Search - Thelonious Monk :: Piano Solo (Dig)

Monk's first solo piano performance.

Michael Stack | North Chelmsford, MA USA | 10/11/2005

(2 out of 5 stars)

"This CD is a reissue of Thelonious Monk's first solo piano performance, issued as "Solo on Vogue" originally.



Valuable primarily as a historical resource, this performance is entertaining and engaging, but it doesn't compare well against later solo piano performances. Monk still appears by and large to be experimenting with the form, and I suspect without the presence of a stronger producer, the material feels to suffer a bit. Some of the cuts are fantastic-- pop song "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes" gets a nicely Monkish arrangmenet, "Reflections" (previously recorded in a different setting but never released before this) is moody and meandering, but in a good way, and both "Well You Needn't" and "Off Minor" get exciting readings that are full of energy. But too often, the pieces drift a bit ("Round Midnight", "Eronel"), even at their brief length (only two tracks are longer than three and a half minutes and the entire record is only 31 minutes).



One thing I will state is that except for the last track, the sound on this is phenomenal-- virtually no analog hiss and a nice, well focused and round piano sound (for some reason closer "Hackensack" drops a bit in volume), but this is really for Monk fans, those curious about his solo performances should check the superb "Thelonious Himself" on Riverside and "Solo Monk" on Columbia first."

An early taste of things to come

J. Palmer | Portland, OR | 11/06/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"These tunes were recorded June 7, 1954, in Paris and released on the Vogue label. This record seems kind of obscure, maybe because it wasn't released on a major U.S. label, and his later stuff is so good.



It's weird to listen to, Monk's all there but the playing feels less perky, somehow flatter and more mechanical than the later solo recordings I've heard. It a short disc of 9 tracks and only a little over a half hour. But it's still great stuff, and after hearing early 50's versions of the tunes in the Quartet and Quintet arrangements, it's just wonderful to hear them stripped bare here.



All are played beautifully, my three favorite are 'Reflections', 'Well, You Needn't', and 'Wee See' (where he gets a little weird at the end). 'Evidence' is another strong tune, and 'Off Minor' is really, really minor.



'Eronel' might be the only Monk tune I've encountered that I seem to dislike it all of its forms - the composition itself, something about it grates on me. But nobody can write all winners.



If you have to hear everything by Monk, this will be interesting. But if you're just starting out and looking for solo Monk, skip this and go straight on to 'Thelonious Alone in San Francisco'."