0011 - Thelonious Monk - Brilliant Corners [1957]

Who: Legendary jazz pianst and composer Thelonious Monk (1917-1982) and a six-piece ensemble. 

What: This is one of the most influential and important jazz records of all time. The traditional big band of swing music is pared down to the elemental essentials and while the far out experiments of free jazz are yet to come the compositions are extraordinarily complex. Indeed, this record is on the same level as some of the most important classical music of all time.

Where: New York, NY–and quintessentially so. This music moves will all the different energies of the city.

Monk (L) and others outside of legendary jazz club Minton's Playhouse, NYC, 1947.

When: You want to be moved.
 
Why: This is a stunning record of unimpeachable quality. That all but one of the songs are Monk's own compositions, rather than improvisations on existing songs, makes it even more impressive. Like classical music, this music dynamically conveys an incredible range of moods and feelings without the need of lyrics.  This is music that will take you places.

Monk and the "Jazz Baroness" Pannonica de Koenigswarter, 1964.

Microdose: "Pannonica," a moving and haunting ode to his friend Pannonica de Koenigswarter, the infamous "Jazz Baroness" (a member of the Rothschild dynasty who left her family behind to become a patroness, champion, and friend of many of the most important jazz musicians of the 20th century). Here, Monk plays the celeste instead of the piano, which greatly adds to the song's dreamlike soundscape.

Additional Dose: An incredible solo performance by drummer Max Roach. While drummers often get the least recognition, Roach played on this album as well as many others by jazz legends such as Charlie Parker, Duke Ellington, Charles Mingus, and Miles Davis.