Thelonious Monk Complete 1957 Riverside Recordings CD

Additional Tracks

Personnel: Thelonious Monk (piano); Thelonious Monk; Ray Copeland (trumpet); Wilbur Ware (upright bass); Gigi Gryce (alto saxophone); Coleman Hawkins, John Coltrane (tenor saxophone); Art Blakey, Shadow Wilson (drums).
Audio Remasterer: Joe Tarantino.
Liner Note Author: Orrin Keepnews.
Recording information: Reeves, Sound Studios, New York, NY.
Photographers: Esmond Edwards; Bob Parent.
Arranger: Thelonious Monk.
This fine two-disc set brings together all the recordings Thelonious Monk made for the small, influential Riverside label in 1957. The piano eccentric cut excellent versions of some of his best compositions during that year, including "Off Minor," "Epistrophy," "Well, You Needn't," and the lovely "Ruby My Dear." The exhilarating saxophone work of John Coltrane makes these dates instant classics. Like most "complete sessions," the set features plenty of false starts and alternate takes that might seem extraneous to the casual fan, but Monk fanatics will be overjoyed at being provided with a glimpse into the brilliant artist's studio process.
Hardcore jazzheads with no doubt be delighted with this double-disc set that includes all the recordings Thelonious Monk and John Coltrane did together in 1957 for Riverside. Never mind that the vast majority of this material has been issued several times. There are two cuts that have never appeared before: an alternate of "Crepuscule with Nellie" from the septet sessions for Monk's Music on June 25 and 26 ( with Gigi Gryce, Coleman Hawkins, bassist Wilbur Ware, and drummer Shadow Wilson), and an alternate of "Abide with Me" with just Trane, Hawkins, and Gryce. There are also two tracks -- one of them a false start with Ware and Coltrane -- of "Monk's Mood," recorded on April 12 for inclusion on the otherwise solo Thelonious Himself album. The remaining three cuts with Ware, Wilson, and Coltrane were taken form the At the Five Spot live recording. Orrin Keepnews compiled this collection and wrote a wonderful and insightful essay about recording this music. It was all arranged chronologically, meaning there are no less than five takes in total of "Crepuscule with Nellie" taking up the vast majority of disc one. For those who have to have absolutely everything. ~ Thom Jurek

Entertainment Weekly (p.79) - "[Coltrane's] style is a perfect complement to the jagged beauty of Monk's music." -- Grade: A
JazzTimes (p.81) - "The 1957 meetings of Thelonious Monk and John Coltrane produced some of bop's most thrilling music."