Customer Reviews

5 By Monk By 5

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This album documents the first studio performance of Charlie Rouse with Thelonious Monk (he'd also had a role earlier in the year--1959--in Monk's Town Hall concert). It is also notable for the inclusion of the cornetist Thad Jones, who is still perhaps better known as a composer & bandleader, but who was also a fine soloist. The band is completed by the bassist Sam Jones & drummer Art Taylor.

Like most of Monk's Riverside albums this follows the usual pattern of introducing one or two new (& difficult) Monk originals to a program otherwise made up of older more familiar (& easier) Monk tunes. The two new tunes here are "Played Twice" & "Jackie-ing": the former is presented on this CD in 3 different takes (each of these new tunes proved sufficiently demanding that they each took up an entire studio session; the other 3 tunes were recorded on yet another day, making this a 3-day session). "Played Twice" is an interesting tune which never quite got a definitive reading--the originally released LP had take 3 spliced with the ending of take 2. The casual listener will want to program out the extra takes, but in fact they're quite welcome here, though on the whole I think this the least achieved track from the album. "Jackie-ing" is the standout track: first, because of its slippery, bridgeless theme, rounded off by three clangorous chords from the piano; secondly, because the brisk series of improvisations show all the musicians at their best. In this case, unlike the case of "Played Twice", the unfamiliarity of the tune & the added tension in the studio help give the performance a bright edge & telling concentration. (Monk originally failed to bring along the music, tried to teach it to the other players by singing it in the studio, then was forced by the protesting musicians to return home to retrieve the music.) -- The three other tunes, "Straight No Chaser", "Ask Me Now" & "I Mean You", are given relaxed, confident readings; "Ask Me Now", the session's one ballad, is a beauty, & Rouse's solo on "Straight No Chaser" is a particularly good one. Rouse isn't as brusquely in command on this album as he is on say the later _Monk's Dream_, but his work is certainly harbinger of the close relationship between tenorist & pianist in years to come.

I think this album doesn't rank with Monk's most imposing work. For one thing, it's a tad unfocused: all of the tracks except "Jackie-ing" hover around the 10-minute mark, & I get the impression that Monk was trying to get the album made in a hurry, Prestige-style (originally he recorded just the four long tracks & told Orrin Keepnews that was enough for an album--Keepnews pointed out that 38 minutes was a rather ungenerous playing-time, & asked for one more tune, hence the return of the musicians to the studio to record just "Jackie-ing"). But it's a solid album, & will be enjoyed by anyone interested in Monk. I should add that another version of "Jackie-ing" with Rouse was recorded in an equally fine version in Italy in 1961--this LP, _Monk in Italy_ was Monk's last disc for Riverside, & like the companion _Monk in France_ disc is unjustly little-known.

This is a great record make no mistake. Underrated and little known because there are no 'big' names on it. Thad Jones on cornet is great with a fat no nonsense sound and then Charlie Rouse on tenor! Listen carefully to 'Ask me now' a not so popular little jewel by Monk. Odd enough I don't know why the producers decided to put three takes from the same tune in succesion. Why didn't they put the alternates at the end? Beats me.

This is one of Monk's most underrated albums, in my opinion. There are only seven songs on it, but they are all fantastic from the bright horns of 'Jackie-Ing' to the classic 'Straight, No Chaser' done great on this album, to the three fantastic versions of 'Played Twice' here played three times. The band was top class featuring the great Art Taylor on drums, a frequent Monk collaborator, Charlie Rouse on tenor sax and of course, Monk himself. The music is top notch jazz- fluid, hypnotic, beautiful.

