 Various Artists One of the better collections I've heard so far from the Blue Note "Blue Series," originally released in the UK to slake the thirst of all those supposed "London DJs" that supposedly sample alleged Blue Note albums in dubious clubs frequented by supposed clubgoers who so-called "dig" alleged "jazz." Who knows, perhaps that trend does exist, how am I to know? I sit inside all day reviewing albums. At any rate, I'm glad that the series is finally being issued here – most of the volumes are very smart and, befitting Blue Note, quite attractively packaged. Grouped by theme (Blue Brazil, Afro Blue, Blue Movies, Blue Valentines, Blue Bacharach, etc), the compilations mix rare tracks with stuff you might otherwise not get (again giving us Loud Bassoon reissue snobs a lesson on contemporary jazz often being as good or better than the old stuff). Blue Monk demonstrates Thelonious Monk's influence on a wide variety of jazz artists, and not just ivory ticklers: included here are artists as diverse as Larry Young, Gil Evans, Babs Gonzales, the Three Sounds, and Gonzalo Rubalcaba, in addition to lesser-regarded figures like Art Taylor, Grachan Moncur III, and Stan Tracey. The song selection is not surprising, but the performances are: Young's "Monk's Dream" (from Unity), a duet between Young on organ and Elvin Jones on drums that manages to seem like a full band and almost beats the original (my favorite Monk tune). Gil Evans's softish "'Round Midnight" segues into a vocal version by Babs Gonzales, accompanied by Jimmy Smith who gives it a strange noir feel. McCoy Tyner and Bobby Hutcherson duet on "Blue Monk" (from their 1994 duet album Manhattan Moods, itself well worth having), with Tyner on piano and Hutcherson on marimba – more straightforward than the 60s Hutcherson, but a great performance. The disc is well programmed, giving it a really satisfying flow and illuminating the strength and breadth of Monk's compositions, which too often get pigeonholed as being "jagged" much as Jerry Orbach gets labeled "world-weary." There are no weak tracks. The conventional readings (The Three Sounds' "Straight No Chaser," Art Taylor's "Epistrophy," ) balance some of the wilder ones (Rubalcaba's amazing "Well You Needn't," featuring Gonzalo on piano, Charlie Haden on bass, and Paul Motian on drums; Ralph Peterson's "Bemsha Swing" with Geri Allen on piano). A few tributes are thrown in, non-Monk originals by Stan Tracey ("Rocky Mount," featuring a sax solo by Art Therman that would surely have Charlie Rouse confused as hell), Eric Dolphy (the famous "Hat and Beard" from Out to Lunch), and Grachan Moncur III ("Monk in Wonderland" from Evolution, a must-have if you can find it). The tributes prevent the disc from straying too much into "Well, Monk did this better" territory, and furthermore accomplish the secondary purpose of the whole "Blue Series" itself, illustrating the diversity of greatness Blue Note has captured over the years. If any label should be celebrating its accomplishments in the recording era as we approach the symbolic end of the millenium, it is Blue Note, and it's a reward for both the label and its devotees that it is celebrating with compilations like Blue Monk. Warning to neophytes, though: both Thelonious Monk himself and Blue Note in general are highly addictive pursuits. Delve into each at your own risk, and don't be surprised if you end up in heavy debt because of the goddamned jazz.
Review by Jam Master Taylor-Hogg |