Like Sonny

"Like Sonny" is a composition by John Coltrane written as a direct tribute to his friend and fellow tenor saxophonist Sonny Rollins. The melody is not simply written in Rollins's style but is lifted directly from a passage in Rollins's improvised solo on "My Old Flame" from Kenny Dorham's 1957 album Jazz Contrasts, making the piece a musical quotation and homage. Coltrane and Rollins shared a close personal and professional bond during the mid-1950s, practicing together, studying spiritual texts, and even lifting weights as part of their routine. Coltrane first recorded the tune on March 26, 1959, during his initial Atlantic Records sessions for Giant Steps, though that version was not included on the album. The canonical studio recording was made on December 2, 1959, and appeared on Coltrane Jazz, released in February 1961. Coltrane returned to the composition several more times, including a 1960 session and a 1964 recording by his classic quartet for the Canadian film Le Chat dans le Sac, which remained unreleased until the 2019 album Blue World. In 1962, Rollins reciprocated the tribute by composing "John S." for his comeback album The Bridge, incorporating elements of Coltrane's "sheets of sound" approach. This exchange stands as a rare recorded dialogue between two of the era's most important tenor saxophonists, who had only recorded together once, on the album Tenor Madness.