The Complete 1957 Riverside Recordings -2 CD-

Product Description The two compact discs in this set contain all the music created by Thelonious Monk and John Coltrane, between April and July of 1957 when they worked together in the recording studio. Only one professional and one amateur set of live recordings are also known to exist. Other than those live recordings, this is all that has been preserved of one of the most memorable and important collaborations in jazz history. Amazon.com The 2005 release of Thelonious Monk Quartet with John Coltrane at Carnegie Hall brought fresh attention to a brilliant musical partnership, though one of the least recorded. While the Monk/Coltrane association lasted only a few months in 1957, it coincided with Monk's emergence as a major figure and with the first flowering of Coltrane's genius. This two-CD set collects all of their studio meetings, including previously unreleased takes. There's the surprise trio version of "Monk's Mood," which the pianist inserted in a solo album; the Monk's Music septet sessions pairing Coltrane with Coleman Hawkins (now including the errant "Blues for Tomorrow," a Gigi Gryce tune recorded when Monk fell asleep at the keyboard); and the three superb tracks that constituted the sole studio documentation of the great quartet. Coltrane manages a virtual piano part on "Trinkle Tinkle," suggesting just how musically close the two became. Producer Orrin Keepnews provides an illuminating essay on the circumstances surrounding this essential chapter in jazz history. --Stuart Broomer