After several incredible dates for
Prestige
,
Rollins
moved over to
Blue Note
to cut a series of studio and live recordings; while not as groundbreaking as his earlier work, the albums still stand out among the many
hard bop
releases of the day. Upon listening to this, his fine debut for the label, not to mention classics like
Saxophone Colossus
and
Sonny Rollins Plus Four
, one almost takes for granted the tenor giant's ability to reel off a nonstop flow of breathtaking solo lines while keeping an overall thematic structure intact. And even though it's not as classic sounding as other
titles like
Vol. 2
or
Newk's Time
Sonny Rollins, Vol. 1
will satisfy
fans comfortable with a mostly loose and free-flowing set; the hard-swinging originals
"Bluesnote"
"Sonnysphere"
certainly fit the bill, while the loping
blues
"Decision"
and easy swinger
"Plain Jane"
up the ante with fetching head statements. Topping things off,
includes one of his singular Broadway song interpretations with the
Finian's Rainbow
ballad
"How Are Things in Glocca Mora."
Figuring prominently in the proceedings are veteran bassist
Gene Ramey
, longtime drummer
Max Roach
, and then up-and-coming
stars trumpeter
Donald Byrd
and pianist
Wynton Kelly
. Maybe not a first-choice disc for
newcomers, but certainly an essential title down the line. [
was reissued in 2003, newly remastered in 24-bit, as part of
's acclaimed
Rudy VanGelder
reissue series.] ~ Stephen Cook & Al Campbell