Sonny Rollins, influential jazz saxophonist, dies at 95

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Sonny Rollins performs at L'Olympia on November 14, 2011 in Paris, France. (Photo by David Wolff - Patrick/Redferns)

Sonny Rollins, the saxophonist known for his bold, distinctive tone and constant experimentation, has died at the age of 95.

Rollins died Monday at his home in Woodstock, New York, his spokesman, Terri Hinte, told the Associated Press. She said Rollins had been largely housebound over the past few years because of various physical problems, but no cause of death was given. 

Known as one of the last greats of the bebop era, Rollins was revered for his improvisational skill. 

The backstory:

Born Walter Theodore Rollins in Harlem on Sept. 7, 1930. He was born into a musical family with his father, a naval petty officer, a clarinet player, his sister a piano player and his older brother a violinist. 

Initially, his parents insisted he study the piano, but he became more fascinated with the saxophone. Because lessons were hard to afford, he was largely self-taught and quickly became an all-star, switching to tenor sax and playing at nightclubs. 

Legacy & Impact

Rollins is remembered as a teen phenom and his experimentation with free jazz. He got his first major break in his late teens when he was invited to join Thelonious Monk and later with Miles Davis and Bud Powell, all before he finished high school. 

Rollins toured heavily in Europe in the mid-’60s, when jazz moved away from the fast-paced bebop sound to a more chaotic free jazz. His music changed with the times and was even recognized as contributing to the soundtrack of "Alfie," the 1966 film that helped actor Michael Caine become a household name. 

In his seven-decade career, he’s recorded over 60 albums, received multiple Grammy Awards and, along with John Coltrane and Charlie Parker, is one of the most influential saxophonists of his time. 

What they're saying:

"The thing that I am most proud of in my career is the fact that I was able to see beyond being popular and all that stuff," he told the AP in 2007, "and do what my inner self told me to do."

According to the Associated Press, he leaves behind many unreleased recordings, and said he did not plan to leave any instructions on what to do with them.