Sonny Rollins
Tenor Sax Solo on
St. Thomas

About

Taking the 3rd solo, returning for a second turn, this tenor sax improvisation spans four choruses of the 16-bar form at a brisk latin feel at 228 BPM. Rollins's initial five-chorus tenor saxophone solo is a landmark of thematic improvisation, each phrase logically developing from the one before it in a display of motivic development that jazz scholars have studied extensively. This is the most concise solo on the recording, making every phrase count within a compact space. Situated between Max Roach's drums solo and Tommy Flanagan's turn on piano, it occupies a pivotal spot in the arrangement.

Sonny Rollins was 25 to 26 years old at the time.