SONNY ROLLINS

jazz tenor saxophonist

“Well, when I started buying records, they were 78s, not albums, and I don’t really remember the first one that I bought.

“Actually, now that I think about it, it was probably something by Louis Jordan and His Tympani Five. He was my big favorite at one time, and it could very well have been one of his Decca recordings.

“Later on, when the 12-inch records came out, it was probably something by Coleman Hawkins. I distinctly remember some quartet sides that I got by Hawkins with Thelonious Monk playing piano.”