Sonny Rollins Biographer Aidan Levy discussing Saxophone Colossus - Live

Live interview with Sonny's biographer, Aidan Levy. Known as the “Saxophone Colossus,” Sonny Rollins is widely considered the greatest living jazz improviser and one of our last links to the golden age of jazz—one of only two remaining musicians pictured in the iconic “Great Day in Harlem” portrait. His colossal seven-decade career has been well documented, but the backstage life of the man once called “the only jazz recluse” has gone largely untold—until now. Based on more than 200 interviews with Rollins himself, family members, friends, and collaborators, as well as Rollins’ extensive personal archive, SAXOPHONE COLOSSUS: The Life and Music of Sonny Rollins (Hachette Books; ISBN: 9780306902796) is the comprehensive portrait of this living legend, tireless civil rights activist and environmentalist. A child of the Harlem Renaissance, Rollins’ precocious talent quickly landed him on the bandstand and in the recording studio with Bud Powell, Thelonious Monk, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis and Dizzy Gillespie, or playing opposite Billie Holiday. He became an icon in his own right, recording fifteen albums as a leader in a staggering three-year span, including Tenor Madness, featuring John Coltrane; Way Out West, which established the pianoless trio; Freedom Suite, the first civil rights-themed album of the hard bop era; A Night at the Village Vanguard, which put the storied jazz venue on the map; and the 1956 classic Saxophone Colossus. With access to unreleased outtakes and hundreds of live tapes dating back to 1950, biographer Aidan Levy takes us into the studio and backstage at pivotal moments throughout jazz history. Includes: • Interviews with Rollins himself as well as family, friends, and collaborators • Rollins’ relationships with a veritable who’s who of jazz, including Thelonious Monk, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, Billie Holiday, John Coltrane, Clifford Brown, Max Roach, Betty Carter, and Dizzy Gillespie • The making of iconic albums such as Tenor Madness, Freedom Suite, Saxophone Colossus, among others • Rollins’ harrowing ordeal in the criminal justice system and how he beat his addiction • How he used jazz to advance the civil rights movement and promote environmental consciousness And much, much more... Link to purchase on Amazon: https://a.co/d/5tVSyvS #jazz #biography #sonnyrollins