Rollins' RCA Years

[Darryl G. Thomas]

I like to keep jazz compilations around the office to listen to while I work. Lately The Essential Sonny Rollins (The RCA Years) has been on constant play. About a week.

I remember when I first heard the sessions with Jim Hall. I didn't like them. I was deep into Sonny's Prestige recordings and the Hall recordings felt too light, too delicate. But Sisco's comments concerning "The Bridge" made me return to them, and as usual, I found something special in recordings I'd previously gave a cursory listen to.

The recordings with Don Cherry and Coleman Hawkins really crack me up. To my ears the stunning, stream of conciousness of the Prestige recordings are replaced with a wonderful looseness and a great sense of humor.

I never thought the Prestige recordings could be replaced but these come close.

[Clay Fink]

I love the sessions with Jim Hall. The live recording with Cherry is a killer too. Rollins could do no wrong (except for the cheesy vocals on some of the "calypso" stuff).

[Gary Sisco]

I *love* the music he made with Jim Hall and that quartet. It ranks with my most favorite music of all, ever. Some of the rest of the RCA stuff is good, too, but not on that special a level, I don't think.

They used to market a single CD under the title "Quartets With Jim Hall" that had nearly all on it, but I haven't seen one in a dog's age so I guess they don't make it anymore. That one was a good enough CD so that you could rec it (and I did) to newbies the same way you can with KOB.

[Al in NYC]

"Our Man in Jazz" is one of not only my favorite Rollins recordings, but also just plain one of my favorite recordings of all time. I have most of the single discs of these, with considerable duplication, since they made a total hash of the reissue program. But now I have the opportunity to buy the box. What, if anything, is on there that is not on the discs that have been reissued? I know it's an older box, so how's the sound?

[A. Kingstone]

How about a 'Bridge' reunion?

[A. Kingstone]

Man, can that guy kill a thread or what?

[burning dog]

The Bridge and Our Man In Jazz are both wonderful. Rest of the RCA stuff was patchy but includes some great tracks. Sonny was back on top form on "On Impulse!" IMO.

[David Gitin]

I heard Sonny Rollins with Jim Hall in New York a couple of months before they recorded The Bridge. It was an awesome night. Recently (two years ago?) there was a tribute to this band with Joshua Redman and Bill Frisell in San Francisco.

[Felix]

I too love "Our Man in Jazz". Rollins in his most "searching" mood, trying his best to get along with Ornette's conceptions. It doesn't always work, but it remains fresh even after more than forty years. Also, Don Cherry is excellent, and the bonus tracks have Henry Grimes on bass.

[Pete C]

Originally Posted by David Gitin

I heard Sonny Rollins with Jim Hall in New York a couple of months before they recorded The Bridge. It was an awesome night. Recently (two years ago?) there was a tribute to this band with Joshua Redman and Bill Frisell in San Francisco.

The Jazz Casual video with the Bridge band is amazing.

[hearsay]

There is a bootleg of Rollins band with Cherry, Henry Grimes and Billy Higgins, called "Without a SOng" that is just brilliant. It's like the music of ORnette filtered through the mind and chops of Rollins, everyone is in peak form. The sound quality is terrible, but the playing is out of this world.

It's the one where they play the Star Spangled Banner and at the end of the concert Rollins says "You've been a wonderful audience, except for the smoke, which is really too much."