefeet
https://youtu.be/WhXlwdkcLc4?si=CihqnhQjc7asLYQ8
3 months ago
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On this day in 1958, Sonny Rollins records his album Freedom Suite. "America is deeply rooted in Negro culture... How ironic that the Negro, who more than any other people can claim America's culture as his own... is being rewarded with inhumanity." –S.R.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=OTGJ...
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Sonny Rollins - The Freedom Suite (Official Audio)
YouTube video by Sonny Rollins
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OTGJGhh-xr8
3 months ago
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Rodgers & Hart's "I Could Write a Book," by Sonny Rollins with Don Cherry, Henry Grimes, and Billy Higgins, recorded for the RCA Victor album Gary Burton, Sonny Rollins, Clark Terry – 3 in Jazz on this day in 1963:
youtu.be/cv-7HMYrXIk?...
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I Could Write a Book (1995 Remastered)
YouTube video by Sonny Rollins - Topic
https://youtu.be/cv-7HMYrXIk?si=P5qSYLfSlhwZTISa
4 months ago
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Cole Porter's "You Do Something to Me," by Sonny Rollins with Jim Hall, Bob Cranshaw, and Ben Riley, recorded for the RCA Victor LP The Bridge on this day in 1962:
youtu.be/cWmwXok3L9E?...
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You Do Something to Me (Remastered)
YouTube video by Sonny Rollins - Topic
https://youtu.be/cWmwXok3L9E?si=YSIqTjiEjUyqKCpc
4 months ago
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"I do want to communicate with people, but no, I'm not an entertainer. I still want them to have a positive experience, but not at the expense of the music. I want them to think, also, and I want them to feel more optimistic… than when they came in." –S.R. to Chip Stern (1988)
4 months ago
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Happy Birthday to Jerome Kern. ("My main man!" –S.R.) Here's his "The Way You Look Tonight" (with lyrics by Dorothy Fields), recorded by Thelonious Monk and Sonny Rollins with Tommy Potter and Arthur Taylor for Prestige Records in 1954:
youtu.be/y9aB6PDOyyA?...
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Thelonious Monk & Sonny Rollins - The Way You Look Tonight (Official Audio)
YouTube video by Sonny Rollins
https://youtu.be/y9aB6PDOyyA?si=ZzYxyrsc1QPaUGoU
5 months ago
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On this day in 1949, 19-year old Sonny Rollins entered the recording studio for the first time to record "Capitolizing" with vocalist Babs Gonzales and his Orchestra:
youtu.be/3d4BGlh3jLw?...
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Capitolizing
YouTube video by Babs Gonzales - Topic
https://youtu.be/3d4BGlh3jLw?si=LnzfuUwPYa2TTk2s
5 months ago
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Happy Birthday Max Roach! Here's the drummer on George Russell's "Ezz-Thetic," with Sonny Rollins, Kenny Dorham, Ray Bryant, and George Morrow, recorded for the EmArcy LP Max Roach + 4 in 1956:
youtu.be/t-eyORnB5b4?...
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Ezz-Thetic
YouTube video by Max Roach - Topic
https://youtu.be/t-eyORnB5b4?si=rS-D_xR3iJjQ9t-Q
5 months ago
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"The saxophone is our friend. He wants to make us happy. He wants to serve us. I'm glad that he's our friend because from the first moment that I saw the saxophone I fell in love with it, and wanted so badly to have one and play one." From The Notebooks of Sonny Rollins (NYRB)
5 months ago
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Sonny Rollins plays Felix Bernard and Richard Bernhard Smith's "Winter Wonderland," with Herbie Hancock, piano; Bob Cranshaw, bass; and Mickey Roker, drums; recorded for RCA Victor in 1964.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=dpUi...
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Winter Wonderland
YouTube video by Sonny Rollins - Topic
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dpUi1dSdKqk
6 months ago
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"Horns are very mysterious. There are certain parts of the room where the horn just projects better, where the sound is more friendly, you know. That's why I walk around the stage a lot—I'm trying to find that sweet spot." –S.R. to Musician Magazine, 1988
6 months ago
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Happy Birthday McCoy Tyner! Here's the pianist with the Milestone Jazzstars (Sonny Rollins, Ron Carter, and Al Foster) on Sonny's composition "The Cutting Edge," recorded live on tour in 1978:
youtu.be/UUskQ8SMbUo?...
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Ron Carter - The Cutting Edge from Milestone Jazzstars in Concert #roncarterbassist
YouTube video by Ron Carter Bassist
https://youtu.be/UUskQ8SMbUo?si=oMJsDSkBFv8-uVm3
6 months ago
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Happy Birthday to bassist Bob Cranshaw (today) and guitarist Jim Hall (tomorrow)! Here they both are with Sonny Rollins and Ben Riley on Cole Porter's "You Do Something to Me," from the 1962 RCA Victor LP The Bridge:
youtu.be/cWmwXok3L9E?...
