"St. Thomas" is among the most recognizable instrumentals in the repertoire of American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

tenor saxophonist Sonny Rollins. Although Rollins is commonly credited as its composer, the tune is based on the traditional Bahamian folksong "Sponger Money" and the traditional English song "

The Lincolnshire Poacher "The Lincolnshire Poacher" is a traditional English folk song associated with the county of Lincolnshire, and deals with the joys of poaching. It is considered to be the unofficial county anthem of Lincolnshire. It is catalogued as Roud Folk ...

". By way of the

folk process In the study of folklore, the folk process is the way folk material, especially stories, music, and other art, is transformed and re-adapted in the process of its transmission from person to person and from generation to generation. The folk pro ...

, "The Lincolnshire Poacher" evolved into a nursery song in the

Virgin Islands The Virgin Islands ( es, Islas Vírgenes) are an archipelago in the Caribbean Sea. They are geologically and biogeographically the easternmost part of the Greater Antilles, the northern islands belonging to the Puerto Rico Trench and St. Cro ...

, which Rollins' mother sang to him when he was a child.Interview on Open Source radio at starting about 4.00 minutes in. "St. Thomas" became popular when it was released on Rollins's 1956 album ''

Saxophone Colossus ''Saxophone Colossus'' is the sixth studio album by American jazz saxophonist Sonny Rollins. Perhaps Rollins's best-known album, it is often considered his breakthrough record. It was recorded monophonically on June 22, 1956, with producer Bob W ...

'', though it had been recorded by

Randy Weston Randolph Edward "Randy" Weston (April 6, 1926 – September 1, 2018) was an American jazz pianist and composer whose creativity was inspired by his ancestral African connection. Weston's piano style owed much to Duke Ellington and Thelonious ...

in 1955 under the title "Fire Down There", on his ''Get Happy'' album. The tune is featured as background for the Trask wedding scene in the 1988 film "Working Girl".

Selected discography

* '' Alone Together'', Ron Carter and Jim Hall (1972) (St. Thomas arranged for acoustic bass and guitar) * ''Where There's Smoke'', Dallas Original Jazz Orchestra (2009) (St. Thomas arranged for big band in 1976 by Gene Glover)

References

1950s jazz standards Sonny Rollins songs Jazz compositions in C major {{1950s-jazz-composition-stub