Customer Reviews

Without a Song: The 9/11 Concert

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Sonny Rollins in a live recording from Boston just days after 9-11 puts on a thrilling and HEALING show that thrills the still shell shocked audience. There is a sense that the crowd along with the musicians needed something, anything to cling to within the context of the horror of the attacks on America. What they received was a lyrical yet intersting retelling of several standards and Rollins original song Global Warming which gives a peek into some of what was intersting Sonny at this time. Two standards are of particular interst. Both Without a Song[title cut] and Why Was I Born? are not only thrilling from a musical sense but raise profound thoughts at a deeply profound moment in our country's history.Deep thinking aside both songs ebb and flow into a mesmerizing telling and retelling of two lovely melodies. Sonny's legendary improvising "with a brain" is fully on center stage.
Of particular note as far as the supporting cast is Clifton Anderson on trombone who is Sonny's nephew I believe. Anderson solos nicely but more importantly he supports the master beautifully with deeper shadings to highlight Rollins legendary abilty around the "bottom" of the tenor sax. Bob Cranshaw, Rollin's longtime bassist also provides strong "walking support".
One last kudo for including Sonny's spoken words during the show. Within the next year or two Rollins would lose his wife of many years and these events of 9-11 which occured just 4 days earlier took place just blocks from his NY appartment are the start of "profound times". Rollins speaks carefully about us "needing music especially now". While his words were few they were heartfelt and seemed to "help".
I know his music helps. Reccommended.

What a joy to hear this and realize that as of 4 years ago Sonny Rollins was still blowing at a level most sax players only dream of. The band is tight and energetic and Sonny sounds like a much younger man. The opener, Without A Song , immediately makes a statement about how good this is going to be and the rest of the cd doesn't disappoint. Sonny Rollins is the greatest live performer I've ever seen and though I haven't seen him live in many years it brought a huge smile to my face to hear this.

Track 1: "Without A Song" - Awesome opener, one of Sonny's favorite songs that really shines, both during the melody and solos. The band is tight, everyone playing wonderfully. The only mildly negative part is the Trombone during the melody, which I found slightly annoying until I got used to it. Stephen Scott, on piano, has amazing capability, as he moves around the piano with ease, the entire time singing along with his own playing. This is humorous at first, but it draws you in as you listen more, as you start to realize how focused and involved in the music he and the rest of the band are.

Track 2: "Global Warming" - The only song on the album composed by Sonny, also the only Calypso. Very good song, although I didn't enjoy it as much as "Without A Song" or "Why Was I Born?".

Track 4: "A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square" - The only ballad on the album, it moves along and doesn't feel as slow as other ballads. Very strong playing by Sonny and the rest of the band.

Track 5: "Why Was I Born?" - My favorite song on the album, the opening to this song is improvised by Sonny, and the band enters on the melody perfectly, with perfect synchronization. Awesome song, along with equally impressive soloing by Sonny and Stephen Scott.

Track 6: "Where or When" - Very good closer to this album. Strong playing by everyone, as well as impressive soloing by Clifton Anderson and Sonny.

Overall, this is an excellent album. At first I was slightly dissapointed by the audio quality, it still seems a little muddled to me, but I don't notice it anymore unless I think about it, and it doesn't harm the quality of the performance, just leaves more to be desired from the technology. It feels like the bass is too powerful and the treble is too weak, but they may have done this to bring out the trombone. Still a very good album that I would recommend to any Sonny Rollins' fans, jazz fans, and any music fans.

Great,great,great!!! The 75 years old Theodore "Sonny" Rollins,71 years old when this recording was made,the colossus of the tenor sax,the "Newk",is always as powerful as he was fourty years before.It seems incredible that his blowing is such deeply inventive and rich,55 years after the beginning of his recording career.Of course,Rollins is a real colossus.He is physically impressive.He blow,during the fifties and the sixties,some of the most essential music ever recorded.

September 11,2001;a few days before his 71th birthday,Sonny Rollins was at home,in his Manhattan appartment,only six blocks from the Twin Towers,while his wife Lucille was in their New York home.He saw everything.He had to stay in his flat for one day,before being authorized to leave,only with his saxophone.He thought about cancelling this September 15 concert in Boston,but finally the band was at the Berklee Performance Center.

