Brilliant Corners cover

Brilliant Corners

Released

The title track on this 1957 album by Thelonious Monk is one of the best demonstrations of his unique and highly idiosyncratic genius as a composer: the melody is crooked and wayward, but weirdly lyrical at the same time; the head is organized oddly, shifting back and forth between a rather ponderous exposition of the theme and a joyfully swinging double-time rendition of it. It was so difficult for his sidemen that the final recording was eventually created by splicing together parts of multiple takes. And that’s just the opening track. The rest of the album is just as difficult, brilliant, and fun.

Rick Anderson

Recommended by

Suggestions
Trombone Tribe cover

Trombone Tribe

Roswell Rudd
One of Many cover

One of Many

John Taylor, Kenny Wheeler, Steve Swallow
Where Do We Go from Here? cover

Where Do We Go from Here?

John Taylor, Kenny Wheeler
Mosaic cover

Mosaic

Art Blakey & the Jazz Messengers
Empyrean Isles cover

Empyrean Isles

Herbie Hancock
Time Is the Enemy cover

Time Is the Enemy

Jonas Hellborg, Shawn Lane
Parallax cover

Parallax

Phronesis
Alegría cover

Alegría

Wayne Shorter
The Inflated Tear cover

The Inflated Tear

Rahsaan Roland Kirk