The year 1956 was a turning point for Sonny Rollins. From the ashes of what was once a talented but also troubled young tenor saxophonist, a new Sonny Rollins rose with his goal razor-sharp and brimming with new visions. With Saxophone Colossus he created his personal vision of the tenor saxophone and modern jazz with joy and conviction. The album was a breakthrough, praised for its lyrical power,
… thematic logic, relentless swing and spontaneous renewal. Opener St. Thomas uses elements of traditional Caribbean melody and calypso rhythms to create an exotic, dancing tenor classic driven by Max Roach's melodic drumming, Tommy Flanagan's glittering accompaniment and the jaunty melody of the saxophonist himself. With Saxophone Colossus, Rollins showed refreshing harmonic ideas and innovative ways of thematic development in his improvisations. He started his solos with simple melodic motifs and orchestrated them in grand, elongated thematic explanations. Rollins's extraordinary sense of development and emotional musical architecture gave every note meaning.more