Jazz Icons Thelonious Monk Live in 66

Product Description Jazz Icons: Thelonious Monk features two intimate concerts fi lmed three days apart in Scandanavia in the Spring of 1966 with a legendary quartet that includes drummer Ben Riley, bassist Larry Gales and tenor saxophonist Charlie Rouse. Thelonious Monk revolutionized jazz with his innovative musical approach and these remarkable performances allow viewers the rare opportunity to experience MonkÂ?s genius up close on his classic compositions, Â"Blue Monk,Â" Â"EpistrophyÂ" and Â"Â?Round Midnight.Â" Amazon.com This DVD, which contains Thelonious Monk's two studio television performances taped in Oslo and Copenhagen in 1966, proves that seeing Monk is as important as hearing him. He's backed by his legendary quartet ? tenor saxophonist Charlie Rouse, bassist Larry Gales, and drummer Ben Riley, who was forced to play with a spare borrowed drumkit. Save for the two renditions of the standard "Lulu's Back in Town" and another popular song, "Don't Blame Me," the rest of the six selections are pure Monk, including the spellbinding "Blue Monk," the algorithmic "Epistrophy," and of course, his eternal ballad "'Round Midnight," delivered here at a slightly faster tempo. Thelonious's flat-fingered touch, trancelike dancing (which Riley playfully mimics), fancy footwork at the keyboard, and wild choice of hats steal the show. In the 20-page liner notes,trumpeter, arranger, and Monk scholar Don Sickler encourages you to, "[t]ake this fantastic opportunity to get a better understanding of his distinct style, of the unique way he accompanies soloists, and the other idiosyncrasies that make Monk a musical treasure." --Eugene Holley, Jr. Review "Jazz Icons is doing for jazz what the Criterion Collection has done for classic and important films". -- Jazz Times From the Contributor JAZZ ICONS(tm) is an ongoing DVD series featuring full-length concerts and in-studio performances by the greatest legends of jazz, filmed all over the world from the 1950s through the 1970s. Beautifully transferred from the riginal masters, none of these concerts has ever been officially released on home video, and in many cases, the material was never broadcast. Each DVD is produced with the full support and cooperation of the artists or their estates. JAZZ ICONS(tm) comes to you from Reelin' In The Years Productions, GRAMMY Nominated producers of the American Folk Blues Festival DVDs 1962 - 1966.