Thelonious Monk

LINKS

• Celebrating the Thelonious Monk Centennial
• Thelonious Monk Quartet ‎– Live At Monterey Jazz Festival, 1963 Vol. 1 – 2

Appendix B: Records and Tapes in Thelonious Monk’s Personal Collection at the Time of His Death; and Other Selected Music Mentioned in the Book

Thelonious Monk, The Life and Times of an American Original; by Robert D.G. Kelley

• Cannonball Adderley , The Cannonball Adderley Sextet in New York (Riverside RLP 404 ) . Orrin wrote liner notes as he did for everything else he produced . The group included Nat Adderley , Yusef Lateef , Joe Zawinul , Sam Jones , and Louis Hayes . It was recorded in January 1962 .

• Gene Ammons , The Happy Blues ( Prestige LP 7039 ) . Recorded in 1956 , the band included Art Farmer , Jackie McLean , Duke Jordan , Addison Farmer , Art Taylor , and the percussionist Candido .

• Clifford Brown , Memorial Album ( Blue Note BLP 1526 ) . One side is from a 1953 date with Gigi Gryce , Charlie Rouse , John Lewis , Percy Heath , and Art Blakey . The other side consists of a studio date with Lou Donaldson , Elmo Hope , Percy Heath , and Philly Joe Jones , also recorded in 1953 .

• Nat King Cole , Just One of Those Things ( Capitol W 903 ) . Full orchestra conducted by Billy May .

• John Coltrane , Soultrane ( Prestige 7142 ) . Recorded February 1958 , Coltrane’s band was comprised of Red Garland , Paul Chambers , and Art Taylor .

• Xavier Cugat and the Waldorf Astoria Orchestra , Rhumba with Cugat (Columbia C – 54 ) . This is a four – disc set of 78 rpm recordings.

• Billy Eckstine , Billy’s Best ( Mercury MG 20333 ) . The album was terribly battered and evidently played often . It includes several standards Eckstine was known for , including
  • “A Sunday Kind of Love”
  • “Nobody’s Heart”
  • “Where Have You Been”
  • “Trust in Me” which Monk recorded with Clark Terry in 1958 .

• Billy Eckstine and Quincy Jones, Billy Eckstine and Quincy Jones at Basin Street ( Mercury SR 60674 ) . Included here is a medley of Ellington tunes and Duke himself wrote some brief notes on the back of the album praising Eckstine.

• Ella Fitzgerald , Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Cole Porter Song Book ( Verve MGV 4001 – 2 ) . Recorded in 1956 .

• Dizzy Gillespie , The Greatest of Dizzy Gillespie ( RCA Victor LPM 2398 ) . Released in 1961 , it includes Monk’s “ 52nd Street Theme .” Thelonious refers to this LP in his remarks at the New School for Social Research , June 22 , 1963 ( see Chapter 24 ).

• Ahmad Jamal , Ahmad Jamal (Argo LP 636) . Recorded in 1958 , Ahmad Jamal’s trio was made up of Vernell Fourier on drums and Israel Crosby on bass . Recorded live at the Spotlite Club in Washington , D.C .

• Ahmad Jamal , Portfolio of Ahmad Jamal, (Argo LP 2638)

• Yusef Lateef , Before Dawn : The Music of Yusef Lateef ( Verve , MGV 8217) . Recorded in April 1957 .

• Sonny Rollins , Tenor Madness ( Prestige LP 7047 ) . A famous recording made in May 1956 ; Rollins and John Coltrane play together on the LP , backed by Red Garland , Paul Chambers.

• Sonny Rollins , Sonny Rollins (Blue Note BLP 1542) . Recorded in December 1956 , the personnel consisted of Donald Byrd , Wynton Kelly , Gene Ramey , and Max Roach

• Mort Sahl , The Future Lies Ahead ( Verve , MG V – 15002 ) . Comedian , considered very political.

• Vladimir Horowitz, Playing the Music of Chopin, Schumann, Rachmaninoff, Liszt (Columbia Stereo Tape Masterworks , Stereo disc KS 6371) .

• David Oistrakh , Mstislav Rostropovich , Geroge Szell , and the Cleveland Orchestra , Brahms : Double Concerto in A minor , Op . 102 ( Angel M 36032 ) .

• Clifford Curzon with the London Symphony Orchestra , Brahms Piano Concerto No . 1 in D minor , Op . 15 ( London LCL 80126 ).

• Karl Richter , conductor , Johann Sebastian Bach , Mass in B – Minor (AR 3177) .

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Other

the photographer W . Eugene Smith ( at whose loft Monk’s big band often rehearsed ) ,

• “Uncle Thelonious sat at the piano turning Christmas carols into Monk originals.”
  “Teeny noticed a book of compositions by Chopin perched on her uncle’s rented Steinway baby grand piano.”
  Sergei Rachmaninoff
  Beethoven
  Bach
  Igor Stravinsky
  Eskimo music . . .
  African music
  Chinese music .
  the music of porpoises