Sonny Rollins does the Brooklyn Bridge!
Wes BenderTrue story: Sonny took a 2 year hiatus from the music scene which started in the late 50s. Legend has it that he needed a place to practice that was both inspiring as well as secluded enough that he wouldn't disturb others... Taking a walk one day near his home on Manhattan's Lower East Side, he found himself at the steps of the Williamsburg Bridge. Ascending the stairs, he discovered the perfect place to practice. 
Sonny Rollins, Williamsburg Bridge, NYC, 2005 © Jimmy KatzHuge, expansive and secluded, Sonny was able to fine tune his musical artistry on the bridge -- high above the East River with boats passing underneath & a near constant stream of cars and the subway crossing near around him, he could blow as loud as he desired without disturbing a soul. Going up there regularly for the next 2 years, Sonny spend upwards of 16 hours at a time perfecting his craft throughout spring, summer, fall and winter.
The result of Rollins' diligence up there was his critically acclaimed 1962 comeback recording entitled The Bridge (featuring Jim Hall on guitar, Bob Crenshaw on bass and Ben Riley on drums) which ostensibly chronicalled the years he spent evolving since up there.
Enter the Pioneer electronics company and fast forward to 1977. They produced a television ad featuring Sonny again wailing away on a bridge -- the Brooklyn Bridge! Suffice it to say, the Williamsburg Bridge serves its purpose well and does so to this day. But let's face it, it's no looker!
Here's a rare look at the ad that got the wrong Brooklyn Bridge!
