"Airegin" is a

jazz standard Jazz standards are musical compositions that are an important part of the musical repertoire of jazz musicians, in that they are widely known, performed, and recorded by jazz musicians, and widely known by listeners. There is no definitive List ...

composed by American jazz saxophonist

Sonny Rollins Walter Theodore "Sonny" Rollins (born September 7, 1930) is an American retired jazz tenor saxophonist who is widely recognized as one of the most important and influential jazz musicians. In a seven-decade career, Rollins recorded over sixt ...

in 1954. Rollins chose the name "Airegin", as it is an

anadrome An anadrome, also known as an Emordnilap or a Semordnilap is a word or phrase whose letters can be reversed to spell a different word or phrase. For example, ''desserts'' is an anadrome of ''stressed''. An anadrome is therefore a special type of ...

of "

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

Recording history

"Airegin" was first recorded in 1954 by the Miles Davis Quintet and released in the US on the 10" LP '' Miles Davis with Sonny Rollins''. The personnel on that recording was Davis (trumpet),

(tenor saxophone), Horace Silver (piano),

Percy Heath Percy Heath (April 30, 1923 – April 28, 2005) was an American jazz bassist, brother of saxophonist Jimmy Heath and drummer Albert Heath, with whom he formed the Heath Brothers in 1975. Heath played with the Modern Jazz Quartet througho ...

(bass), and Kenny Clarke (drums). It was recorded again by Davis' quintet in 1956 on their album '' Cookin' with The Miles Davis Quintet''. Guitarist

Wes Montgomery John Leslie "Wes" Montgomery (March 6, 1923 – June 15, 1968) was an American jazz guitarist. Montgomery was known for his unusual technique of plucking the strings with the side of his thumb and for his extensive use of octaves, which gave him a ...

released a version in 1960 on his album '' The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery'' (also with Percy Heath on bass). Jazz guitarist

Grant Green Grant Green (June 6, 1935 – January 31, 1979) was an American jazz guitarist and composer. Green has been called one of the "most sampled guitarists." Biography Grant Green was born on June 6, 1935, in St. Louis, Missouri, to John and ...

released a version on his album ''

'', which was recorded in 1962 but not released until 1980. A version with lyrics composed by Jon Hendricks appeared on the 1958 Lambert, Hendricks & Ross album ''The Swingers!'' and the 1985 Manhattan Transfer album '' Vocalese''. It was also covered by Hubert Laws, featuring session drummer

Steve Gadd Stephen Kendall Gadd (born April 9, 1945) is an American jazz fusion drummer, percussionist, and session musician. Gadd is one of the best-known and most highly regarded session and studio drummers in the industry, recognized by his induction i ...

playing a very fast

samba Samba () is a broad term for many of the rhythms that compose the better known Brazilian music genres that originated in the Afro-Brazilians, Afro Brazilian communities of Bahia in the late 19th century and early 20th century, It is a name or ...

pattern behind Laws' piccolo. Maynard Ferguson recorded this composition twice: first, a version where he played an overdubbed three-way solo with himself on his 1964 album ''Color Him Wild'', and second, on his 1977 release, ''New Vintage''. An organ-driven hard bop version was recorded by

Sonny Stitt Sonny Stitt (born Edward Hammond Boatner Jr.; February 2, 1924 – July 22, 1982) was an American jazz saxophonist of the bebop/hard bop idiom. Known for his warm tone, he was one of the best-documented saxophonists of his era, recording over ...

and Don Patterson on their 1969 Prestige album '' Funk You!''

Notes

External links

Airegin
at Jazzstandards.com 1950s jazz standards Bebop jazz standards Hard bop jazz standards Real Book Song {{1950s-jazz-composition-stub