Jazz for aficionados

Hey acman3 that Rollins Live at the Village Vanguard 2 disc set features Sonny in a trio setting sans piano. Sonny loved to play without a piano player and has many recording sessions without piano.

Also of note on that "Night at the Village Vanguard" is the complete sessions had an afternoon set with Donald Bailey and Pete LaRoca on bass and drums and the 2 evening/night sessions featured Wilbur Ware and Elvin Jones bass and drums

Sonny's great Way Out West studio session also was in a trio format sans piano, with Ray Brown on bass and Shelly Manne on drums.

The music employs a technique called "strolling", used here by Rollins for the first time, in which he would solo over only bass and drums with no pianist or guitarist playing chords.

I have that record. Probably in my favorite 2-3 recordings. Absolutely love the playing.

Last week I posted Dizzy Gillespie's album Sonny Side Up featuring Sonny Rollins and Sonny Stitt on sax. I posted the slow blues based burner "After Hours" , a fantastic song and left out the song "The Eternal Triangle" which is one of the best recorded "sax duel/interplays" 

Eternal Triangle is a blistering pace with both Sonny's and Dizzy exchanging solos

The transcription of Stiitt's solo looks "blistering" to me and I cannot read sheet music  LOL

Hey acman3 do you have the Sonny Side Up LP? It may not be a seminal recording like Way Out West or Saxophone Colossus but its a great session

Sonny Side Up personnel

• Dizzy Gillespie – trumpet, vocal (track 1)
• Sonny Stitt – tenor saxophone
• Sonny Rollins – tenor saxophone
• Ray Bryant – piano
• Tommy Bryant – double bass
• Charlie Persip – drums

Sonny all weekend!