Thelonious Monk [Original recording remastered]

Thelonious Monk | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 1, 1991)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Label: OJC
• ASIN: B000000Y0E
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #320,215 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Somewhat obscure recordings to savor., February 22, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Thelonious Monk (Audio CD)

This set represents half of Thelonious' Prestige recordings, which took place in the early Fifties, the other half is with Sonny Rollins. Monk was in a diffucult time personally, for he was operating in almost total obscurity and lack of recognition. Obviously, this affected the fequency of his recordings, in fact, from '47-'55 his Blue Note and Prestige recordings only amount to about four or five Cds.

All that changed in'55 when he signed to Riverside, of course, but what is remarkable is that Monk was playing basically the same in '52 and '54 as he would when he was producing more famous work for Riverside.

Included are the first recordings of Blue Monk, Bemsha Swing and Little Rootie Tootie. Fans of his solo Columbia recordings will be interested to know that Just A Gigolo is also performed here solo as well. All the recordings are either solo or in trio format, with such names as Max Roach, Art Blakey and Percy Heath.

Although short, (each song is usually 2-3 minutes) and always overlooked, these recordings are some of his best and will be considered essential for the true Monk fan.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars To me, the most satisfying Monk recording, December 8, 2002

By 

Joost Daalder "Joost Daalder" (South Australia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Thelonious Monk Trio (20 Bit Mastering) (Audio CD)

Thelonious Monk has a unique and commanding position among jazz pianists because of the total originality of his musical vision and his ability to express it fully, however unorthodox his music is. Indeed, his individulality is one of his chief assets. But what he did was not just 'novel': it was searching, profound, and articulated deep emotion. His music is the opposite of superficiality, yet never depressing, however strongly his thinking and feeling are rooted in the blues. This recording to my mind shows him to greater advantage than any other in that it is not 'solo', when I feel he should be accompanied by a drummer and bassist (as he is here), nor with one or more horns, where all too readily what Monk does is not really compatible with the music of the other prominent musicians, however good they are. As well, the tunes played for this recording are either important Monk originals or others that he used to great advantage, and although the tracks are short his creativity is in full flight all the time. Unhesitatingly recommended as containing some of the greatest post-war jazz. This should be in every collection, and is ALWAYS great to listen to. - Joost Daalder

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Early Monk., January 12, 2006

By 

Michael Stack (North Chelmsford, MA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Thelonious Monk Trio (20 Bit Mastering) (Audio CD)

A collection of three early sessions by Thelonious Monk for Prestige, "Thelonious Monk Trio" are the first recordings Monk made after leaving the Blue Note label, and the three sessions find him engaged with three trios.

The first session, from October of 1952, puts Monk in the company of bassist Gary Mapp and drummer Art Blakey. In many ways, this was the ideal rhythm section for Monk-- agile enough to follow him all over the place, talented enough to be as intriguing as the leader, and smart enough to let the pianist shine, they provide ample support through three originals and one standard. Opener "Little Rootie Tootie" cathces your attention immediately with its train call opening, deft presentation, and downrigh astonishing soloing from Monk, who seems to encapsulate the entire history of the jazz tradition to 1952 in about 90 seconds, from stride to bop. The remaining three cuts all receive fine performances noteworthy for superb support from Mapp (in particular on "Monk's Dream") and Blakey ("Bye-Ya").

The second session, recorded in December of that same year, finds Monk again with Mapp but this time with Max Roach at the drum chair. Roach's presence is always felt-- Monk clearly recognized the enormous talent the drummer brought and gave him significantly more space then Blakey. The net result, however, is that the session features somewhat less detailed and stellar performances by Monk, particularly on standard "These Foolish Things", where he seems less than interested. Nonetheless, fantastic readings of "Trinkle, Tinkle" and "Bemsha Swing" are both punctuated by unnervingly superb drumming by Roach.

The final session, recorded nearly two years later in September of 1954 places Monk in the company of bassist Percy Heath and drummer Art Blakey. As a trio, they perform a stellar take of "Blue Monk", where Heath and Blakey seem to really hang back and let the leader shine. But the other song from this session-- a solo piano recording of "Just a Gigolo" presents that in much better fashion. One of the best of the many readings of the piece Monk did during his career, his performance is astonishing-- full of patience and inventiveness.

This reissue (the one in the slipcase) features far improved sound over the previous (OJC) reissue and reprints the original liner notes. Monk would go on to better albums, but quite frankly, I'm hard pressed to give this one less than five stars. Highly recommended.