May 26, 2026 11:08 AM
Sonny Rollins Passes Away at 95
Sonny Rollins, the iconic saxophonist, composer and improviser whose career stretched from the origins of bebop to 21st…
The hot new video game right now is Grand Theft Auto IV. It has sold more than 6 million copies and made $500 million in sales in its first week.
Perhaps jazz was part of the reason behind the success of the game? The new game has a special feature to enhance play: 16 in-game radio stations featuring a wide variety of musical choices—rock, electronic and classic jazz. And who better to talk up these classic tunes by the likes of John Coltrane, Miles Davis and Charlie Parker—than the living link between all of the greats—83-year-old jazz legend Roy Haynes?
Haynes makes a guest appearance on Grand Theft Auto IV as the DJ of JNR 108.5 - “Jazz Nation Radio,” a station that plays classic jazz ‘sides’ such as Chet Baker’s “Let’s Get Lost” and Haynes’ own “Snap Crackle.”
“I travel all over the world performing this music, connecting with the audiences,” Haynes said. “But this is an opportunity to connect with a different audience, in a different way.
“Jazz has always been about personal expression, but it’s also about communication. This is an excellent opportunity to communicate this music to millions of young people, so I have been really excited about it!”
Onstage, Rollins would move about restlessly, thrusting his tenor sax in the air as he blew.
May 26, 2026 11:08 AM
Sonny Rollins, the iconic saxophonist, composer and improviser whose career stretched from the origins of bebop to 21st…
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