Walter Theodore "Sonny" Rollins (born September 7, 1930) is an American jaz… Read Full Bio ↴Walter Theodore "Sonny" Rollins (born September 7, 1930) is an American jazz tenor saxophonist who is widely recognized as one of the most important and influential jazz musicians. In a seven-decade career, he has recorded over sixty albums as a leader. A number of his compositions, including "St. Thomas", "Oleo", "Doxy", "Pent-Up House", and "Airegin", have become jazz standards. Rollins has been called "the greatest living improviser" and the "Saxophone Colossus".

Rollins was born in New York City to parents from the United States Virgin Islands. The youngest of three siblings, he grew up in central Harlem and on Sugar Hill, receiving his first alto saxophone at the age of seven or eight. He attended Edward W. Stitt Junior High School and graduated from Benjamin Franklin High School in East Harlem. Rollins started as a pianist, changed to alto saxophone, and finally switched to tenor in 1946. During his high school years, he played in a band with other future jazz legends Jackie McLean, Kenny Drew, and Art Taylor.

As a saxophonist he had initially been attracted to the jump and R&B sounds of performers like Louis Jordan, but soon became drawn into the mainstream tenor saxophone tradition. The German critic Joachim Berendt described this tradition as sitting between the two poles of the strong sonority of Coleman Hawkins and the light flexible phrasing of Lester Young, which did so much to inspire the fleet improvisation of bebop in the 1950s. Other tenor saxophone influences include Ben Webster and Don Byas. By his mid-teens, Rollins became heavily influenced by alto saxophonist Charlie Parker. During his high school years, he was mentored by the pianist and composer Thelonious Monk, often rehearsing at Monk's apartment.

Rollins has played, at various times, a Selmer Mark VI tenor saxophone and a Buescher Aristocrat. During the 1970s he recorded on soprano saxophone for the album Easy Living. His preferred mouthpieces are made by Otto Link and Berg Larsen. He uses Frederick Hemke medium reeds.

Don't Explain
Sonny Rollins Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Hush now, don't explain
Just say you'll remain
I'm glad your back, don't explain

Quiet, don't explain
What is there to gain
Skip that lipstick
Don't explain

You know that I love you
And what endures
All my thoughts of you
For I'm so completely yours

Cry to hear folks chatter
And I know you cheat
Right or wrong, don't matter
When you're with me, sweet

Hush now, don't explain
You're my joy and pain

My life's yours love
Don't explain

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Sonny Rollins's song "Don't Explain" express a complex relationship between two individuals. The singer of the song is calling out to the other individual to return, simply saying that they're glad they’re back and that no explanation is necessary. The song then shifts into a more profound discussion of the nature of their relationship. The singer acknowledges that they know the other person cheats on them, but they don't care. They love them completely and unconditionally, and that's all that matters.

The phrase "don't explain" is repeated throughout the song, serving as a directive to the other individual to not bother explaining themselves, as the singer already knows their truths. This can be interpreted as a pleading for the relationship to be left in its current state, where no explanations or justifications are necessary.

In the final lines, the singer reminds the other person that they are their joy and pain, and that their life is theirs in love. The song could be interpreted as a plea for the other person to be honest about their relationship while acknowledging that love can often be complicated and messy.

Line by Line Meaning

Hush now, don't explain
Please don't give any explanation, just keep quiet.

Just say you'll remain
Just promise me that you will stay.

I'm glad your back, don't explain
I'm happy to have you back, don't feel the need to explain why you left.

Quiet, don't explain
Be silent, no explanation is needed.

What is there to gain
What is there to achieve by giving reasons.

Skip that lipstick
Do not try to cover it up with stories.

Don't explain
Don't give any excuses.

You know that I love you
You understand how much I love you.

And what endures
My love for you remains.

All my thoughts of you
My mind is constantly filled with thoughts of you.

For I'm so completely yours
Because I completely belong to you.

Cry to hear folks chatter
It hurts me to hear others talk about us.

And I know you cheat
I know that you're unfaithful.

Right or wrong, don't matter
It doesn't matter whether it's right or wrong as long as you're with me.

When you're with me, sweet
When you're with me, my love.

You're my joy and pain
You're what brings me happiness and heartache.

My life's yours love
I belong to you, my love.

Don't explain
Please don't give any excuses.

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Arthur Jr. Herzog, Billie Holiday

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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