1956 · Album
Thelonious Monk Plays Duke Ellington
Recorded 1955–1956 · Riverside · Produced by Orrin Keepnews
Monk Bowing to the Duke
Oscar Pettiford's bass gives Monk's angular Ellington reinterpretations a warm, rolling foundation.
Thelonious Monk's 1956 trio record Thelonious Monk Plays Duke Ellington puts the pianist's angular, percussive style to work on the songbook of his great predecessor. The sideman who most shapes the sound here is bassist Oscar Pettiford. His lines give these reworkings a warm, rolling foundation, and they keep the tunes grounded even when Monk pushes them into odd rhythmic corners.
Monk's approach is to take Ellington's melodies apart and reassemble them with his own spacing and dissonance. Pettiford plays the role of anchor, and the trio's interplay with drummer Kenny Clarke gives the record a loose, swinging momentum. The result sounds less like a tribute than a conversation between two strong musical personalities.
This is a good entry point for listeners who find Monk's solo work difficult. The trio format is easier to follow, and the familiar Ellington tunes give you a handle on what Monk is doing to them. It is not his most famous record, but it is a solid, enjoyable one, and it shows how well his playing works when he is working from someone else's material.
Who's playing
Where next?
More by Thelonious Monk
Brilliant Corners 1957
Genius of Modern Music, Volume 1 1951
Monk's Dream 1963
Mulligan Meets Monk 1957
The musicians on this record
Their own records, close in time
