Sonny Rollins: One of jazz's last living greats dies at 95

Saxophone colossus Sonny Rollins died at his home on Monday at the age of 95, his publicist said.

He was a towering tenor saxophonist whose improvisational brilliance and relentless experimentation made him one of jazz's defining figures.

A legendary figure of the bebop era alongside John Coltrane and Charlie Parker, Rollins recorded more than 60 albums over a career spanning seven decades.

A child prodigy in midst of music

Born Walter Theodore Rollins in Harlem on September 7, 1930, the child prodigy grew up surrounded by music. His father played the clarinet and his sister the piano, while his older brother was a violinist.

Rollins grew up in a neighborhood with pianist Fats Waller and his idol, saxophonist Coleman Hawkins.

The emerging star played with jazz greats including Miles Davis, Bud Powell and Art Blakey in the 1950s.

Rollins came into prominence with his landmark albums, including "Saxophone Colossus" and "The Bridge," and was revered for his bold tone and marathon solos.

Performing on New York's Williamsburg Bridge

Ever critical of his work, he once said in an interview, "I don't consider myself a musician that has learned as much as I want to learn."

At the height of his fame, he withdrew from performing in 1959 and spent more than two years practicing alone on New York's Williamsburg Bridge, a period that inspired "The Bridge" and cemented his legacy.

Rollins also crossed into popular music, contributing saxophone solos to The Rolling Stones's 1981 album "Tattoo You."

Crime, addiction, prison and redemption

Known for retreats from music, the first instance came involuntarily as he was in prison for 10 months in 1950 after being arrested for armed robbery.

Rollins called it "the first of my sabbaticals."

"The prison was a brutal place, but fortunately, I was involved in the music, and I largely avoided the brutality," he said.

After struggling with heroin addiction and another prison stint in 1953, Rollins found himself living on the streets in Chicago.

Finally, finding spirituality led him to renounce his addiction.

"I began to have a deeper philosophy of what life was about," he said. "From that point on is when my consciousness awoke."

His next sabbatical came in 1966, as he practiced Zen meditation in Japan and spent several years in an ashram in India.

The last great of the jazz era

Rollins' 1958 album "Freedom Suite," spoke about the rising struggle of African Americans for equal rights.

"How ironic that the Negro, who more than any other people can claim America's culture as his own, is being persecuted and repressed; that the Negro, who has exemplified the humanities in his very existence, is being rewarded with inhumanity," he wrote.

Four days after the 9/11 attacks, Rollins performed at a concert that became a live album of remembrance to victims of the attack.

He retired from performing in 2014 after a respiratory illness ended his playing career.

He won two Grammys and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences for his contributions to music.

Rollins married Lucille in 1965 and was with her until her death in 2004. They had no children.

"I'm the last guy…" Rollins said of his generation of jazz pioneers, "…but in a way I'm not, because when I'm gone my music is going to be here."

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Edited by: Richard Connor 

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