Thelonious Monk Don’t Blame Me (Live in Denmark)

Description

Thelonious Monk
Monk at Minton's Playhouse, New York, 1947

Monk at Minton’s Playhouse, New York, 1947
Background information
Birth name Thelious Monk Jr.
Born October 10, 1917
Rocky Mount, North Carolina, U.S.
Died February 17, 1982 (aged 64)
Englewood, New Jersey, U.S.
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Pianist
  • composer
Instrument(s) Piano
Years active 1933–1976
Labels
Website theloniousmonkmusic.com

Thelonious Sphere Monk (/θəˈlniəs/, October 10, 1917 – February 17, 1982) was an American jazz pianist and composer. He had a unique improvisational style and made numerous contributions to the standard jazz repertoire, including “‘Round Midnight“, “Blue Monk“, “Straight, No Chaser“, “Ruby, My Dear“, “In Walked Bud“, and “Well, You Needn’t“. Monk is the second-most-recorded jazz composer after Duke Ellington.

Monk’s compositions and improvisations feature dissonances and angular melodic twists and are consistent with his unorthodox approach to the piano, which combined a highly percussive attack with abrupt, dramatic use of switched key releases, silences, and hesitations.

Monk’s distinct look included suits, hats, and sunglasses. He also had an idiosyncratic habit during performances: while other musicians continued playing, Monk would stop, stand up, and dance for a few moments before returning to the piano.

Monk is one of five jazz musicians to have been featured on the cover of Time (the others being Louis ArmstrongDave BrubeckDuke Ellington, and Wynton Marsalis).

CITE: Wikipedia

  • Thelonious Monk performs “Don’t Blame Me” live in Denmark in 1966 Follow Thelonious Monk, get merch and more: http://linktr.ee/theloniousmonk Thelonious Monk: piano Charlie Rouse: tenor saxophone Larry Gales: bass Ben Riley: drums