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One of the great tenor solos of all time!

A. K. L. | Steilacoom, WA USA | 03/20/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Sonny Rollins' mid-sixties experiment with bossa nova was completely different than was Stan Getz''Jazz Samba.'Getz was going for a mass audience, and he got it with his mellow album, the first real 'smooth jazz' hit. Instead, Rollins stayed true to his bop and avant garde roots, using bossa nova as a surgeon uses a scalpel, to dissect and deconstruct familiar melodies and turn them into something new. This hip reinterpretation of standards is Sonny's trademark, and in this album it's uncompromising. The whole album is interesting and highly original, but I will only comment on one cut, Rollin's deconstruction of a sentimental broadway ballad from 'Camelot.' He takes the kitch out of this tune and turns it into a fierce meditation on the origins of jazz, the mystery of rhythm, and the fundamental particles of melody. Rollin's version of 'If Ever I Would Leave You' is nothing less than this: one of the greatest tenor solos in the history of jazz."

Strange mix

Nikica Gilic | 03/21/2008

(3 out of 5 stars)

"At the era this was recorded - right after The Bridge if I'm not mistaken ( The Bridge ) - Sonny Rollins was at the peak of his inventiveness and expressive powers, ready to try any new course of development - free jazz, bossa nova; you name it!

However, I think his versatile, rough and expressive style found better expression in flirtation with pure free jazz ( Our Man in Jazz )... Maybe It's just my prejudice against trendy explorations, but I simply don't feel Rollins managed to blend his playing to the background of the brazilian and carribean inspired rhythms... And the vocals that at times appear on this record are ... how should one put it... anticlimactic to say the least.



I think more "conservative" artists such as Stan Getz, young Gary Burton, Dizzy Gillespie (from big band featuring Chano Pozo to The United Nations Orchestra) and Duke Ellington (from Tizol and "Caravan" to "Afro-Bossa" and "Concert in the Virgin Islands") had much more success in merging jazz with latin rhythms.

Well, it's one man's (mine) opinion..."

One of the best Rollins' recordings

Fernando Saldanha | Greenwich, CT United States | 08/17/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The tracks with congas (Jungoso and The Night Has a Thousand Eyes) are absolutely astounding. I have been hearing jazz for 37 years and there are very few things comparable. Actually, these two pieces transcend jazz and become abstract art, while remaining viscerally African. Only these two tracks would make it worthwhile buying this CD.



The remainder of the CD is also excellent, including Brown Skin Gal, which another reviewer did not like (if you have a good system you will be able to hear each voice in a separate spatial location, and the naivete and enthusiasm are captivating)



Easy five stars"