Sonny Simmons

Huey "Sonny" Simmons (August 4, 1933 – April 6, 2021) was an American jazz musician.

Biography

Simmons was born on August 4, 1933, in Sicily Island, Louisiana. He grew up in Oakland, California, where he began playing the English horn. (Along with Vinny Golia, Simmons was among the few musicians to play the instrument in a jazz context.) At age 16 he took up the alto saxophone, which became his primary instrument.

Simmons also partnered with Prince Lasha on several recordings, two of which – The Cry! (1963) and Firebirds (1968) – were released by Contemporary.

His resurgence in the mid-1990s was marked by two albums, Ancient Ritual and American Jungle, for Quincy Jones' Qwest Records,

From 2000, he was co-leader of The Cosmosamatics with reed player Michael Marcus. In 2008, he received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Jazz Foundation. in New York.

Discography As leader Staying on the Watch (ESP-Disk, 1966) Music from the Spheres (ESP-Disk, 1968) Manhattan Egos (Arhoolie, 1968) Rumasuma (Contemporary, 1969) Burning Spirits (Contemporary, 1971) Backwoods Suite (West Wind, 1982) Global Jungle (Deal With It, 1990) Backwoods Suite (West Wind, 1990) Ancient Ritual (Qwest/Reprise, 1994) Live in Paris (Arhoolie, 1994) Transcendence (Creative Improvised Music Projects, 1996) Judgement Day (Creative Improvise Music Projects, 1996) American Jungle (Qwest/Warner Bros, 1997) Live at the Knitting Factory (Ayler, 2001) Mixolydis (Marge, 2001) Jewels (Boxholder, 2004) The Future Is Ancient (2004) The Traveler (Jazzaway, 2005) Cheshire Cat Club + Olympia - 1980 (Hello World!, 2006) I'll See You When You Get There (Jazzaway, 2006) Last Man Standing (Jazzaway, 2007) Ecstatic Nostalgia (Hello World!, 2007) Performs the Music of Charlie Parker (Zingmagazine, 2007) Introducing Black Jack Pleasanton (Hello World!, 2008) Atomic Symphony (Jazzaway, 2009) Symphony of the Peacocks (Improvising Beings, 2011) Beyond the Planets (Improvising Beings, 2013) Leaving Knowledge, Wisdom and Brilliance / Chasing the Bird (Improvising Beings, 2014)

With The Cosmosamatics (also featuring Michael Marcus) The Cosmosamatics (Boxholder, 2001) The Cosmosamatics Two (Boxholder, 2002) Cosmosamatics Three (Boxholder, 2002 and 2003) Live at Banlieues Bleues (Bleu Regard, 2003) Magnitudes (Soul Note, 2003)) Zetrons (Not Two, 2004) Reeds & Birds (Not Two, 2004) Free Within the Law (Not Two, 2007) Jazz Maalika (Saptakjazz, 2013)

With Moksha Samnyasin Nomadic (Svart, 2014)

With Bobby Few True Wind (Hello World!, 2007)

With Horace Tapscott Tapscott Simmons Quartet - Among Friends (Jazz Friends, 1999)

With Brandon Evans Universal Prayer / Survival Skills (Parallactic, 1999) A Salute to Ustad Bismillah Khan (Parallactic, 2001) Tales of the Ancient East (Parallactic, 2001)

With Brandon Evans and Anthony Braxton Anthony Braxton / Sonny Simmons / Brandon Evans / Andre Vida / Mike Pride / Shanir Blumenkranz (Parallactic, 2003)

As sideman With Prince Lasha The Cry! (Contemporary, 1962) Firebirds (Contemporary, 1967) Firebirds: Live at Monterey Jazz Festival, Vol. III (Birdseye, 1970) With Elvin Jones/Jimmy Garrison Illumination! (Impulse!, 1963) With Eric Dolphy Conversations (FM, 1963) Iron Man (Douglas International, 1963) With Robert Stewart Happy Birthday Trane (Armageddon, 1999) With Svein Olav Herstad Trio Suite for Simmons (Jazzaway, 2006) Collaboration With Clifford Jordan/Don Cherry/Prince Lasha It Is Revealed (Zounds, 1963)