Happy Birthday, Thelonious Monk

Jazz pianist Thelonious Monk was born on October 10, 1917, in Rocky Mount, North Carolina. Monk was one of the greatest jazz pianists ever, a founder of bebop, and according to some sources, the second most-recorded jazz composer after Duke Ellington.

In his book, The 101 Best Jazz Albums, Len Lyons recommends three albums by Monk:

• The Complete Genius (Blue Note), available only on vinyl. (Purchase at amazon.com.)
  
• Brilliance (Milestone), available only on vinyl and hard to find at that.
  
• Pure Monk (Mileston), available only on vinyl. (Purchase at amazon.com.)
  

Jim Determan, who has updated the Lyons list, recommends these alternatives in CD format:

• The Genius of Modern Music, Volume 1 (Blue Note) (Purchase at Barnes & Noble)
  
• The Genius of Modern Music, Volume 2 (Blue Note) (Purchase at Barnes & Noble)
  
• Brilliant Corners (Riverside) (Purchase at Barnes & Noble)
  
• Five by Five by Monk (Riverside) (Purchase at Barnes & Noble)
  
• Alone in San Francisco (Original Jazz Classics) (Purchase at Barnes & Noble)
  
• Thelonious Himself (Riverside) (Purchase at Barnes & Noble)
  

Monk and his quartet play "'Round Midnight," reputedly the most-recorded jazz standard written by a jazz musician:

Robert
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