Thelonious Monk: The Complete Riverside Recordings


Thelonious Monk: The Complete Riverside Recordings is a comprehensive compilation of the recordings made by Thelonious Monk for Riverside Records between 21 July 1955 and 21 April 1961. It was released by Riverside in 1986 on 22 LPs or on 15 CDs. It contains all the tracks previously released both on the original and on the later expanded CD versions of all his Riverside albums, together with some tracks never previously released.

Track listing

Volume 1 (Discs 1–4)

Disc 1 (62:36)

  1. "It Don't Mean A Thing " – 4:39
  2. "Sophisticated Lady" – 4:28
  3. "I Got It Bad " – 5:53
  4. "Black And Tan Fantasy" – 3:25
  5. "Mood Indigo" – 3:14
  6. "I Let A Song Go Out of My Heart" – 5:41
  7. "Solitude" – 3:43
  8. "Caravan" – 5:55
  9. "Liza, All The Clouds'll Roll Away" – 3:11
  10. "Memories of You" – 4:17
  11. "Honeysuckle Rose" – 5:31
  12. "Darn That Dream" – 6:29
  13. "Tea For Two" – 5:55

Disc 2 (59:08)

  1. "You Are Too Beautiful" – 4:55
  2. "Just You, Just Me" – 7:58
  3. "Ba-Lue Bolivar Ba-Lues-Are" – 13:24
  4. "Pannonica" – opening – 2:35
  5. "Pannonica" – 8:50
  6. "Brilliant Corners" – 7:46
  7. "I Surrender, Dear" – 7:50
  8. "Bemsha Swing" – 5:31

Disc 3 (64:20)

  1. "I Don't Stand A Ghost of a Chance With You" – 4:12
  2. "I Don't Stand A Ghost of a Chance With You" " – 4:21
  3. "I Should Care" " – 3:28
  4. "I Should Care" – 3:19
  5. "I Should Care" – 3:13
  6. "Round Midnight – In Progress" – 21:55
  7. "Round Midnight" – 6:41
  8. "April in Paris" – 3:52
  9. "I'm Getting Sentimental Over You" – 4:04
  10. "Monk's Mood" – false start – 0:57
  11. "Monk's Mood" – 7:52

Disc 4 (59:19)

  1. "Functional" – 9:43
  2. "Functional" – 9:18
  3. "All Alone" – 4:51
  4. "Crepuscule With Nellie" – 4:34
  5. "Crepuscule With Nellie" – breakdown – 1:01
  6. "Blues For Tomorrow" – 13:32
  7. "Off Minor" – 5:14
  8. "Off Minor" – 5:08
  9. "Abide With Me" – 0:53
  10. "Crepuscule With Nellie" – 4:46
  11. "Crepuscule With Nellie" – 4:39

Volume 2 (Discs 5–8)

Disc 5 (68:20)

  1. "Epistrophy" – fragment – 4:31
  2. "Epistrophy" – 4:55
  3. "Well, You Needn't" – 4:29
  4. "Well, You Needn't" – 6:12
  5. "Ruby, My Dear" – 4:31
  6. "Ruby, My Dear" – 3:22
  7. "Nutty" – 7:01
  8. "Twinkle, Twinkle" – 3:04
  9. "Straight, No Chaser" – 5:27
  10. "Straight, No Chaser" – 6:58
  11. "Rhythm-A-Ning" – 5:19

Disc 6 (65:20)

  1. "I Mean You" – 6:22
  2. "I Mean You" – 6:31
  3. "I Mean You" – 6:51
  4. "Round Midnight" – 8:27
  5. "Decidedly" – 5:52
  6. "Decidedly" – 6:35
  7. "Sweet And Lovely" – 7:15
  8. "Coming on the Hudson" – 6:03
  9. "In Orbit" – 4:04
  10. "One Foot in the Gutter" – 7:20

Disc 7 (67:14)

  1. "Trust in Me" – 4:31
  2. "Let's Cool One" – 4:55
  3. "Pea-Eye" – 4:29
  4. "Argentia" – 6:12
  5. "Moonlight Fiesta" – 4:31
  6. "Buck's Business" – 3:22
  7. "Flugelin' The Blues" – 7:01
  8. "Very Near Blue" – 3:04
  9. "Evidence" – 10:15
  10. "Blues Five Spot" – 9:54
  11. "In Walked Bud – Epistrophy " – 10:57

Disc 8 (59:46)

  1. "Unidentified Solo Piano" – 1:54
  2. "Round Midnight" – 6:15
  3. "Bye-Ya – Epistrophy" " – 11:54
  4. "Light Blue" – 5:14
  5. "Coming on the Hudson" – 5:23
  6. "Rhythm-A-Ning" – 9:28
  7. "Just A Gigolo" – 2:08
  8. "Blue Monk" – 8:29
  9. "Evidence" – 8:45
  10. "Epistrophy" – 1:07

