Customer Reviews

Monk's Dream

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This disc is my favorite of Monk's. It's a blast to listen to and very easy to hum along to. Great tunes! This is also a great place for those unfamiliar with Monk to begin to explore his unique piano universe. A number of my friends who normally do not listen to jazz have found themselves really enjoying this album. Monk was uniquely able to craft instantly catchy tunes without sounding cliche or Kenny G. Check out "Bright Mississippi" for starters. The music *sounds* like sunlight glistening off of the waters' surface. The way this group swings has not been matched, except perhaps by a few Art Blakey recordings. Not one even average tune. An amazing album and a high point in Monk's career.

Essential.

This is my favorite Monk record for several reasons.

1. The lineup is perfect for Monk's music. Charlie Rouse understood Monk's music better than any other sax player, and it shows on this record. The rhythm section also seems just right.

2. The tunes. The Monk originals seem perfectly realized, and the covers benefit so much from Monk's approach that they almost seem like new definitive versions.

3. It's the most 'fun' Monk album. It probably grooves better than any other Monk album. It's not chock-full of Monk's most celebrated original works, but it's a really well-crafted example of jazz music at its brightest. There's nothing melancholy about this one. I highly recommend it.

I just love to discover great new or old music and it's happened again with Thelonius Monk. I'd always heard *of* him but never got around to listening. Well, jazzed by the recent Ken Burns series (although I missed the Monk portion), I bought a Monk CD, and another, and now more. I'm knocked out by Monk's Dream and Straight, No Chaser in particular. He plays such pretty melodies on the piano but always with a touch of dissonance (although not too much). It's as if Monk is saying, ah, it's a beautiful world but some things aren't quite right so I'm gonna add a little edge to this chord--which he does. Monk is mercurial, with swing. And the band swings right along. The interplay between Monk and Charlie Rouse is especially satisfying. Agreed, this is a great CD for introducing someone to jazz.

If I had to recommend a single Monk album to purchase, even a single Jazz album, it would undoubtedly be this one. The songs, mostly Monk tunes, are quirky and innovative while being tuneful and catchy. The tracks are diverse from a rhythmic and harmonic perspective, although they're arguably a little more conservative than "typical" Monk, if there is such a thing. Perhaps most importantly, the four musicians featured here work together perfectly: Thelonious Monk, Charlie Rouse on Tenor Sax, John Ore on Bass, and Frankie Dunlop on drums. I would argue that the three musicians other than Monk featured on this album are often under-appreciated, even if they are not quite as original as Monk himself.

Charlie Rouse is a brilliant phraser whose harmonic sense meshes perfectly with Monk's tunes. His solos on this album are incredibly gripping, while blending perfectly with the textures created by the other musicians. I also love the way his solos have a sense of continuity and shape; he certainly has a "big picture" of his solo, with much more structure than just isolated phrases and licks--and this is the same reason I like Monk's improvisation so much.

John Ore does a fantastic job on bass, particularly on the blues tracks, where he creates a very unusual and innovative chromatic texture, creating tension in a way distinct from other bass players. He also does a fantastic job of connecting this tension with the phrasing of the soloists. Frankie Dunlop is often considered to be the best drummer to work together with Monk's style, and I completely agree: his interplay with Monk is truly engaging to listen to.

And of course, Monk is just amazing, overflowing with new ideas, innovative rhythms, harmonies, and bizarre musical structures. His solo on Bright Mississippi is absolutely insane; I find myself listening to that track over and over again.

All four players on this album are intimately aware of what the others are playing and are molding a coherent unified texture of complex music. This album is Jazz at its best; it will find a welcome place in the collection of any Jazz enthusiast.

I have been told that this is not one of Monk's best albums, but that doesn't mean that I can't enjoy it. Every time I listen to it, it still seems fresh and enjoyable. Sounds like they were having a good time making it, which is always a nice thing. If you're interested in Jazz Piano, you can't go wrong with Monk, and if you're going for Monk, at least in my opinion, you can't go wrong with this album.

I have lent out this Monk CD and its is everyones fovorite. I had a hard time getting it back and I have often given it as a gift. My friend Pete told me that when some childeren were at his house they dance with joy when they heard it. I really love this record.

Bright Mississippi is one of Monk's greatest songs, I realy love how the quartet plays around the melody and you hear it even when it isn't played. This is stride piano at its best. Almost every time I play this CD I play Bright Miss. two or three times.

Bollivar Blues is one of my favorite Monk songs. This song put monk beyond Be-Bop into a catagory of its own.

The best version of just a gigalo ever( THE ONLY ONE IN MY BOOK) is Monk's . What a way to end record.

Charlie Rouse plays sax. I still think that Monk and Rouse together were the best of Monk. THIS IS STRIDE PIANO!

Take a look at Criss-Cross by the same Quartet that is my all time favorite.

This CD was my first Monk CD, and i'm glad i got it. It isn't an example of Monk's most searching and innovative work, (See, for example, Brilliant Corners) but it grooves well. Charlie Rouse's soloing fits well with what Monk was trying to say, although Rouse has a tendency to repeat himself, setting up solos on different tracks with the same licks, and following similar patterns in his solos. Still, his sound is great, and Monk is in top form all throughout the CD, with excellent solos and a great feel for melodies.

one day i got an offer in the mail from columbia house for a classic jazz series they were offering.3 discs a month for i think $30,supposedly of the best to offer.i had just started listening to jazz in general on the radio(wdcb and wbez),and thought it would be a good way to find out some good stuff."monks dream"was in that first shipment.i had no idea what it would actually sound like,only that his music was"quirky"and"weird"?this record started me on becoming a monk fanatic.i have heard it by now thousands of times since then,and never get tired of it.if it isnt the best one he ever made,it is his best columbia release.if i ever start to play piano again,it will be to learn how to play the music on this record.i never stop telling anyone who doesnt like "jazz",that this is not kenny g!