Way Out West (Sonny Rollins album)

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Way Out West
File:Sonny Rollins-Way Out West (album cover).jpg
Studio album by Sonny Rollins
Released 1957
Recorded March 7, 1957
Contemporary Records Studio
(Los Angeles)
Genre Hard bop
Bebop
Length 43:25
Label Contemporary
C 3530
Producer Lester Koenig
Sonny Rollins chronology
Sonny Rollins, Vol. 1
(1957)Sonny Rollins, Vol. 11957		 Way Out West
(1957)		 Sonny Rollins, Vol. 2
(1957)Sonny Rollins, Vol. 21957

Way Out West is a 1957 album by Sonny Rollins with bassist Ray Brown and drummer Shelly Manne, neither of whom had played or recorded with Rollins before. The music employs a technique called "strolling", used here by Rollins for the first time, in which he would solo over only bass and drums with no pianist playing chords. The recent reissue of the CD has additional takes of three of the songs, including the title track. These additional takes are all about twice as long, containing much longer solos from all three of the members of the band.

In order to fit the recording session into the musicians' busy schedules, it was scheduled "for 3 A.M.", according to the liner notes by producer Lester Koenig: "At 7 A.M., after four hours of intense concentration, during which they recorded half the album, and should have been exhausted, Sonny said, 'I'm hot now.' Shelly who had been up for 24 hours, said, 'Man, I feel like playing.' And Ray, who was equally tired and had a studio call for the afternoon, just smiled."

The picture for the cover, taken by celebrated jazz photographer William Claxton, with the saxophonist dressed in Stetson hat, holster, and horn in place of a pistol, was Rollins' own idea, to celebrate his first trip out West, according to Koenig in the liner notes.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic 5/5 stars [1]
The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide 5/5 stars[2]

In his Allmusic review, Scott Yanow wrote: "The timeless Way out West established Sonny Rollins as jazz's top tenor saxophonist (at least until John Coltrane surpassed him the following year). Joined by bassist Ray Brown and drummer Shelly Manne, Rollins is heard at one of his peaks".[1]

Track listing

All compositions by Sonny Rollins except where noted.
  1. "I'm an Old Cowhand (From the Rio Grande)" (Johnny Mercer) – 5:42
  2. "Solitude" (Duke Ellington) – 7:52
  3. "Come, Gone" – 7:53
  4. "Wagon Wheels" (Peter DeRose) – 10:11
  5. "There Is No Greater Love" (Isham Jones) – 5:17
  6. "Way Out West" – 6:30

CD reissue

When the album was reissued on CD in 1988 (and in subsequent years), some alternative takes were included.
  1. "I'm an Old Cowhand" (Mercer) – 5:40
  2. "I'm an Old Cowhand" [Alternative Take] – 10:06
  3. "Solitude" (Ellington) – 7:49
  4. "Come, Gone" – 7:50
  5. "Come, Gone" [Alternate Take] – 10:27
  6. "Wagon Wheels" (DeRose) – 10:09
  7. "There Is No Greater Love" (Jones) – 5:14
  8. "Way Out West" – 6:28
  9. "Way Out West" [Alternative Take] – 6:36

Personnel

References

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