#Thelonious monk brilliant corners plus

'Little Rootie Tootie' also includes orchestrated bits of Monk's recorded solos.

Hall Overton's arrangements/ orchestrationsВ—done in close collaboration with MonkВ—are a visceral extension of his conception, expanding on his small group voicings with startling sonorities.

#Thelonious monk brilliant corners plus

This Keepnews Collection CD includes those six tracks plus the rest of the concert: three quartet tracks and an encore repeat of 'Little Rootie Tootie.' The orchestra was actually a tentet close to the format of Miles' Birth of the Cool sessions, with a tuba, French horn, trombone, trumpet, baritone, tenor and alto saxophones, bass, drums and Monk's piano. And Riverside was there, issuing an LP recording of the six orchestral pieces on the program. We (I was lucky to have been there) weren't disappointed. 28th, 1959, was a rare and singular event that had those who had been seeing his quartet in clubs salivating. Orchestral jazz was not unusual in the late '50s, but much of it was found only on albums recorded in studios. The other studio find, tympani, gives extra clout to 'Bemsha Swing,' which also has Clark Terry's trumpet replacing Henry and Paul Chambers in for Pettiford. 'Pannonica,' a serpentine ballad, is made doubly unique for Monk's use of a celeste (found in the studio) in the theme.

'Ba-Lue Bolivar Ba-lues-are' (she lived at the Bolivar) is a typically quirky blues with long solosВ—all shepherded by Monk's strong comping. With Max Roach (drums) and Oscar Pettiford (bass), this is one of Monk's best units and they deliver debuts of two dedications to the jazz patroness Baroness Pannonica de Koenigswarter. And Henry's solo is so raw and wrenching a wail at times that it foreshadows Albert Ayler. Making it more singular still is the deep eructation of the saxophones (Sonny Rollins on tenor and Ernie Henry on alto) on the opening theme. The title track is one of those challenging (structurally and harmonically) Monk tunes further exacerbated by alternating slow-fast tempos with each chorus. (A piano solo rendition of 'I Surrender Dear,' one of Monk's first completely solo recordings, rounds out the album). Here Monk was given the opportunity to do his own compositions and he maximized the occasion by coming up with three new ones, as well as a novel take on an older oneВ—all taking advantage of the expanded time available on LPs. And these two albums are cornerstones of that work.Д«rilliant Corners was the first truly Monk-ian Monk LP from Riverside, as the label had debuted Monk in two piano trio albums, one of Duke Ellington tunes, the other of standards. A much better case can be made for Monk's Riverside albums as the pinnacle of his recorded legacy. But were they really Monk's best records? Some tunes sounded rushed as the takes were short (still aimed at a singles market) and often weren't fully realized. Pride of place always seems to go to the earliest recordings when, undeniably, Monk debuted much of what was to be his small but indelible oeuvre. It's time for some revisionist thinking on Monk's discography.