Thelonious Monk - Underground (10 tracks) +Album Reviews

Monk's musical comeback

Manny Hernandez | Bay Area, CA | 09/12/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Definitely not what you'd label as an inaccessible album, this album (which counts "Ugly Beauty", Monk's only recorded waltz-time piece, among its works) constitutes in essence a musical comeback for Monk, who at the time had not released any albums with more than four original compositions since the mid-fifties (more than a decade before).It's packed with works that range from melancholic and blue ("Easy Street") to joyful ("Green Chimneys"); from "simple" and straightforward (such as the opening track, which actually dates a couple of decades before) to complex and filled with accents (such as "Boo Boo's Birthday.")All in all, it's an exquisite work of music that you can tap your day away to or sit down and listen carefully to in order to disect it in detail."

Classic of classics in Jazz

TR707 | New York | 10/11/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Amazon lists this as # 24 in his catalog of albums. I think this is by far one of his best, at least a top 5, as for me this is my favorite of all my 20+ Monk albums. Green Chimneys, In Walked Bud and Boo Boo's birthday are among some of the best songs he has ever written. This era in Monks music had his best line up of musicians including Charlie Rouse and Ben Riley. If you know your Jazz you will know what a great album this is. If you are just starting a Jazz collection, this is a great addition. If you are new to Monk, try a Greatest Hits. The bonus tracks are a great bonus."

Brilliant work, excellent sound quality

Denis | NJ, USA | 08/07/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I got this CD as a gift -- this was my introduction to Monk. First couple times I listened to it, I was shocked with his unique style, with his approach to jazz, and with his compositions. The quality of this record is nothing short of stellar. Monk sounds fresh and energized. He seems to be very well-synchronized with the rest of his band, and they make magic. Every musician on this recording is terrific. The rhythm section is solid. The bass player does a few improvisations, especially on Ugly Beauty and Green Chimneys, and it is something you don't hear much of, at least not of this quality. These guys don't miss a beat. Monk is a truly creative player and composer, and this recording really showcases that.

I don't suggest this record as an introduction to jazz, but if you enjoy jazz, this is a good place to start with Monk's work, in my opinion. You may not get into this record until you make a couple passes at listening to it and possibly listening to other good jazz in between different attempts at this record. I feel that listening to Miles Davis really helped me appreciate Monk even more, as weird as this sounds.

I just love this CD. I especially enjoy listening to it over a great pair of headphones because it makes you feel like it's just you and them, without any kind of disturbances or sounds from the outside to distract you from catching and enjoying every tune that emanates from this record.

Buy this remastered version with extra tracks. The sound couldn't be better, and the extra tracks provide more takes of the great tunes that appeared originally on this record."

Underground Thelonious

allismile0 | Washington, DC | 12/20/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The remastered sound of Underground's reissue is much cleaner and crisper. The songs were restored to the original recorded length and there are a few bonus tracks added. Oh yeah, the album cover is clearer and closer (which is very important).

I agree with the reviewers that say this is not Monk at his peak, but regardless of that, I think this is one of his best albums. The musicians sound like they are having fun performing and the relaxed approach to the recording takes away from some of the intensity sometimes expressed in some of the classic Monk albums.

There are some nifty liner notes including an explanation behind the album cover and the story surrounding the making of the album.

(about the editing)

I somewhat prefer the edited versions of these songs from the previous release because the songs feel concise to the compositions. That may upset some jazz purists, but frankly a decent solo can get lost in the translation of the recording and end up hurting the overall performance and composition. I think back in those days the musicians expected the solos to get edited (it was a natural part of the recording process). These "unedited" versions that we hear in these re-issues are not necessarily what the musicians intended as the final versions.

Overall, Thelonious Monk's Underground is a terrific album; one of his best and I highly recommend checking it out- edited or unedited."

One of the Best of the Best

Rick Bruner | New York, NY USA | 10/01/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I'm simply dumbstruck that as of Oct 2005, only two people have reviewed this album to date. Browsing through various Monk albums on Amazon, it seems most have relatively few reviews. I can't understand this.

If I were stranded on a desert island and could bring a single album with me, I wouldn't hesitate about the composer: Thelonious Monk. Perhaps one of the least appreciated and most misunderstood geniuses of our time (up there with Bela Bartok and Frank Zappa), Monk is simply the greatest of them all to my mind.

(...)"

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