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(More customer reviews)Chris Sheridan's "Brilliant Corners" is a very comprehensive and detailed resource of the recordings of the genius pianist Thelonious Sphere Monk. The strength of this book lies in the many myths and falsehoods it dispels about Monk's career, from his early pioneering days at Minton's Playhouse to the near-debacle of his final Columbia recording (which is not nearly as bad as the author insists, at least not in its entirety). I was a bit misled by the title, for while this is a discography of the highest order, the biographical inclusions are kept to a minimum. In fact, the author will often tease the reader by referencing some important fact of "Mr. Monk's" life that influenced a certain recording, only to refer the reader to another book to get even a fraction of the story. This book is essential for collectors, and often fascinating for hardcore Monk devotees, but certainly not recommended for the casual jazz fan. Those interested in Thelonious Monk's life should check out "The Thelonious Monk Reader" edited by Rob Van Der Bliek (Search for 019512166X), or "Straight, No Chaser: The Life and Genius of Thelonious Monk" by Leslie Gourse (Search for 0825672295).
Click Here to see more reviews about: Brilliant Corners: A Bio-Discography of Thelonious Monk (Discographies: Association for Recorded Sound Collections Discographic Reference)
In this masterful compilation, world-recognized discographer Chris Sheridan draws together the most comprehensive reconstruction of Thelonious Monk's performances and recordings. Woven through the chronological listing of Monk's work is the story of his rise to acceptance as one of the key pianists and composers of jazz and his decline in health and popularity to his death in 1982.
Following a Prologue which attempts to summarize the career and man, the narrative discography covers Monk's entire performance career. This is followed by appendixes listing all microgroove and post-microgroove issues of Monk's performances, all known commercially produced films and videos in which Monk took part, a listing of all of his engagements from 1944 until his career petered out in the mid-1970s, and a bibliography. The work concludes with an index of the people, places, producers, and radio and television programs referred to or quoted in the main taxt, a listing of all musicians, vocalists, and broadcast presenters who took part in the recordings or who played in Monk's bands, an index of all the titles used for Monk's tunes by other musicians and vocalists, and a listing of all tunes played, together with their composers and, where relevant, lyricists. A comprehensive reference work for all scholars and other researchers involved with jazz from the 1940s onward.
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