Thelonious Monk Septet – Monk's Music

Perfectly clear recording, and - as people have noted - Blakely's drums pop right out of your speakers. I really enjoy both this recording and the VMP release of it. My only disappointment is that it doesn't include "Crepuscule with Nellie," which appears on very few stereo pressings but would have made this a perfect release.

This is by far one of the best sounding VMP releases I have in my collection. I don't have another version to compare it to, but I can't imagine it getting much better.

Just fantastic , sound is like been there at the recording!!!

The fidelity of this recording is off the freakin' charts! Blakey and the horn players might as well be in the room with you. Love love LOVE the drum sound. From the life like high hats, to the extremely subtle ghost notes on the snare, and even though he doesn't hit it very often, the kick drum is deep and fat. Not to mention, Blakey is an absolute beast on the skins. Coltrane's signature smooth tone has never sounded better. The other two VMP jazz albums I got, (Coleman's The Shape of Jazz to Come, and Coltrane Sun Ship) sound good, but this recording absolutely blows them away. It might be the best recorded album I own.

The pressing is great, but needs a wet clean. There's some residue at the end of side one that causes an annoying pop. New vinyl these days..... if it isn't warped it's dirty, and if it isn't dirty it's warped.

RKS did a bang up job on this stereo reissue from the original stereo master tapes. Importantly, the entire album itself is not fully available in stereo, only in mono, due to some difficulty with the stereo setup (mic'd completely differently than the simultaneous mono setup recording the same session). This was Riverside's FIRST full stereo session recording, run simultaneously with a mono recording (with the mono tapping using their traditional mono recording equipment and setup). Needles to say, some bugs still needed to be worked out of the process.

One of the most important, if not THE most important and cherished TSM recording date, in of introducing new Monk compositions that would become standards (just as everything else he pens trends to), in additional to an amazing septet featuring Hawk & Trane on tenor, recording during the critical second half on 1957 during Monk (& Trane's) 6 month residency at the Five Spot, this production show cases both the old and new: Abide with me from TSM's past, to be compositions fiercely introduced to continue cementing his future, and showcasing an absolutely critical period during the development and interchange between JC, already destined for beatification to Sainthood, and Thelonious Sphere, already immortalized in annals of Jazz Cannon as the Genius of Modern music. Indeed, as has been written elsewhere of this pairing, "the mastery of the principals is beyond rapproach."

This beautiful AAA stereo reissue cut by RKS@SS in TN from the original stereo master tapes is excerptional and far beyond any reasonable criticism of its source, mastering, pressing and packaging. When RKS reissues Monk, especially this 4th Riverside Monk outing,the results can be nothing but spectacular, due to both RKS, but most importantly, due to Thelonious Sphere himself.

In an event of chance or by design, this exceptional stereo reissue, desperately needed, foretells a reissue of even greater magnanimity: the limited production of the FULL album, in it's monaural glory, as it's best presented, cut directly from the original mono master tapes as a direct transfer with no equilization, compression or artifice applied by The Electric Recording Co., released this month, on their (unequivally the world's greatest and foremost mastering chain) schedule, using their usual one -step process from lacquer, electroplated to father (used as stamper) in London, UK.

Do not miss either of these reissues, which certainly better the original pressings in most (RKS, VMP, STEREO) or every (G.D., ERC, MONO) respect of this absoluteness and perfection committed to production by TSM, during this, his fourth Riverside installment, and possibly his best, most complete and most critical effort since the sessions leading to the 10" complition albums BLP 5002 & BLP 5009.

Brilliant all the way around - from music to pressing quality - just brilliant.

Crystal clear, dead silent, absolutely white-hot cut. My copy was warped, but play was not affected at all.

Like many others here. Hearing Monk & Blakey is nice, but add in Hawkins & Trane..... Fantastic!

This is my favourite Monk that I own. Coltrane AND Hawkins, Blakey, Gigi Gryce, what a lineup. Original master tapes, sounds awesome, kudos to VMP.

Absolutely killer pressing. Glad I reed VMP for this AAA cut by Ryan Smith. Several moments that genuinely startled me due to the insane audio fidelity coming out of my speakers. Like, 'Oh, shit! What was that?? Is my girlfriend banging on the door to turn it down??' Nope. That's just Art Blakey hittin' skins.