TRANSCRIPT:
I’m Mark Rapp, and this is Rapp on Jazz.
In 1959, at the height of his career, saxophonist Sonny Rollins disappeared from the jazz scene. No club dates, no records—just silence.
But Rollins wasn’t done. He was searching. He found his practice space high above New York City on the Williamsburg Bridge.
Up there, with the wind rushing past and the city roaring below, he worked for hours every day—exploring tone, stamina, and improvisational freedom without disturbing anyone.
That solitary bridge became Rollins’ personal laboratory.
When he returned to the spotlight in 1962 with the album The Bridge, the transformation was unmistakable—bigger sound, bolder ideas, and a fearless new direction for modern jazz improvisation.
This has been Rapp On Jazz, a co-production of ColaJazz and SC Public Radio, made possible by Layman Publishing Partners, celebrating 50 years of expert content creation, authoritative information management, and standards-driven print and digital production.