Live At Finlandia Hall, Helsinki 1972

Recorded during Finland Festival in the summer of 1972, this live performance finds tenor saxophonist Sonny Rollins in vivacious spirit. Here, he is joined by Finnish keyboardist Heikki Sarmanto on Fender Rhodes. Also playing is Sarmantos trio, featuring his brother drummer Pekka Sarmanto and bassist Esko Rosnell. Sarmanto purportedly sought out Rollins for this performance, and the trios exuberance in getting to play with one of their heroes is palpable in each song. While primarily a straight-ahead standards date, Rollins brings a wide-swinging creativity to the evening, flirting with the avant-garde-leaning, open-ended chordal harmonies and wave-like grooves that he had been exploring since emerging from his self-imposed Williamsburg bridge practice sabbatical in the early 60s. Together, he and the trio jump headlong into Cole Porters "Night and Day" and craft a painterly rendition of "My One and Only Love." They close out the night with a buoyantly clamorous, Latin-infused reading of Rollins own trademark song "St. Thomas." In keeping with much of the saxophonists work during this period, these are extended performances, each pushing 20 minutes in length. Still, with his fat tone and endlessly motivic lines, Rollins ably focuses both the bands and the audiences attention throughout. ~ Matt Collar