Monk, Thelonious Quartet: Monk's Dream LP

Recorded at the tail end of 1962 and originally issued in 1963, Monk's Dream served as Thelonious Monk's debut for Columbia Records after releases for Blue Note, Prestige and Riverside. Working with producer Teo Macero and featured in a quartet setting with Charlie Rouse (tenor saxophone), John Ore (bass), and Frankie Dunlop, (drums), Monk's Dream was the best selling LP of Monk's lifetime, ultimately contributing to his appearance on the cover of Time magazine in 1964. The eight-song set features five Monk originals including the rhythmically complex "Five Spot Blues" and "Bolivar Blues," as well as a pair of solo sides sans accompaniment in "Just A Gigolo" and "Body and Soul." Although a majority of the tracks had been previously recorded in various live settings with different titles, this quartet is regarded by many as one of the best groups Monk was ever associated with and it is their studio interpretations of the material that remain the definitive versions and add up to one of Monk's signature albums! Mastered from the original master tapes by Kevin Gray and pressed at RTI, Impex Records' all-analog 180g vinyl LP reissue allows full immersion in Monk & Co.'s telepathy. Tight, controlled bass lays low under supple mids and crisp highs in ways even the best original pressing can't touch.