Performance · Other credits

Sonny Rollins

real name Walter Theodore Rollins

American saxophonist

Harlem, United States · 1930-09-07 – 2026-05-25

Sonny Rollins is credited on 5,828 releases across 1,272 albums tracked on Gatefold, active 1951–2026 — the collector-built map of who actually made the music.

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Photo of Sonny Rollins

5,828

Credits

1,272

Albums

8

Decades active

913

In collections

Biography

source

Showing the Discogs bio

American jazz tenor saxophonist born September 7, 1930, Harlem, New York City, New York, USA; died May 25, 2026, in Woodstock, New York (age 95). Made his first recordings in 1949 with Babs Gonzales. Widely recognized as one of the most important and influential jazz musicians, he worked with Miles Davis, Art Taylor, J.J. Johnson, Bud Powell, and Thelonious Monk. He was a recipient of the prestigious Polar Music Prize in May, 2007. In March 2011, he received the National Medal Of Arts from President Barack Obama. Rollins was the uncle of hip hop artist Tommy Gunn.
Winner of two Grammy Awards:
- Best Jazz Instrumental Album, Individual or Group for This Is What I Do in 2001.
- Best Jazz Instrumental Solo for Why Was I Born? on Without A Song - The 9/11 Concert in 2006.
- And Grammy Award for lifetime achievement in 2004.

Bio from Discogs

Credited work

5,828 releases · 1,272 albums · active 1951–2026

  • Performance · 8,609
  • Other credits · 131
  • Production · 24
  • Engineering · 1

Studios: Van Gelder Studio, Hackensack, New Jersey · Reeves Sound Studios · Contemporary's Studio · Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey

Discography

Records they worked on — most-collected first.

Frequent collaborators

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