Thelonious Monk – Body And Soul

Monk's Dream is the Columbia Records debut release featuring the Thelonious Monk Quartet: Monk (piano), Charlie Rouse (tenor sax), John Ore (bass), and Frankie Dunlop (drums). Jazz scholars and enthusiasts alike also heralded this combo as the best Monk had been involved with for several years. Although he would perform and record supported by various other musicians, the tight - almost telepathic - dimensions that these four shared has rarely been equalled in any genre. By the early '60s, bop had become considered passé by artists as well as fans looking for the next musical trend. This is coupled with the fact that discerning Monk fans would have undoubtedly recognized many of these titles from several live recordings issued at the end of his tenure on Riverside…

Monk's Dream is the Columbia Records debut release featuring the Thelonious Monk Quartet: Monk (piano), Charlie Rouse (tenor sax), John Ore (bass), and Frankie Dunlop (drums). Jazz scholars and enthusiasts alike also heralded this combo as the best Monk had been involved with for several years. Although he would perform and record supported by various other musicians, the tight - almost telepathic - dimensions that these four shared has rarely been equalled in any genre. By the early '60s, bop had become considered passé by artists as well as fans looking for the next musical trend. This is coupled with the fact that discerning Monk fans would have undoubtedly recognized many of these titles from several live recordings issued at the end of his tenure on Riverside…

In 1961, Thelonious Monk and his quartet toured Europe, producing a series of live albums for various labels. The First European Concert, as well as recordings of Monk in Paris, Italy, Bern, Copenhagen, and Stockholm all date from that year. The performances drew almost exclusively from a body of the pianist's best-loved original material, and Monk in France is no exception. While his playing here is less energized than it can be, Monk's singular philosophy is well intact. The pianist's lines are sparse and fluid. Characteristically, he maps out only the necessary notes in his off-kilter melodies, building solos from perfectly balanced melodic/rhythmic motifs. The European touring lineup is completed by drummer Frankie Dunlop, bassist John Ore, and tenor saxophonist Charlie Rouse…

Archie Shepp & Richard Davis - Body and Soul (1989) {Enja Records ‎ENJA CD 7007-2 rel 1991}
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© 1989, 1991 Enja Records | ‎ENJA CD 7007-2
Jazz / Post Bop / Modal Music / Contemporary Jazz / Saxophone / Bass

This duet date from 1990 demonstrates the deep blues feeling and technical mastery Archie Shepp has on the tenor saxophone. Comprised of four standards – "Things Ain't What They Used to Be," "Body and Soul," "Pannonica," and "'Round Midnight" – this set is one of Shepp's most enjoyable ever. The reasons are myriad, but it is in large part due to the fluid, loping bass of Richard Davis. Recorded in a club in front of a live audience, Shepp digs deep into his own history of influential tenor players and comes out not wanting, but on par with them, from Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis to Sonny Rollins to John Coltrane. His playing here is big, meaty, and warm, full of subtle emotions as well as bleating cries.

Thelonious Monk - Live! At the Village Gate (1963) {Japanese Breaktime Label Xanadu Series BRJ-4536 rel 1987}
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© 1963, 1987 Xanadu / Breaktime Japan | BRJ-4536
Jazz / Bop / Modal Music / Post Bop / Piano

This LP released for the first time an above-average date by pianist Thelonious Monk and his 1963 quartet (tenor saxophonist Charlie Rouse, bassist John Ore and drummer Frankie Dunlop). The recording quality is decent and, although the repertoire is conventional for Monk's groups (four originals and two brief solo versions of "Body and Soul"), both Monk and tenor saxophonist Charlie Rouse take consistently inventive solos while Ore and Dunlop are fine in support. A lengthy version of "I'm Getting Sentimental over You" is most memorable.

Don Byas - Midnight at Minton's, Original 1941 Recording (1999) {HighNote HCD7044} (featuring Thelonious Monk & Kenny Clarke}
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© 1941, 1999 HighNote Records | HCD 7044
Jazz / Bop / Swing / Bebop / Tenor Saxophone

Tenor saxophone legend Don Byas is heard with great clarity on this, a relative jam session, as is vocalist Helen Humes (the first two cuts) and ostensible leader/trumpeter Joe Guy, whose high energy solos are very good in spots. Less audible in the mix are pianist Thelonious Monk and drummer Kenny Clarke, working in this band while bebop was fermenting. These two would lead the bop charge later in the '40s at Minton's Playhouse, the bebop concubine/jazz club in N.Y.C. The music is pretty much swing material, with Humes tossing in a ballad ("Stardust") and a bluesy number ("Exactly Like You") while the instrumental "Indiana" is all fired up, and they typically chill down "Body & Soul."

Everybody has literal and figurative homes. There are the physical places where heads are laid at night and then there are the feelings, people, activities, or spaces that provide a feeling of the comfort of home. Gregory Lewis has found a musical home delving into the Hammond organ and the music of the great composer/pianist Thelonious Monk, a practice that has allowed him opportunities to play with extraordinary musicians and visit amazing places, and his new recording Organ Monk Going Home brings all of these aspects to bear.

Excellent Monk concert from his well-documented 1961 European Tour. The sound is very good and Monk is in very good form. The bonus tracks were recorded for TV in Bussum; April 1961. There is a low quality video copy of part of this that circulates among collectors, but it is nice to have it in a much more complete audio format as presented here. Huge thanks to the Dutch Archives for releasing this vintage Monk!

Thelonious Monk - In Italy (1961) {Riverside OJCCD-488-2 rel 2006}
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© 1961, 2006 Riverside Records / Fantasy / Universal | OJCCD-488-2 / 00025218648820
Jazz / Bop / Hard Bop / Post Bop / Piano

Pianist-composer Thelonious Monk's final Riverside recording before signing with Columbia was cut during a concert in Italy, part of an extensive European tour that also resulted in recordings from Paris three days earlier. All eight of the songs (which include "Straight No Chaser," "Bemsha Swing," and "Rhythm-A-Ning") had been recorded in more definitive fashion earlier and, although Monk and his tenor Charlie Rouse sound fine, the bass and drum solos of bassist John Ore and drummer Frankie Dunlop on practically every song are consistently dull and unimaginative. This is not one of Monk's more significant dates, but his fans will still find moments to enjoy.