SEPTEMBER 2

       SONNY ROLLINS
            Nucleus
      
         Recording Date: 
               September 2-5, 1977

         Personnel:
              Sonny Rollins    TS
              Bennie Maupin  TS
              Raul De Souza   TB
              George Duke     P
              David Amaro     G
              Black Bird         G
              Bob Cranshaw   B
              Chuck Rainey    B
              Roy McCurdy     D
              Eddie Moore     D
Mtume             Per

 LINK

Review by Concord Music Group

Recorded in September 1975, NUCLEUS is very much an album of its time: wah-wah rhythm guitars, funk-influenced electric bass, Mtume's percussion and George Duke's electric piano and synthesizers abound. As a result, it sounds a bit dated, but Rollins' tenor sax work is typically outstanding, particularly on "Lucille," which also features a lovely, blues-based guitar solo by David Amaro. The Mtume composition "Newkleus" (a pun on Rollins' longstanding nickname of "Newk") is spidery funk featuring some particularly inspired blowing by Rollins and lyricon player Bennie Maupin. Larry Clinton's "My Reverie," based on a Debussy composition, provides a lyrical, subdued coda to one of Rollins' more fusion-oriented albums.
CD Universe

This 1975 album by the man believed by many to be the modern titan of the tenor saxophone contains two pieces, "Azalea" and "Cosmet," that are among his best recorded solos of the Seventies. Both have suggestions of the Latin/Caribbean music of which Rollins is the acknowledged jazz master. Nucleus reflects Rollins's career-long dedication to exploring the frontiers of tonal possibility, including varied pitches and textures, all tied to his inexhaustible fund of rhythmic invention. The album also includes a new approach to "My Reverie," a piece Rollins had explored 20 years earlier.