Thelonious Monk "Monk's Music" 1957

The track was recorded on June 25, 1957, in the closing minutes of an otherwise unproductive session. Monk, unusually, arrived on time, but was distracted with worry about his wife, Nellie, who was in hospital. Drummer Art Blakey arrived an hour late and then had to assemble and mic up his kit. The band had difficulty following Monk's directions, leading Monk to exclaim to tenor saxophonists Coleman Hawkins and John Coltrane, "You're the great Coleman Hawkins, right? You're the guy who invented the tenor saxophone, right? Your'e the great John Coltrane, right? Well, the music is in the horn. Between the two of you, you should be able to find it." Eventually, towards the due end of the session, Monk threw in the towel and went home.