The band consists of Clifton Anderson,trombone,Stephen Scott,piano,Bob Cranshaw,bass;Perry Wilson,drums and Kimati Dinizulu,percussion.The repertoire played this evening is made of great songs:"Without a song","a nightingale sang in Berkeley square","where or when" and the rare "why was I born",so deeply marked by Billie Holiday's magnificent version,more than sixty years before;plus "global warming",a Rollins original,an outstanding calypso,reminding Rollins' carribean grounds.It's amazing to discover that Sonny's sound hasn't changed since "the bridge" or "the standard",which were recorded 40 years before that night.

The band plays magnificently;Stephen Scott is brilliant,he's got ideas,his playing is adventurous and very swinging (listen to his choruses on "why was I born").And Sonny is everywhere,playing a lot,with a youthful ardour.This music is great,great, even if some critics will tell you that Sonny isn't as new as he was before,even if they say that he still plays the same music without exploring new directions.And so what ? Did Louis Armstrong try to play with Lennie Tristano in the fifties? No. Did Count Basie hired Albert Ayler in his sax section in the sixties? No.Did Sidney Bechet used to play "Moose the mooche" or "Salt peanuts" when he lived in France? No again.They all were geniuses of jazz,they all created more music than the average musicians,but they kept on playing their own style,and everybody was happy with that.Maybe Sonny created something so exceptionnal in the early sixties,maybe he was too adventurous at this time;but don't you think he is as adventurous here,in his magnificent solos on "global warming" or "why was I born"?

This 9/15 concert,and not 9/11 as written on the jacket,is a very great date in Sonny Rollins' discography.The ever young music of an ever young master of the tenor saxophone, playing like a young man, for your pleasure. Don't miss it!!!

From Trinimans's Blog and Blogcritics:

Sonny Rollins is one of the giants of jazz and is the only surviving member whose contemporaries include John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Louis Armstrong, and Charlie Parker. For sure, there are lots of fantastic players around today, but none who are alive have the pedigree of Sonny Rollins. I had a chance to see him live about 15 years ago and it was an unbelieaveable experience. Rollins' rich legacy of albums made between the 50s and 70s estabished and confirmed his legend, including The Bridge, Saxophone Colossus and Sonny Side Up.

Rollins was in his Manhattan apartment six blocks from Ground Zero during the 9/11 attacks, and was evacuated by rescue workers the following day, when his building lost power. I recall Nat Hentoff writing a piece about Rollins' evacuation in his back-page column in JazzTimes. Like many during that day and the following weeks, Rollins wondered whether to get back to the business of his life or withdraw. He had been booked to play this concert at the Berklee College of Music in Boston's Performance Center on Sept. 15th. His first thought was to cancel the performance, but his wife Lucille convinced him that he should leave town and do the show.

The band from this show included trombonist (and nephew) Clifton Anderson, bassist Bob Cranshaw, pianist Stephen Scott, African percussionist Kimati Dinizuli, and drummer Perry Wilson.

You can hear Sonny struggling at times, but this is coming from someone who had just turned 71 a week earlier. This album wouldn't necessarily convince someone hearing Rollins for the first time that he is held in such high esteem, but it's a fun, lively listen, with very entertaining performance from the entire group. Trombonist Clifton Anderson stands out on the calypso-influenced "Global Warming," the only Sonny original here and a touted answer to his famous "St. Thomas" from Saxophone Colossosus. Anderson absolutely cooks on the fast-paced "Why Was I Born?" Pianist Stephen Scott's playing is wonderful but some listeners will be distracted by his Keith Jarrett-like habit of singing along to his own playing. Thankfully, it's not terribly noticeable. Scott, 36, has been heralded as one of the most brilliant players of his generation, a cut above most.

My favorite tracks include the first two tracks, and the last two. The fourth track, is a decent ballad, but I prefer Sonny Rollins best when the band turns it up a notch.

1: "Without A Song" 16:37

2: "Global Warming" 15:16

3: band introductions 0:59

4: "A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square" 10:57

5: "Why Was I Born?" 16:14

6: "Where or When" 12:20

72:23

If you're a fan of Rollins or his style of straight-ahead jazz, you would be hard pressed not to smile when you hear this live album, a swinging celebration of life. Not surprisingly, the album was the winner, Best Jazz Instrumental Solo, at the 48th Grammy Awards (Feb 8, 2006).

Without A Song (the 9/11 Concert)

MCD-9342-2

Milestone/Concord

recorded September 15, 2001

The great Sonny Rollins-who has really outlasted 'em all,survived the 911 terrorist attack on The World Trade Center-at his Manhattan apartment six blocks from the tragedy and gave

a terrific performance four days later at Boston's Berklee Center;he was 71-and it's tough to detect where he's slowed down.

