Sonny Rollins Plus 4

We start off in March 1956 with ‘Sonny Rollins Plus 4’ where unsurprisingly we find Sonny accompanied, by you guessed it, four stellar jazzmen. Clifford Brown on trumpet, Max Roach on drums, George Morrow on bass and Richie Powell on piano. Recorded a little later the same year in December 1956 our second offering is ‘Sonny Rollins Volume One’ where Sonny is found in the company of Donald Byrd on trumpet, Wynton Kelly on piano, Gene Ramey on bass and our old friend Max Roach on drums. CD2 moves on to 1957 for ‘Sonny Rollins Volume Two’ where Sonny is joined by another fantastic line up including Thelonious Monk playing piano on his own classic compositions ‘Misterioso’ and ‘Reflections’…

Sonny Rollins And The Big Brass (1958), Sonny Rollins On Impulse! (1965), Alfie [OST] (1966).
Sonny Rollins And The Big Brass (1958). Big Brass is an appropiate name for the large ensemble arranged and conducted by Ernie Wilkins that accompanies the huge sound of Sonny Rollins. The energy within the leader's gospel-flavored shout "Grand Street" is considerable, while a swinging but no less powerful version of George & Ira Gershwin's "Who Cares" features a choice solo by guitarist Rene Thomas. Also added to this compilation are trio recordings with bassist Henry Grimes and drummer Specs Wright, including a brilliant leisurely stroll through "Manhattan," along with Rollins' tour de force unaccompanied tenor sax on "Body and Soul"…

Mid 50s genius from Sonny Rollins - 5 albums in a single set, all presented in LP-styled sleeves. Includes 'Worktime' (1956), 'With The Modern Jazz Quartet' (1956), 'Tenor Madness' (1956), 'Moving Out' (1956) and 'Saxaphone Colossus' (1957).
Worktime is a record that perfectly illustrates why Rollins was one of the greatest players on his horn for many decades running! There's a depth of tone on the record that rivals Coleman Hawkins or Lester Young - but a quickness of pace and imagination that shows a clear influence from Charlie Parker, and a deftness that few were bringing to the tenor at the time. The rhythm section here is super tight - and features Ray Bryant on piano, George Morrow on bass, and Max Roach on drums…

Sonny left the music biz in the late '50s and early '60s, then returned with a triumphant series of LPs. Here are five of 'em: 1962's Our Man in Jazz (with the jaw-dropping epic Oleo ) and What's New? (he teams with Jim Hall on If Ever I Would Leave You and his own Bluesong ), 1963's storied meeting with Coleman Hawkins, Sonny Meets Hawk! (with thrilling excursions through standards like All the Things You Are and Yesterdays ) and 1964's Now's the Time and The Standard Sonny Rollins (both with Herbie Hancock)…

Sonny Rollins, one of jazz's great tenors, is heard here at his peak with a pair of piano-less trios (either Wilbur Ware or Donald Bailey on bass and Elvin Jones or Pete La Roca on drums) stretching out on particularly creative versions of "Old Devil Moon," "Softly As in a Morning Sunrise," "Sonnymoon for Two," and "A Night in Tunisia," among others. Not only did Rollins have a very distinctive sound but his use of time, his sly wit, and his boppish but unpredictable style were completely his own by 1957. Truly magical.