Volume 3 (Discs 9–12)

Disc 9 (53:13)

  1. "Nutty" – 5:23
  2. "Blues Five Spot" – 8:12
  3. "Let's Cool One" – 9:15
  4. "In Walked Bud" – 11:20
  5. "Misterioso" – 10:47
  6. "Epistrophy" – 1:04
  7. "In Walked Bud" – 7:08
  8. "Blue Monk" – 8:21

Disc 10 (51:26)

  1. "Rhythm-A-Ning" – 5:52
  2. "Monk's Mood" – 10:21
  3. "Friday The 13th" – 9:30
  4. "Little Rootie Tootie" – 8:52
  5. "Off Minor" – 7:50
  6. "Thelonious" – 3:03
  7. "Crepuscule With Nellie" – 4:50
  8. "Little Rootie Tootie – Encore" – 8:30

Disc 11 (66:46)

  1. "Played Twice" – 6:57
  2. "Played Twice" – 7:54
  3. "Played Twice" – 8:00
  4. "Straight, No Chaser" – 9:22
  5. "Ask Me Now" – 10:47
  6. "I Mean You" – 9:49
  7. "Jackie-ing" – 6:07
  8. "Round Lights" – 3:36
  9. "Pannonica" – 3:52
  10. "Blue Monk" – 3:43

Disc 12 (66:25)

  1. "Ruby, My Dear" – 3:59
  2. "There's Danger in Your Eyes, Cherie" – 4:05
  3. "There's Danger in Your Eyes, Cherie" – 4:20
  4. "Everything Happens To Me" – 5:39
  5. "Reflections" – 5:07
  6. "Remember" – 2:43
  7. "Bluehawk" – 3:38
  8. "You Took The Words Right Out of My Heart" – 4:02
  9. "San Francisco Holiday" – 8:50
  10. "Just You, Just Me" – 7:09
  11. "Round Midnight" – 7:53
  12. "San Francisco Holiday" – 8:31

Volume 4 (Discs 13–15)

Disc 13 (68:44)

  1. "I'm Getting Sentimental Over You" – 6:12
  2. "Evidence" – 7:07
  3. "Epistrophy" – 1:02
  4. "Epistrophy" – 6:39
  5. "Four in One" – 7:34
  6. "Let's Call This" – 8:34
  7. "Round Midnight" – 12:05
  8. "San Francisco Holiday" – 9:09
  9. "Four in One" – 8:42
  10. "Epistrophy" – 1:15

Disc 14 (63:37)

  1. "Well, You Needn't" – 11:30
  2. "Crepuscule With Nellie" – 2:39
  3. "Jacki-ing" – 10:11
  4. "Body And Soul" – 2:47
  5. "Off Minor" – 11:41
  6. "April in Paris" – 1:19
  7. "I Mean You" – 11:02
  8. "Rhythm-A-Ning" – 10:37
  9. "Just A Gigolo" – 1:45

Disc 15 (69:51)

  1. "Hackensack" – 9:46
  2. "Epistrophy" – 6:12
  3. "I'm Getting Sentimental Over You" – 8:33
  4. "Jackie-Ing" – 4:53
  5. "Body And Soul" – 4:48
  6. "Straight, No Chaser" – 9:03
  7. "Crepuscule With Nellie" – 2:42
  8. "Bemsha Swing" – 6:56
  9. "San Francisco Holiday" – 6:57
  10. "Rhythm-A-Ning" – 5:47
  11. "Epistrophy" – 5:03

Sessions and personnel

Thelonious Monk plays piano on all tracks except where noted.
Disc 1, tracks 1–8: 21 and 27 July 1955, Rudy Van Gelder Studio, Hackensack, NJ – see Thelonious Monk Plays Duke Ellington
Disc 1, tracks 9–13; disc 2, tracks 1–2: 17 March and 3 April 1956, Rudy Van Gelder Studio, Hackensack, NJ – see The Unique Thelonious Monk
Disc 2, tracks 3–6, 8: 9 and 15 October 1956, Reeves Sound Studios, NYC – see Brilliant Corners
Disc 2, track 7: 7 December 1956, Reeves Sound Studios, NYC – see Brilliant Corners
Disc 3, tracks 1–9; disc 4, tracks 1–3: 12 April 1957, Reeves Sound Studios, NYC – see Thelonious Himself
Disc 3, tracks 10–11: 16 April 1957, Reeves Sound Studios, NYC – see Thelonious Himself
Disc 4, tracks 4–11; disc 5, tracks 1–5: 25–26 June 1957, Reeves Sound Studios, NYC – see Monk's Music,
Disc 13: 29 April 1960, The Blackhawk, San Francisco, CA – see Thelonious Monk at the Blackhawk
  • Joe Gordon, trumpet
  • Harold Land, tenor saxophone
  • Charlie Rouse, tenor saxophone
  • John Ore, bass
  • Billy Higgins, drums