Sonny Rollins - A Night At The Village Vanguard

A Night At The Village Vanguard: The Complete Masters on 3LP!

Mastered by Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio from the original master tape

Plated and pressed at RTI

Deluxe gatefold tip-on jacket

The Blue Note Tone Poet Series was born out of Blue Note President Don Was' admiration for the exceptional audiophile Blue Note LP reissues presented by Music Matters. Was brought Joe Harley (from Music Matters), a.k.a. the "Tone Poet," on board to curate and supervise a series of reissues from the Blue Note family of labels.

The Saxophone Colossus Sonny Rollins had already recorded three Blue Note studio dates for Alfred Lion-Sonny Rollins, Sonny Rollins, Vol. 2, and Newk's Time-by the time he walked down the stairs of the Village Vanguard on November 3, 1957 to record his first-ever live album, as well as the first-ever live album to be recorded at the iconic New York City jazz club: A Night at the Village Vanguard. Rollins' tour-de-force live trio album was predominantly captured at the evening set featuring Wilbur Ware on bass and Elvin Jones on drums with two pieces coming from the afternoon set featuring Donald Bailey on bass and Pete La Roca on drums.

This expanded 3LP Tone Poet Vinyl Edition of A Night at the Village Vanguard: The Complete Masters marks the first time Rollins' complete recorded performances from the Vanguard are available in a single vinyl package. Produced for release by Joe Harley, the vinyl is all-analog and cut directly from Rudy Van Gelder's never-before-used original 7.5 ips master tapes by Kevin Gray. Pressed on 180-gram vinyl at RTI, the three LPs come packaged in a deluxe tip-on trifold jacket which includes a booklet with never-before-seen photos by Francis Wolff; insightful essays by esteemed critics Nate Chinen and Bob Blumenthal; an excerpt from Aidan Levy's authoritative Rollins biography Saxophone Colossus which provides a riveting behind-the-scenes account of the volatile circumstances surrounding the recording; and a fascinating new interview with Rollins himself reflecting upon the album in conversation with Blue Note President Don Was