In Holland

“Tune Up”

(Resonance)

By 1967, Sonny Rollins was no stranger to European audiences. The saxophonist had been a frequent presence on the continent for about a decade when he traveled to the Netherlands and performed with the Dutch rhythm team of bassist Ruud Jacobs and drummer Han Bennink. Live and studio performances from that mini-tour, some unheard since then, have been released on the new two-disc (three-LP) set In Holland (Resonance), capturing a period during which Rollins was in the midst of a six-year recording hiatus. The trio plumbed Rollins’ repertoire, including standards as well as the original “Sonnymoon for Two” and a couple of Miles Davis songs Rollins had made his own, “Four” and “Tune Up.” Originally recorded on his 1957 release Newk’s Time, the latter number receives a sprightly update from the threesome, beginning with Bennink’s cracking snare-drum intro. Rollins, in excellent voice, unspools a trademark speed-of-thought improvisation over the galloping rhythms, at once edgy and incredibly tuneful. Jacobs and Bennink each have plenty of space to blow, the bassist unleashing a dexterous solo followed by the ever-creative drummer’s explosive yet textured solo. One of four performances captured during a studio session in Hilversum, the tracks were rediscovered and digitalized in 2017 by Dutch journalist and researcher Frank Jochemsen. The Resonance package includes detailed liner notes by Rollins biographer Aidan Levy, as well as photographs from the tour.

Purchase Album:

The Authoritative Voice in Jazz