Freelance Years

A fabulous 5-disc set comprising all of Sonny's work for the New York Riverside and Los Angeles Contemporary labels, recorded between December 1956 and October 1958, plus three tracks recorded for Period in 1957! Trumpeter Kenny Dorham adds harp to My Old Flame ; Abbey Lincoln sings on That's Him ; saxophonist Ernie Henry alternates with Sonny on selections from Thelonious Monk's Brilliant Corners album; Roy Brown and Shelley Manne bring humor to Way Out West; I'm an Old Cowhand (from the Rio Grande), and Wagon Wheels ; Oscar Pettiford and Max Roach work through a 20-minute rendition of the Freedom Suite, and much more, including a previously-unreleased, rip-roaring alternate take of You from the Contemporary Leaders sessions. Sonny's best material is here!