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You Do Something to Me (Remastered)
YouTube video by Sonny Rollins - Topic
https://youtu.be/cWmwXok3L9E?si=II1qrWPwhcw2sgIt
6 months ago
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Who knows what love is No one seems to know People live and people Die, one by one We go but just Within this speck of Time I found love, I know Because of countless little things That told me so (from The Notebooks of Sonny Rollins, NYRB Press)
7 months ago
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"When I realized that jazz is God, it’s God speaking to me. And my trying to speak back to God – that is jazz." Sonny Rollins speaks to WABE's Joe Alterman on The Upside of Jazz:
www.wabe.org/an-interview...
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An Interview with Saxophonist Sonny Rollins
There are legends in jazz — and then there’s Sonny Rollins. They call him the Saxophone Colossus, and for good reason. For nearly nine decades, Rollins has set the gold […]
https://www.wabe.org/an-interview-with-saxophonist-sonny-rollins/
7 months ago
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Happy Birthday Paul Bley! Here's the pianist with Sonny Rollins, Coleman Hawkins, Bob Cranshaw, and Roy McCurdy on Jerome Kern's and Otto Harbach's "Yesterdays," from the 1963 RCA Victor LP Sonny Meets Hawk!
youtu.be/0Hrc4jCjJws?...
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Yesterdays (Remastered)
YouTube video by Sonny Rollins - Topic
https://youtu.be/0Hrc4jCjJws?si=qG_qmBTSpA2nGJy4
7 months ago
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Dizzy Gillespie's "A Night in Tunisia" (afternoon take), by Sonny Rollins with drummer Pete La Roca and bassist Donald Bailey, recorded live for the Blue Note LP A Night at the Village Vanguard on this day in 1957:
youtu.be/1oWiVGAdJqc?...
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A Night In Tunisia (Live At The Village Vanguard/1957 - Afternoon Take)
YouTube video by Sonny Rollins - Topic
https://youtu.be/1oWiVGAdJqc?si=bG6dlbar1QDQJ64M
7 months ago
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Now available: high-quality, officially licensed apparel featuring the original artwork of Sonny Rollins.
sonnyrollins.com/shop
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Shop — Sonny Rollins
Shop high-quality, officially licensed apparel featuring original artwork by Sonny Rollins, the Saxophone Colossus.
https://sonnyrollins.com/shop
7 months ago
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Happy Birthday Clifford Brown! Here he is with Sonny Rollins in the Clifford Brown/Max Roach Quintet playing Cole Porter's "What Is this Thing Called Love" in 1956. "We used to call him an angel, because he was so gifted, so perfect a person." —S.R. (2016)
youtu.be/JTWRZkoLGx8?...
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What Is This Thing Called Love
YouTube video by Clifford Brown - Topic
https://youtu.be/JTWRZkoLGx8?si=-IsUIoaD9ouwjwX7
7 months ago
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Another great drummer lost to us – for a while anyway. Goodbye, Jack DeJohnette. –S.R.
8 months ago
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Happy Birthday John Birks Gillespie! Here's Dizzy on Avery Parrish's "After Hours," with Sonny Rollins, Sonny Stitt, Ray Bryant, Tommy Bryant, and Charlie Persip, recorded for the 1958 Verve LP Sonny Side Up:
youtu.be/NRRowle7A3o?...
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After Hours
YouTube video by Dizzy Gillespie - Topic
https://youtu.be/NRRowle7A3o?si=NF-QeDHIgODUBref
8 months ago
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Happy Birthday Roy Hargrove! Here's the trumpeter with Sonny Rollins, Mark Soskin, Bob Cranshaw, and Al Foster on Sonny's composition "Young Roy," from the 1991 Milestone album Here's to the People:
youtu.be/_kxa4-Hsfwk?...
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Sonny Rollins - Young Roy (Official Audio)
YouTube video by Sonny Rollins
https://youtu.be/_kxa4-Hsfwk?si=1QWO-NCH4RefSFrv
8 months ago
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Happy Birthday Thelonious Monk! “Monk was an enigmatic guy, but he was one of the best people I’ve known, completely honest, and he took a liking to me and took me under his wing, and years later I was able to see that he influenced me in many things.” –S.R. (2007)
8 months ago
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Happy Birthday Oscar Pettiford! Here's the bassist with Sonny Rollins and Max Roach on Noël Coward's "Someday I'll Find You," from the 1958 Riverside LP The Freedom Suite:
youtu.be/0IGAe0mXKgs?...
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Someday I'll Find You
YouTube video by Sonny Rollins - Topic
https://youtu.be/0IGAe0mXKgs?si=7AtIjPQSgD8TBBTA
8 months ago
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Happy Birthday Fats Navarro! Here's the trumpeter with Bud Powell, Sonny Rollins, Tommy Potter, and Roy Haynes, on Thelonious Monk's 52nd St. Theme, recorded for Blue Note Records in 1949:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=4OCD...
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52nd Street Theme (Remastered 1998/Rudy Van Gelder Edition)
YouTube video by Bud Powell - Topic
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4OCDK2L4N14
9 months ago
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