Monk Riverside

Thelonious Monk - The Complete Riverside Recordings (1988) {15CD Riverside Victor Japan VDJ-25010~24 rec 1955-1961}
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© 1955-61, 1988 Riverside / Fantasy / Victor Japan | VDJ-25010~24
Jazz / Bop / Hard Bop / Piano

The studio and live recording sessions that Thelonious Monk cut during his six-year stay at the Riverside label are compiled over the 15 discs in the Complete Riverside Recordings. This middle era – between his early sides for Prestige and the final ones for Columbia – is generally considered Monk's most ingenious and creative period. The sessions are presented in chronological order, accurately charting the progression and diversions of one of the most genuinely enigmatic figures in popular music. The Complete Riverside Recordings explores Monk's genius with a certain degree of real-time analysis that simply listening to each of the individual albums from this era lacks.

Thelonious Monk & Gerry Mulligan - Mulligan Meets Monk (1957) {OJC Remasters Complete Series rel 2013, item 24of33}
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© 1957, 2013 Riverside / Concord | 60th Anniversary of Riverside Records | 0888072345904
Jazz / Cool / Bop / Saxophone / Piano

Concord Music Group will release five new titles in its Original Jazz Classics Remasters series. Enhanced by 24-bit remastering by Joe Tarantino, several bonus tracks on nearly each disc (some previously unreleased) and new liner notes providing historical context to the original material, the series celebrates the 60th anniversary of Riverside Records, the prolific New York-based label that showcased some of the most influential jazz artists and recordings of the 1950s and '60s.

Thelonious Monk - Thelonious Monk Plays Duke Ellington (1955) {2007 Riverside} [Keepnews Collection Complete Series] (Item #1of27)
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© 1955, 2007 Concord / Riverside | 0888072301283
Jazz / Bop / Piano

Remastered in 24-bit from the original master tapes. Part of our Keepnews Collection, which spotlights classic albums originally produced by the legendary Orrin Keepnews. For Monk’s debut Riverside date, Keepnews decided to ease the pianist into what turned out to be his lengthy association with the label by asking him to momentarily set aside his own compositions and instead play Duke Ellington tunes. He did so in the company of the esteemed rhythm section of bassist Oscar Pettiford and drummer Kenny Clarke. With his distinctively angular style, Monk nails Ellington’s best-known tunes such as “It Don’t Mean a Thing (If It Ain’t Got That Swing),” “Mood Indigo” and “Caravan.”

Thelonious Monk - Brilliant Corners (1956) {2008 Riverside} [Keepnews Collection Complete Series] (Item #16of27)
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© 1956, 2008 Concord / Riverside | 0888072305014
Jazz / Hard Bop / Piano

Orrin Keepnews' commentary (from the new liner notes): “This album was actually one of the major factors in the successful battle to win new and wider acceptance for Monk. In the sequence of his Riverside discography, it followed two initial albums devoted entirely to 'standards' and offered the first occasion on this label for Thelonious to express himself basically through his own writing. Creating music for five instrumental voices in terms of his personal and unorthodox construction, approach and phrasing, he produced some startlingly brilliant examples of the great depth, wit, and strength of his style.”

Thelonious Monk with John Coltrane - The Complete 1957 Riverside Recordings (2006) [2CD]
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© 2006 Concord / Riverside | 88807230279 | 24-bit Remastering
Jazz / Hard Bop / Cool

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.

Thelonious Monk - Monk's Music (1957) {Prestige-Riverside 50th Anniversary 20-bit K2 Edition}
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© 2001 Riverside / Fantasy | RCD-242-2 | 20-bit K2
Jazz / Bop / Piano

Monk's Music is among the most significant of Thelonious's classic Riverside albums. Here he was literally looking back and ahead at the same time, by bringing together Coleman Hawkins (the very first important voice on tenor saxophone) and John Coltrane (on the verge of becoming a major shaping force of the Sixties). Equally notable is the incredible rhythmic support provided by combining Art Blakey and Wilbur Ware; and, justifying the album title, a selection of vital Monk compositions–plus his choice of the 19th century hymn, "Abide with Me" (written by one William H. Monk).