Thelonious Sphere Monk was a major bibop composer, the one who understood the essence of this music and expressed it in a very laconic way. His natural playing formats were solo, trio and quartet. If you imagine all discography of Monk you will discover that most of the experiments with bigger bands were, softly speaking, not fantabulous. But this quintet is put aside by the quality of compositions and especially by perfomance itself. The role of Thad Jones is greatly underestimated not only in this album but in general.To cut a long story short, in my opinion by this album Thad builds his personal bridge from swing era (with Count Basie)to modern (so called Monday) big band with M.Lewis. As for tunes, Jackie-ing is a very hard tune to play and inmprovise on. As far as I know this performance is the only successful one and very masterfully played. Both Thad and Charlie gave best and Monk again displayed a lot of humor and unbeleivable timing. Straight No Chaser is the best from other quintet performances. Ask Me Now is a beautiful slow ballad greatly underestimated (apart from Thelonious I heard it played recently by Joe Henderson). As for other tunes they are for me of lesser value but nevertheless they are worth listening. Premium tracks are not needed for this CD, vinil disk was more carefully selected. For Monk's and Th.Jones' fans it is a must!

I heard pieces from this CD performed live at Preservation Hall in New Orleans last month. The group - the Thelonious Monk Jazz Institute at Loyola University - recommended 5 by Monk by 5 if you wanted to hear more. I think it's the finest Monk recording I have: Monk at this best.

Highly recommended..Granted,this is no "Brilliant Corners" or "Monk's Music" or the collaborations with Coltrane and Rollins.. nonetheless to hear an early Charlie Rouse and Thad Jones as the guest certainly adds fire and imagination as the CD notes on it's package.

Monk's complicated swing remains intact and it is of interest to hear the evolution of the track Played Twice...here played on 3 takes..the CD clocks in at an hour.

Worth it especially to hear the gusto of the traditional trumpet sax mix valued in that era of post bop.

This CD was my first foray into Monk, about 15 years ago. These songs have been in my head ever since. The album is a great mix of more obscure tunes (Jackie-ing) and signature tunes (Straight, No Chaser). I'm not a musician, so forgive my use of terms, but I struggled at first with Monk's playing, which to me often seemed off key. But I listened more and learned to love Monk's off-beat phrasing and experimentation. He really takes you on a journey with each song. Monk is truly a genius, and his talent shines here. Great backing band too. This album really swings as well, which helps you through the more challenging parts.

Thelonious Monk on piano, Thad Jones playing cornet, Charlie Rouse on tenor sax, Sam Jones plucking bass, and Arthur Taylor keeping time on the drums. The first track is an uptempo tune called "Jackie-ing," beginning with the drums and follows in soloing order - sax, cornet, and piano. The next tune is a slow version of "Straight No Chaser." The soloing order is the same as the first tune. The following tune is played three times with the soloing order as follows - cornet, sax, piano. "I Mean You," is a medium tempo swing where the bass pedals on the two and three chords. The cornet takes a long first chorus, followed by the sax and piano. The last tune, "Ask Me Now," is a ballad. In the soloing part, the group double times for a bit and finally resolves to the head. I wouldn't say this is an absolutely neccessart CD to own but definitely it shouldn't be missed. I wouldn't use this disc to introduce someone to Monk's music, because of his dissonant chords. However, I wouldn't hesitate to suggest this disc to someone who was already a fan. One irritating issue about the CD is the fact that 3 takes are done on "Played Twice."

I like quintet recordings very much so the addition of a trumpet player (actually it's a cornet if I'm not mistaken...) to Monk's quartet adds some very nice flavour. I wouldn't say this is an essential CD to own but definitely it shouldn't be missed.

There are plenty of artists where you could pick one absolutely must have album and the rest all pale in comparison. Some have two or maybe even three. But Monk is in a classification all his own, and there's no way any record collection should only have one Monk album. A good place to start for the uninitiated though would have to be 5 x Monk x 5. The album has killer tunes (Played Twice and Jackie-ing are two of the more obscure Thelonious tunes, and they shouldn't be...) The obvious Monk standard (straight, no chaser) and some just killer playing from that whole band. Charlie Rouse and Thad Jones make a pretty intimidating front line, and it takes players of that caliber to really make Monk's music shine. It's obvious that he was having a blast. There are easily five Monk discs everyone should own, Town Hall, Plays Ellington, Monk's Dream, Misterioso and this one. And at that, there's still not enough there. Consider this your introduction to Thelonious. And get prepared to buy some more, because you won't want to stop there.

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