Customer Reviews

Freelance Years

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Listening to this boxed set by Sonny Rollins was like opening up a time portal to the history of Jazz music. This 5 CD set meticulously covers the complete Riverside recordings (1956-58), capturing Rollins in his freelance years. Some jazz experts consider this to be Rollin's most creative period. Many famous and influential artists played with Rollins on these sessions. Here a some of the artists that took part in this musical treasure; Jimmy Cleveland, Wendell Marshall, Oscar Pettiford, Leroy Vinegar, Max Roach, Hampton Hawes, Gil Coggins and Victor Feldman. Every one of these men are considered to be some of the very best musicians of there time period.

I enjoyed disc three and four immensely. The vocals of Abbey Lincoln give the music an ambiance and definitive fifties atmosphere that allows you to step back and put yourself right in that time frame of jazz history. Disc one, two, and five were absolutely amazing as well. When you sit and listen to the developing and flowering talent of the artist it makes you realize why the time period was called the Cool period of jazz.

The music herein can be considered as bop, progressive and contemporary. With the in-depth liner notes and comprehensive coverage of the artists catalog with Riverside, this set leaves no stone unturned. You get a glimpse of the different moods and musical palettes that Rollins draws from to create his music. The free form alternate takes are lengthy musical mirrors of a man that is intent on perfecting his art form. Attempting to push through contemporary barriers to create his own style and trademark, Rollins succeeds in enveloping the other performers in his musical vision. Although his playing seems to be restrained most of the time, the sound could be considered as progressive and slightly risqué for the fifties. It's all labeled as contemporary by today's standards.

When one takes all the factors into consideration, this boxed set stands as a testament to the importance of the artist and his tremendous contributions to music. Sonny Rollins was one of the few saxophone players that was talented enough to set a standard and make his own place in history. This beautiful boxed set is but one piece of a long and storied career. This is a superior chronicle of Sonny Rollin's emergence as a true force in jazz music. There is no doubt that Mr. Rollins should be considered a pioneer and a quintessential part of the jazz genres complex puzzle. This is one piece of the puzzle that has a place amongst the rest to complete the entire musical snapshot of jazz.

Keith Hannaleck May, 4, 2000 MuzikMan's Sound Script

I'm a jazz fan, not a professional reviewer or hardcore jazz nerd, so I won't try to analyze too deeply the details of what makes this music so fantastic. But I love it, and if you like almost any jazz at all there's a pretty good chance you'll dig this. It's incredibly human and lyrical, interesting but accessible, at times challenging without never abrasive, virtuosic but always in the service of music. His long improvisations are full of weight and meaning and never seem to ramble.

Coltrane in full flight is a white-hot supernova of spiritual creative freedom; Rollins at his best is a beautiful intricate golden voice from the heart.

I'm still at the beginning of learning the Rollins canon, which is wonderfully exciting. Every new song I hear deepens my appreciation for this incredible artist. If I could give this box more than 5 stars I would.

Sonny Rollins' recordings from '56-'58 are like nothing else. Hard to believe 2 years turned into 5 discs - and he still did 6 dates for Prestige in '56 - no wonder he had to take some time off. The sound, the technique, the concepts, they were sooo hip at the time people are still trying to get it down. This set dispells the myth that Sonny was simply a bebopper. Tracks like "Symphony No. 6", "Freedom Suite", even what he does with "I'm An Old Cowhand" show a man looking to push boundaries. But if you like show tunes and standards, they're here as well, just with the usual Sonny Rollins reinterpretation.
The package is well thought out. Slim and manageable, with great notes & pictures - even suggested reading. Well worth it.

Oh Lord, LOL, this is a gorgeous collection! Fine sound, stupendous vocals, Sonny does cowboy....much more. Amazing, but I am just discovering this icon after years of jazz collecting and listening.

The 50s were an incredible time for jazz, with so many major figures reaching their peak, and here is Rollins playing with Thelonious Monk, Kenny Dorham, Max Roach and Abbey Lincoln, not to mention cutting his incredible Freedom Suite, all within a short span of three years. It is not surprising he took a break after this tremendous outpouring.

The box set starts with selections from Brilliant Corners, led by Thelonious Monk, and closes with Sonny Rollins and the Contemporary Leaders, which featured Hampton Hawes, Barney Kessel, Shelly Manne among others. I was pleasantly surprised to find that his recordings with Abbey Lincoln on the album That's Him figured heavily into this collection. You get the album in its entirety, providing a nice change of pace to the hard driving compositions which dominate the five discs. No one played the saxophonist with such force, a true heavyweight, yet he seemed remarkably adaptable to almost any situation. Like other musicians of his day, Rollins became drawn toward eastern music, discovering new techniques, which he nurtured during his hiatus before going onto record with Blue Note and other labels.