I love it;my favorite tune on it is 'A Nightengale Sang in Berkeley Square. I finally saw him in person four years later in 2005-and am looking forward to seeing him again in five or so years..

I agree whole-heartedly with all the reviews so far on this CD. It truly cpatures the power of a live performance by Sonny.

I have only one gripe...I would have much preferred a concert without Stephen Scott. I say this because Sonny rarely tours with a piano player and because Scott is both distracting and annoying with his George-Benson-like singing along during each song. I wish I could edit his silly voice out and just enjoy the musicians.

I can't punish Sonny because of Scott's annoying habits, so I must give the CD 5 stars.

I think this is a delightful album that exudes exuberance and is bound to cheer up most listeners no matter their mood. It certainly seems to have had that effect on the audience just a few days after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The 5 long songs and brief spoken statements from Sonny are all very enjoyable and uplifting. Sonny does some extended, passionate solos that sparkle with rhythm and wit. The other 5 musicians provide musical backing and solos that fit in well with Sonny's playing. I particularly like the lovely, sweet-sounding trombone playing of Clifton Anderson; he tastefully adds texture to Sonny's opening theme statements and delivers melodic solos full of kinetic energy and variety. Bassist Bob Cranshaw provides steady, melodic undertones throughout the entire set, and percussionist Kimati Dinizulu adds spice to the mix. Like others, I also found the falsetto scat singing of pianist Stephen Scott a bit annoying. I think the sound of the album is excellent for a live recording; you can feel Cranshaw's prominent electric bass and the bottom of Sonny's horn in your gut while still hearing plenty of details in upper registers.

Before starting this review, I followed my standard practice of looking at other reviews from Amazon customers. After noting that a few reviewers were harshly critical of Sonny's playing (even suggesting that he is over the hill and that the record should not have been released), I decided to search online to see what professional jazz critics thought of the album.

I found 3 reviews from Kevin Whitehead of NPR, Paul Olson on the All About Jazz website, and Francis Davis in the Village Voice. While all had some criticism of the album, their criticism tended to focus on the backing band rather than on Rollins' playing. Whitehead pointed out that Sonny needs "other less brilliant musicians to relieve him". Olson characterized the band as a "blandly robotic" one that plays "metronomic karaoke jazz". Davis criticized the "string-of-solos format. But all 3 critics praised Sonny's playing. Whitehead referred to it as "exuberant" and "prime recent Sonny Rollins"; he also mentioned Sonny's "pearls of melody" and "outbursts of killer sax technique". Olson indicated that Sonny unleashed "some remarkable tenor work" on "Global Warming". Davis described the album as "Rollins' mightiest effort since 'Don't Stop the Carnival'" from 25 years earlier and stated that "virtuosity on this level is always thrilling".

So, while the professional critics did express some criticism of the band, they had high praises for Sonny's playing. So, I think the reviewers who claim that Sonny is over the hill and should retire are off base. Clearly, some of these reviewers wish Sonny would modify his style to keep up with more recent developments in jazz; they appear to find Sonny's playing boring and repetitious. While I would agree that his playing has not evolved much in the last few decades, I never find it boring.

The Rolling Stones sound the same way now that they have for 40 years, but they're still fun to listen to. On the other hand, Wayne Shorter is an example of a jazz musician who plays a lot differently now than he did in the 1960s -- his recent albums almost feel like contemporary classical music at times; but I find his recent recordings (even the live ones) kind of dull compared to Sonny's joyous outpouring of energy on this and other more recent albums (including "Sonny, Please"). So, I hope Sonny keeps on releasing new albums for many years to come, even if he doesn't really change his tune.

Sonny Rollins is the ultimate thematic improviser. The way in which he can go out and explore different aspects of a tune and return in perfect tempo, swinging all the way, is mind boggling. He is the greatest living master of the tenor saxophone, period! (and he has some good company) He is one of those performers who thrives in front of a live audience. Here's hoping that more such recordings are forthcoming.

First off, I love Sonny - old Sonny, Bridge Sonny, 80's and 90's Sonny. I was very excited to get this recording, because I have treasured many of his live recordings through the years.

However, when I put it on, I was surprised to hear that it sounds like an audience recording, rather than a soundboard. The musicians are somewhat distant, and the applause is prominent. Admittedly, it sounds like a very good audience recording, but there are plenty of those in circulation.

I am enjoying it, but would have preferred a recording with better sound.