https://youtu.be/CTijrDIU-m4 Why not hear from the man himself? Thelonious in Japan, 1963, with Charlie Rouse on sax, Frank Dunlop on drums, and Butch Warren on bass. Fuzzy picture, excellent sound, and excellent band. The elaborately phonetic spelling of “Bolivar Blues,” presumably some sort of in-joke, refers to the Bolivar Hotel in New York, sometime home…
Tag: Thelonious Monk
Thelonious Monk Live In Berlin 1969—Ellington Salute
https://youtu.be/MGbLRaaqrCc I’m not sure why Monk played four tunes associated with the Ellington band—“Satin Doll,” “Sophisticated Lady,” “Caravan,” and “Solitude,” followed by Monk’s own “In a Crepuscule with Nellie,” (and then an awkward blues featuring Joe Turner, a pianist unknown to me), but I’m glad he did. Posted by Sergio Balint
SUNY Purchase jazz combo: “Off Minor”
The opening is a bit casual—just a bit—but once the guys get on stage, they cook. No information on who’s playing. Posted by “Momfixit”, who recorded the proceedings on her/his smartphone. Remarkable sound quality, considering the “equipment.”
Niall Ferguson wrong-foots me
Generally, I’m not a fan of Niall Ferguson, that frenziedly self-promoting neo-imperialist Caledonian, who now hangs out at the American Enterprise Institute, where he spends his time toasting Winston Churchill and telling us Yanks that we’re not man enough to run the world the way the Brits did. But in his latest effusion, Civilization, which…
Will there ever be an end to the making of Thelonious Monk albums?
I certainly hope not. What was once a hobby has become a bit of an obsession. I wrote a long piece last year offering brief reviews of 30 “Salute to Thelonious” albums and now I’m back with four more. The pick of the litter for me is Bobby Broom plays for Monk, featuring Bobby on…
A World Without Thelonious?
Fortunately, we don’t have to face that prospect. Thelonious Monk has been in the grave for more than 20 years, but his music lives on, in dozens of his own CDs and dozens more that other musicians have recorded in honor of his genius. But how, you may ask, can one select from the dozens…