Thelonious Monk: Bremen 1965

   

      Every jazz performance is an event, because true improvisers never play anything the same way twice. So the appearance of Bremen 1965 by the Thelonious Monk quartet is a most welcome addition to the canon. Sure, the band is playing a fairly typical program of the period, but they are in an especially frisky frame of mind. Tenor saxophonist Charlie Rouse, long regarded as the premier interpreter of Monk’s tunes is on hand. Bassist Larry Gales and drummer Ben Riley were about six months into their mutual tenure in the Monk quartet. Interestingly enough, they had already been working together, as members of the Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis/Johnny Griffin quintet in 1960 & 1961. That well-received band had a repertoire that featured a number of Monk compositions. The quintet even recorded an entire album of Monk tunes (Lookin’ At Monk, Jazzland) long before that was a fashionable concept. With this totally locked-in bass and drums team and Rouse blowing up a storm out in front, Monk, in an energetic mood, had the perfect ensemble to dig deeply into his original compositions plus a small helping of his favorite standards. His solo piano rendition of Don’t Blame Me is just one of the gems to be found here, ready to be savored again and again. The show in Bremen was their second stop on the quartet’s 1965 world tour, recorded by Radio Bremen in their own studio with a lively and enthusiastic audience. From my perspective, you can never have too many Monk albums, and Bremen 1965 is more than worthy to take its place on your Monk shelf. Totally recommended. 

Sunnyside SSC1634/1635 (also on vinyl); Charlie Rouse (ts) Thelonious Monk (p) Larry Gales (b) Ben Riley (d); Bremen, West Germany, March 8, 1965; Disc 1 (49:02): Criss Cross/ Sweet and Lovely/ Well You Needn’t/ Don’t Blame Me/ Epistrophy (I); Disc 2 (42:42): Just You, Just Me/ I’m Getting Sentimental Over You/ Rhythm-A-Ning/ Epistrophy (II). sunnysiderecords.com