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Sonny RollinsAfter the BridgeThis one is new to me. Asimov turned me on to it. A bit too beyond bop for my tastes on several tracks, but Sonny's mastery is obvious, so I'm thinking it's a bit like uni (raw sea urchin gonads)--there's enough good there to make you want to come back and try it a few more times before dismissing it. I think it's something I'm going to need to listen to a few times to figure out whether I like it or not.From AllMusic's Scott Yanow:"Tenor saxophonist Sonny Rollins' first recording after ending a surprising three-year retirement found the great saxophonist sounding very similar to how he had played in 1959, although he would soon start investigating freer forms. In a pianoless quartet with guitarist Jim Hall, bassist Bob Cranshaw, and drummer Ben Riley, Rollins explores four standards (including "Without a Song" and "God Bless the Child") plus two fiery originals, highlighted by the title cut. The interplay between Rollins and Hall is consistently impressive, making this set a near-classic and a very successful comeback."And another review from "The Ranting Recluse" on AllMusic:"After a meteoric rise to fame in the 1950s, legendary tenor sax man Sonny Rollins had walked away from it all by the decade's end, embarking on an introspective, almost monastic three-year quest to improve his technique, during which time he would spend up to 16 hours a day playing his sax, alone, on New York City's Williamsburg bridge, and that solitary period of time spent practicing on the bridge is what gives this album its title. Although critical reception to the album was initially mixed, as many had hoped Rollins would have re-emerged from his sabbatical having developed some revolutionary new technique or with a markedly evolved style that differed more strongly from his earlier work, it was nonetheless a commercial success, and has since become regarded as one of his finest albums, even being inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2015. Featuring Rollins in a new quartet that also included Jim Hall on guitar, Bob Cranshaw on bass and Ben Riley on the drums, the album has a spare, subdued sound, which might be why the ballads are generally more evocative and memorable than the uptempo numbers, with Rollins' haunting take on the standard "God Bless the Child" being my pick for the standout track, as well as the one that probably best reflects what it must have been like to spend all that time playing alone on that bridge."Oh, and here are some samples from AllMusic:Sonny Rollins After the Bridge
Nice feedback.Thanks.
Chet Baker in New York in high res (24/88)!Samples: Chet Baker in New York
Sonny RollinsNucleusAnother tip from Asimov, and this one is well into the 70s, with a production not unlike Chuck Mangione or Bob James. The difference is that it's Sonny Rollins. Those years on the Williamsburg Bridge were not wasted, but rather an investment. Until tonight I hadn't realized what an amazing musician Sonny was. Sure, Saxophone Collossus blew me away the first time I heard it ("What, mono can have a soundstage?"). The stuff Asimov suggested though, takes my perception of Sonny Rollins, and jazz sax to a different dimension (Saxophone Collossus was already 3D, so we must be onto 4 or 5 D with "After the Bridge" and "Nucleus"). Kinda feels like I'm doing jazz homework instead of just relaxing at the end of a good weekend. All the same, I'm definitely expanding my horizons.Thank you Asimov!
Thelonious Monk "Something in Blue" on Black Lion BL-152This is a 1971 recording w/ Al McKibbon on bass and unusual in that it also has a somewhat muted Art Blakey on drums- Art never liked to take a backseat. But with Monk, regardless who it's with, it's all about Monk. By the 70's many thought Monk had said all he had to say, and this is a rather reflective lp... but even if it's just Monk doodling on a piano in the corner of a bar, you just want to stop and listen.Nice recording, not in your face, just easy to listen to.
