"It is with deep sorrow and profound love that we announce the passing of Sonny Rollins," a post to his social media page said, adding that he "died this afternoon at his home in Woodstock, NY."A constantly evolving creative force, Rollins found in jazz a means of social and spiritual commentary, with his tenor sax expressing the hopes of African Americans in the civil rights movement, the grief of the United States after the September 11 attacks, and the mystical path he found on extended retreats in India and Japan.The Harlem-born Rollins -- recognizable in his later years for a shock of white hair -- was one of a handful of saxophone players who defined the instrument, a pantheon that includes Charlie Parker, Coleman Hawkins and John Coltrane, with whom he had an affectionate but complicated relationship.But unlike so many artists from jazz's defining post-World War II period, Rollins lived a long life, remastering his work well into his 80s even as respiratory issues limited his performances.In an interview with AFP, Rollins credited his longevity to yoga -- which helped him to concentrate and stay off drugs and alcohol -- but mostly to his creative thirst.
American jazz saxophonist Sonny Rollins credited his longevity to both yoga and his creative thirst © ROBERT VOS / ANP/AFP/File
