Back when Weather Report was something that came after the news, way back when Miles thought Dolphy, Ornette and the rest were "ridiculous," there were three saxophonists who hung out together in Oakland and San Francisco: Pharoah Sanders, Dewey Redman, and Huey Simmons. They'd been into free music, space music, before they even heard of Ornette, and when the New Music started making news, they...

Who says jazz's heroes are all dead? Sonny Simmons, a ferocious alto saxophonist best known for his work with Eric Dolphy in the 1960s, has emerged after years of playing for change on the streets of San Francisco to record some of the most expressive, original jazz of the '90s. On this album, Simmons blazes through hard blues and sinewy funk originals, as well as a biting take on the John Coltran...