Sonny Rollins, Jazz Luminary and Saxophone Legend, Dies at 95

Jazz luminary and saxophonistSonny Rollins has died, according to a public statement by his publicist, Terri Hinte. In therecent past, the iconhad been struggling with respiratory health issues, which had kept him from public performance since 2012. He died at home in Woodstock, New York. He was 95.

Rollins came up on the music of Louis Armstrong and Fats Waller. He started playing the alto sax, but at 16, switched to tenor. As a teenager, he recorded with Bud Powell and J.J. Johnson. He later worked with Miles Davis (who referred to Rollins as a “legend” in his autobiography) and Thelonious Monk. In 1956, he emerged as a bandleader with a series of iconic recordings in the late 1950s, including Saxophone Colossus,A Night at the Village Vanguard,Tenor Madness, andNewk’s Time.

Though he took brief hiatuses away from music in 1959 and again in 1966, he continued working throughout his life. His most recent studio album was 2006’sSonny, Please. In 2010, Rollins was awardedthe National Medal of Arts; ayear later, he was made a Kennedy Center Honoree. A live recording titledRoad Shows, Vol. 4: Holding the Stagewas released in April 2016.

In an interview withPitchforkconducted in 2016, Rollins discussed how he was keeping up his yoga practice, which he had been studying since the 1950s. Near the end of his life, he talked aboutfocusingon “trying to get some wisdom” and exploringhisinner life.

The world is over in a minute and we’re here just for a second. We need to use this time to find out something. We’re all on our different journeys. And of course it’s difficult. But it’s the way it’s supposed to be. I believe in karma too. Karma is what we’re supposed to be doing—to unravel our karma. See, whatever I did that was bad in this life or another life, I have to get rid of that. And here I am.