So long, ‘Saxophone Colossus’: Jazz legend Sonny Rollins dies aged 95

So long ‘Saxophone Colossus’: Jazz legend Sonny Rollins dies aged 95 - Copyright Jean-Philippe Liabot

By David Mouriquand

Published on 26/05/2026 - 9:18 GMT+2•Updated 9:22

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A true legend of the jazz world, Sonny Rollins recorded classics including 'Saxophone Colossus' and 'The Bridge'. Presenting him with the National Medal of Arts in 2010, Barack Obama said Rollins had inspired him “to take risks that I might not otherwise have taken”.

Hugely influential American jazz musician Sonny Rollins, who was known as the "saxophone colossus", has died aged 95.

The tenor saxophonist died at his home in Woodstock, New York, on Monday afternoon according to a statement from his publicist Terri Hinte, who called him "one of the most honored and influential figures in American music of the 20th century and beyond.”

No cause of death was given, but the saxophonist reportedly suffered from pulmonary fibrosis and other respiratory problems in recent years. He retired from touring in 2012.

A 2009 quote of his accompanied the announcement of his death: "I think when the creative person ends, he continues in the next existence. I'm a person who believes this life isn't the be-all and end-all of everything. A spiritual person doesn't feel like that."

Born Theodore Walter Rollins in Harlem on 7 September 1930, Rollins was among the last surviving stars of the bebop era and was celebrated for his saxophone improvisions and experimentation.

Over the course of six decades in the music industry, he worked with jazz greats like Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, John Coltrane, Thelonious Monk and Art Blakey.

He released more than 60 albums as a band leader, including arguably his best-known records ‘Saxophone Colossus’ (1957) and ‘The Bridge’ (1962). Other albums now regarded as jazz classics include 'Way Out West' (1957), 'A Night at the Village Vanguard' (1958) and 'Freedom Suite' (1958).

In 2017, 'Saxophone Colossus’ was inducted into the US Library of Congress’s National Recording Registry. The institution described it as “one of the defining albums of Rollins’ career,” praising the “power, grace and humour” of his solos.

Rollins always referred to himself as “a work in progress,” saying he wasn’t one of those artists who settled into one way of playing. He constantly experimented with his sound, going on to embrace funk and R&B influences.

He composed the score for the 1966 British film Alfie starring Michael Caine, and many rock fans will know him for his 1981 contribution to the Rolling Stones album 'Tattoo You' - featuring Rollins on the ballad 'Waiting on a Friend'.

His 2001 album 'This is What I Do' earned him a Grammy award for best jazz instrumental album. He won again in 2006 for best jazz instrumental solo for 'Why Was I Born?' - a track from the album 'Without a Song: The 9/11 Concert', a live recording from a performance in Boston just four days after the Sept. 11 attacks.

Rollins, who had been evacuated from his apartment a few blocks from ground zero, had gone ahead with the concert after his wife and manager, Lucille, asked him to do so. She died in 2004.