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The Best of Thelonious Monk: The Blue Note Years

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Thelonious Monk Format: Audio CD
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 47 ratings
$12.60
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MP3 Music, January 1, 1991
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Audio CD, Import, March 30, 1991
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Track Listings

1 Thelonious
2 Ruby My Dear
3 Well You Needn't
4 April In Paris
5 Monk's Mood
6 In Walked Bud
7 'Round Midnight
8 Evidence
9 Misterioso
10 Epsitrophy
11 I Mean You
12 Four In One
13 Criss Cross
14 Straight No Chaser
15 Ask Me Now
16 Skippy

Editorial Reviews

Product description

Thelonious Monk - Best of Thelonious Monk - CD

Amazon.com

Blue Note was the first company to give Thelonious Monk the opportunity to record as a leader, and he brought many of his great compositions to these 1947-52 sessions for their first recordings, with groups that included gifted and sympathetic players like drummer Art Blakey and vibraphonist Milt Jackson. This CD's 15 selections contain classic early renditions of the great ballads like "Ruby My Dear" and "'Round Midnight," as well as then-exotic pieces like "Epistrophy" and "Straight, No Chaser" that have since become standard jazz repertoire. Originally released as 78 rpm records, these compressed renditions highlight Monk's innovative structures. This is a distillation of the four-CD Complete Blue Note Recordings, which generously covers this entire, fertile early period. --Stuart Broomer

Product details

  • Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 4.94 x 0.45 inches; 3.23 ounces
  • Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ Blue Note
  • Item model number ‏ : ‎ 2018322
  • Date First Available ‏ : ‎ December 7, 2006
  • Label ‏ : ‎ Blue Note
  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B000005HGN
  • Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 47 ratings

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
47 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

W. Howard Adams
5.0 out of 5 stars Monk is the best of that era of jazz!
Reviewed in the United States on July 28, 2022
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One song on the album is, "Evidence." That hooked me years ago, and I am happy to now have a "hard copy!"!
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David Bass
5.0 out of 5 stars Monk is essential listening for anyone with ears!
Reviewed in the United States on September 8, 2012
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Listen - Monk was one of the greatest composers of Western Music. The combination of melody, harmony and rhythm in his compositions is of such an architecture it rivals and surpasses Ellington, Mingus, Shorter, Cole Porter, the Gershwins, Rogers, Kern and more.

Then you have to take into account his improvisational genius - the blending of mature insight with childlike playfulness, the use of theme and development, harmonic exploration, rhythmic mastery - heck, even the way he accompanied other musicians was far above the concepts in use at the time - and still is.

In short, this is essential listening. If you give Monk you're ear, he'll open it up and turn it around!
2 people found this helpful
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PK3
5.0 out of 5 stars ... to a grasshopper and I remember hearing what sounded like noise to me
Reviewed in the United States on July 30, 2015
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My mother had Monk albums when i was knee high to a grasshopper and I remember hearing what sounded like noise to me, Now that I'm older and have a higher appreciation of the art form i can say the brother is damn good at his craft.like I said I'm really just getting into Monk but so far it's a very enjoyable experience lot's of good music.
2 people found this helpful
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Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Way Cool
Reviewed in the United States on May 2, 2014
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Take a quiet evening, combine this CD with Miles' Kind of Blue, a bottle of fine red wine and a James Lee Burke mystery (The Tin Roof Blowdown) and you're in the groove. At least I was.
2 people found this helpful
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Richard
2.0 out of 5 stars ok
Reviewed in the United States on February 10, 2013
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he has better music s s s s s s s s s s s s sssssssssssssssss sssssssssssssssssssss sssssssssssssss s
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Donna Pettit
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United States on August 6, 2016
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Great music
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Dr. Phillips
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United States on August 15, 2015
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great quality
One person found this helpful
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Autonomeus
5.0 out of 5 stars Start here with Monk!
Reviewed in the United States on September 6, 2000
This is the place to start if you're looking into the music of the great Thelonious Monk. Collected here are more of Monk's compositions in concentrated form than in any other place. There are many later versions of many of them, including of course by other musicians such as Steve Lacy, but these are the first recordings, the templates. You can hear the structure of the music more clearly than in any of the great Riverside records such as  Brilliant Corners .

As the liner notes say, Monk's music is "always off center, but it always swings." "Well You Needn't," "In Walked Bud" and "Straight No Chaser" are up-tempo and catchy as hell -- you won't be able to get them out of your head. "Misterioso" sounds just like the title -- fractured, odd piano, and vibes. Listen closely to "Skippy" and hear why no one attempted to cover it for 30 years!

"Monk's Mood" is gorgeous, slow and romantic. I first heard it on Jack DeJohnette's "Album Album" (1984) with David Murray and John Purcell on sax, an incredible version now available in an ECM box:  Jack DeJohnette Special Edition . Of course "Round Midnight" quickly became a standard, an ineffably sad ballad covered by Miles among many others.

*** *** ***

Here's a fun piece of trivia -- the recording engineer for these sessions is Harry Smith. Yes, it turns out, it is THAT Harry Smith, the guy who compiled the famous Anthology of American Folk Music, recently reissued by the Smithsonian Institute. Smith used to project light shows of his own creation as accompaniment to jazz shows in the Bay Area!

(verified purchase from the Cosmic Record Emporium)
47 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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本間弥生
5.0 out of 5 stars はじめての聞くモンク
Reviewed in Japan on July 8, 2022
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セロニアス・モンクを聞いてみたくて購入しました。私より、家族のほうが気に入って聞いています。
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 22, 2017
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fast - good value, great!
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Justo
5.0 out of 5 stars interesting
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 8, 2015
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Great Jaz CD. Very different and interesting
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T. Ellis
5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 13, 2016
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Great CD
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denis deslauriers
2.0 out of 5 stars Two Stars
Reviewed in Canada on May 13, 2017
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the service from the seller was great so was the product quality
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