Artist: The Lovetones
Genre(s):
Indie
Discography:
Meditations
Year: 2005
Tracks: 14
The to the highest degree important malarkey musicians are the ones wHO are successful in creating their possess original cosmos of music with its own rules, logic, and surprises. Thelonious Monk, wHO was criticized by observers wHO failed to listen to his music on its own terms, suffered through a decennium of neglect before he was on the spur of the moment acclaimed as a brilliance; his music had not changed one bit in the lag. In fact, unitary of the more remarkable aspects of Monk's music was that it was to the full formed by 1947 and he power saw no demand to alter his playing or compositional stylus in the slightest during the succeeding 25 years.
Thelonious Monk grew up in New York, started playing pianissimo when he was around five-spot, and had his commencement job touring as an accompanyist to an gospeler. He was elysian by the Harlem stride pianists (James P. Johnson was a neighbour) and vestiges of that idiom tail be heard in his later unaccompanied solos. However, when he was playing in the planetary house band of Minton's Playhouse during 1940-1943, Monk was probing for his possess case-by-case style. Private recordings from the full point find him sometimes resembling Teddy Wilson but starting to use more than sophisticated rhythms and harmonies. He worked with Lucky Millinder a bit in 1942 and was with the Cootie Williams Orchestra briefly in 1944 (Hank Williams recorded Monk's "Epistrophy" in 1942 and in 1944 was the first to record "'Round Midnight"), but it was when he became Coleman Hawkins' regular piano player that Monk was initially noticed. He cut a few titles with Hawkins (his recording debut) and, although some of Hawkins' fans complained virtually the oddball piano player, the veteran strain could sensory faculty the pianist's illustriousness.
The 1945-1954 period was very difficult for Thelonious Monk. Because he left a portion of space in his rhythmic solos and had an unusual proficiency, many people thought that he was an deficient piano player. His compositions were so advanced that the lazier bebop players (although non Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker) sham that he was crazy. And Thelonious Monk's list, visual aspect (he liked amusing hats), and personality (an now and then incommunicative introvert) helped to brand him as some genial of ballock. Fortunately, Alfred Lion of Blue Note believed in him and recorded Monk extensively during 1947-1948 and 1951-1952. He as well recorded for Prestige during 1952-1954, had a solo set for Vogue in 1954 during a visit to Paris, and appeared on a Verve date with Bird and Diz. But ferment was very sporadic during this eRA and Monk had to fight to make ends meet.
His fortunes tardily began to ameliorate. In 1955, he signed with Riverside and producer Orrin Keepnews persuaded him to record an record album of Duke Ellington tunes and unrivalled of standards so his music would come out to be more than accessible to the median jazz fan. In 1956 came the classical Superb Corners album, only it was the following twelvemonth when the post permanently changed. Monk was set-aside into the Five Spot for a longsighted engagement and he used a quartette that featured tenor saxist John Coltrane. Finally, the critics and then the malarkey public recognized Thelonious Monk's greatness during this important spear. The fact that he was unequalled was a disadvantage a few eld originally when all forward-looking jazz pianists were expected to profound like Bud Powell (world Health Organization was ironically a close protagonist), only by 1957 the jazz public was looking for for a new feeler. Suddenly, Monk was a celebrity and his position would non change for the residue of his career. In 1958, his quadruplet featured the tenor of Johnny Griffin (world Health Organization was even more compatible than Coltrane), in 1959 he appeared with an orchestra at Town Hall (with arrangements by Hall Overton), in 1962 he signed with Columbia and iI eld later was on the incubate of Time. A second base orchestra concert in 1963 was even better than the first gear and Monk toured always end-to-end the 1960s with his quartette which featured the authentic tenor of Charlie Rouse. He played with the Giants of Jazz during 1971-1972, but so in 1973 dead retired. Monk was excruciation from mental sickness and, other than a few extra appearances during the mid-'70s, he lived the rest of his life in seclusion. After his expiry it seemed as if everyone was doing Thelonious Monk tributes. There were so many versions of "'Round Midnight" that it was practically a pop hit! But scorn the posthumous acclaim and attempts by pianists ranging from Marcus Roberts to Tommy Flanagan to revivify his panache, there was no switch for the original.
Some of Thelonious Monk's songs became standards early on, to the highest degree notably "'Round Midnight," "Straight No Chaser," "52nd Street Theme," and "Blueish Monk." Many of his other compositions cause by now been figured out by former jazz musicians and ar now and then performed including "Ruby My Dear," "Comfortably You Needn't," "Off Minor," "In Walked Bud," "Misterioso," "Epistrophy," "I Mean You," "Four in One," "Criss Cross," "Ask Me Now," "Little Rootie Tootie," "Monk's Dream," "Bemsha Swing," "Think of One," "Fri the thirteenth," "Hackensack," "Nutty," "Glorious Corners," "Fall With Nellie" (written for his strong and supportive married woman), "Evidence," and "Rhythm-a-Ning," Virtually all of Monk's recordings (for Blue Note, Prestige, Vogue, Riverside, Columbia, and Black Lion) experience been reissued and among his sidemen through the age were Idrees Sulieman, Art Blakey, Milt Jackson, Lou Donaldson, Lucky Thompson, Max Roach, Julius Watkins, Sonny Rollins, Clark Terry, Gerry Mulligan, John Coltrane, Wilbur Ware, Shadow Wilson, Johnny Griffin, Donald Byrd, Phil Woods, Thad Jones, and Charlie Rouse. His son Thelonious Monk, Jr. (T.S. Monk) has helped maintain the hard federal Bureau of Prisons tradition alive with his quintette and has headed the Thelonious Monk Institute, whose annual competitions deliver the goods in advertising gifted edward Young players.
