Sonny Rollins - Way Out West (Contemporary Records Acoustic Sounds Series) Vinyl LP

Mastered AAA by Bernie Grundman from the original analog tapes. 180-gram vinyl LP pressed at RTI.

A classic of the genre, Way Out West was tenor saxophonist Sonny Rollins' first album for west coast label Contemporary Records. The New York Times wrote, "He is jazz's greatest living improviser, able to imbue his solos with wry humor, surprise, brilliant logical form, and profound emotion." In a genre where so much talent burned out too young, Rollins (now retired at age 93) held court as one of jazz's most formidable talents. Way Out West, his classic 1957 album, received 5 Stars from Rolling Stone's prestigious Jazz Record Guide and has prompted Pitchfork to deem it, "an album that looks like a novelty and sounds like transcendence."

The album's infamous 3 a.m. recording sessions featured Rollins' sax strolling over the contributions of onetime Ella Fitzgerald bassist Ray Brown and iconic West Coast Jazz drummer Shelly Manne, neither of whom he'd ever
played with. The results are incredible, with "I'm an Old Cowhand (From the Rio Grande)," a satirical song about Texas written by Johnny Mercer and made famous by Bing Crosby, skillfully merging country with jazz, while Rollins' own composition, the title track "Way Out West," reminds us of his dexterity and playful ambivalence towards time signatures.