Jazz saxophone legend Sonny Rollins dies at 95

Sonny Rollins, widely regarded as the greatest jazz saxophone improviser, died at age 95 on Monday, his publicist confirmed. Rollins earned his reputation through marathon, hard-blowing solos. In 1956, he recorded the album 'Jazz Colossus,' but remained plagued by self-doubt. In the summer of 1959, he began practicing on the pedestrian walkway of New York's Williamsburg Bridge, initially to avoid disturbing his pregnant neighbor. He spent over two years there, often 14 to 15 hours a day, reinventing his playing. The resulting album, 'The Bridge,' elevated his soloing and improvisation. A contemporary review in Jazz Journal noted his ability 'to extract the last ounce of meaning from a particular phrase.' Rollins told the Guardian in 2022 that he withdrew to the bridge because he was dissatisfied with his own playing.