Like the album's workingman title implies, this is tenor sax great Sonny Rollins clocking in, jamming a bit, blowing a few solos, and letting the younger guys take the helm. Not that the contributions of drummers Jack DeJohnette and Perry Wilson, bassist Bob Cranshaw, and pianist Stephen Scott don't cut the mustard, but the entire proceedings are rather lacklustre, like Rollins is just meeting contractual obligations. There is no smoke, no fire, no burn.
Rollins adheres to his love of calypso with the opener, "Salvador," and unleashes a little reggae simmer on "Did You See Harold Vick?" Then it's on to slow blues with "Sweet Leilani" and "Charles M," a ballad standard, "A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square," and the sprightly swinger "The Moon Of Manakoora."
Rollins is still unquestionably a masterful player and musician, his solos still sure-footed, surprising, and sumptuous. But with pale song fare that would easily be accepted at a wedding reception, the band and Rollins are wasted in the mix.
All recordings courtesy of Milestone Records. All songs written by S. Rollins; courtesy of Son Rol Music (BMI).
