Thelonious Monk – Monk's Music (Vinyl LP | US Original)

Thelonious Monk – Monk's Music is one of pianist Thelonious Monk's best-known albums, recorded in June 1957 at Reeves Sound Studios in New York and released on Riverside the same year; it was produced by Orrin Keepnews. Monk leads a septet with two tenor saxophonists, Coleman Hawkins and John Coltrane, plus Gigi Gryce, Ray Copeland, Wilbur Ware and Art Blakey. The album opens with a short horn version of the hymn Abide With Me, followed by Monk classics such as Well, You Needn't, Epistrophy and Crepuscule With Nellie; Ruby, My Dear is played by Monk in a quartet with Hawkins. This copy is a pressing with catalogue number Riverside 2321 002.

Pressing details

• Label / Cat. no.: Riverside Records 2321 002
• Format: Vinyl LP, album
• Pressing: European Riverside edition (per cat. no.)
• Country: Germany (per cat. no.)
• Year of this pressing: not stated (original: 1957)
• Genre: Jazz, bebop, hard bop

Condition

• Condition: Second hand
• Media: NM-
• Cover: VG+

Graded to Goldmine standard (see Vinyl Grading). The images are our own scans of the actual copy for sale.

Tracklist

Side A

1. Abide With Me (William Henry Monk/Henry Francis Lyte)
2. Well, You Needn't (Thelonious Monk)
3. Ruby, My Dear (Thelonious Monk)

Side B

1. Off Minor (Thelonious Monk)
2. Epistrophy (Thelonious Monk/Kenny Clarke)
3. Crepuscule With Nellie (Thelonious Monk)

Personnel

Septet: Thelonious Monk (piano), Ray Copeland (trumpet), Gigi Gryce (alto saxophone), Coleman Hawkins (tenor saxophone), John Coltrane (tenor saxophone), Wilbur Ware (bass), Art Blakey (drums). Abide With Me is played by the horns only, Ruby, My Dear by Monk, Hawkins, Ware and Blakey as a quartet.

Recorded June 1957 at Reeves Sound Studios, New York; producer: Orrin Keepnews; engineer: Jack Higgins.

FAQ

Is this a US original pressing?
The US first issue from 1957 carries number RLP 12-242 (mono), the stereo version RLP 1102. Catalogue number 2321 002 belongs to a later European Riverside edition from Germany. The scans of label and back cover show the details of this copy.

Does John Coltrane play on the album?
Yes. Coltrane was in Monk's band in 1957 and plays tenor saxophone here alongside Coleman Hawkins on every track except Ruby, My Dear.

What does Media NM- / Cover VG+ mean?
NM- (Near Mint minus) for the record means close to new with at most minimal signs of use. VG+ (Very Good Plus) for the sleeve means light wear. All grades are explained on our Vinyl Grading page.

Do you have more Thelonious Monk records?
Yes, for example Thelonious Monk With John Coltrane, Thelonious Monk – Live At The It Club, The Thelonious Monk Quartet – Monk's Dream. More titles are in our Jazz collection.