Okazaki, Miles / Work: The Complete Compositions Of Thelonious Monk
Album: Work: The Complete Compositions Of Thelonious Monk   Collection:Jazz
Artist:Okazaki, Miles   Added:Nov 2018
Label:Self Release  

A-File Activity
Add Date: 2018-12-04 Pull Date: 2019-02-05 Charts: Jazz
Week Ending: Jan 27 Jan 20 Jan 13 Jan 6 Dec 30 Dec 23 Dec 16 Dec 9
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Recent Airplay
1. Jul 08, 2021: Clean Copper Radio for Fo (rebroadcast from Jan 3, 2019)
Think Of One
4. Jan 15, 2019: Clean Copper Radio & Hot Topics
52nd Street Theme, Bye-Ya, North Of The Sunset
2. Jan 26, 2019: The Acupuncture Hour/Audio Ambrosia
Gallop's Gallop
5. Jan 13, 2019: Emergency Crew (sub for MHZ)
Blues Five Spot
3. Jan 26, 2019: Music Casserole
Rhythm-A-Ning
6. Jan 12, 2019: the cacophony hour
Crepuscule With Nellie, In Walked Bud

Album Review
Fo
Reviewed 2018-11-28
MILES OKAZAKI: Work - The Complete Compositions Of Thelonious Monk
self-released, 2018

JAZZ GUITAR – Over the course of his career, Thelonious Monk wrote 70 compositions or so (the actual number is a matter of debate, and he never recorded some). In this six-disc set, Guitarist Miles Okazaki, best known as a member of Steve Coleman's band, plays the entire Monk songbook solo, using a 1978 Gibson archtop with no overdubs or added effects. Like putting the tunes under an X-ray to see the architectural bones, these technically challenging arrangements stick close to melody even in experimental improvisation, while also capturing Monk's sense of rhythm, humor, and oddball harmonics. Lots of fun ideas here; listen for nods to many other guitarists.

FO'S PICKS:

Disc 1 — 2, 3, 6, 7, 9
Disc 2 — 1, 2, 3, 8, 10
Disc 3 — 2, 4, 6, 8, 9
Disc 4 — 1, 4, 7, 8, 10
Disc 5 — 2, 4, 5, 10, 11
Disc 6 — 3, 4, 6, 9, 10

DISC ONE
1. 3:51 – chugging staccato rhythm
2. 3:24 – knotty fast/slow fractal
3. 4:02 – complex twists & turns
4. 2:21 – relaxed; oblique but lyrical
5. 4:21 – hard rhythmic stomp
6. 2:47 – ballad, played straight up
7. 3:37 – light with a dense center
8. 2:51 – relaxed chicken-strut
9. 4:00 – off-center lope + filigree
10. 3:21 – relaxed wander & drone
11. 3:12 – jagged uptempo riffing
12. 5:21 – tune-up intro, weird ballad
13. 3:28 – slow, bluesy experiment

DISC TWO
1. 3:02 – bright, playful & friendly
2. 2:48 – busy tune, probing solo
3. 2:05 – shifting rhythm, spins
4. 2:36 – lightly tumbling, complex
5. 3:49 – a chugging, jabbing motor
6. 4:08 – sticky harmonic clusters
7. 1:42 – fast repetitive minimalism
8. 4:03 – speedy spins & swoops
9. 3:24 – spare refracted ballad
10. 5:37 – laid-back folksy swing
11. 8:44 – relaxed swing gets knotty
12. 6:16 – a cool slow blues

DISC THREE
1. 4:09 – breezy tune, pulsing solo
2. 3:52 – bright, chugs high & low
3. 3:32 – Monk + Wes Montgomery
4. 2:40 – a cool downhill stroll
5. 5:15 – dusky ballad opens gently
6. 5:39 – relaxed single-note lines
7. 2:20 – explores a weird chord
8. 2:17 – happy skip/bounce
9. 2:07 – open, bittersweet ballad
10. 2:45 – spins in broken circles
11. 7:13 – chill; long exploratory solo
12. 4:02 – friendly blues gets tight

DISC FOUR
1. 4:12 – rolling Brazilian rhythm
2. 3:40 – odd shape-shifting tune
3. 5:15 – plays with a jabbing riff
4. 4:58 – knotty improv, late melody
5. 2:59 – gentle ballad musings
6. 4:58 – cool uncomfortable chords
7. 2:39 – fast: melodic yet spiky
8. 5:19 – relaxed ballad, open feel
9. 5:16 – jabs, bobs & weaves
10. 4:27 – rolling bop; riff in four keys
11. 4:20 – slow & easygoing blues

DISC FIVE
1. 4:30 – relaxed stroll, tricky bits
2. 3:58 – oblique, confident ride
3. 4:37 – mixed-tempo folksy glide
4. 4:12 – lively swing & weird hops
5. 6:05 – contemplative ballad
6. 4:38 – quick pulse alters melody
7. 6:06 – steady quarter-note stroll
8. 3:34 – folksy children's melody
9. 2:25 – gently reaches and falls
10. 3:28 – quick & percussive
11. 4:11 – upbeat: a merry blues

DISC SIX
1. 2:30 – rolling train huffs & puffs
2. 2:49 – twisty medium tempo
3. 2:07 – funky uptempo robo-strut
4. 2:57 – uptempo: tricky yet sweet
5. 5:49 – introspective ballad
6. 4:22 – relaxed roll, playful edges
7. 2:54 – rough stuttering uptempo
8. 4:45 – lazy stepping stones
9. 5:11 – classic ballad, beautiful
10. 8:55 – exploratory, takes its time
11. 5:07 – very slow blues

[ Fo ] - November 2018

Track Listing
1. Locomotive   36. Bemsha Swing
2. Brilliant Corners   37. Blues Five Spot
3. Gallop's Gallop   38. Bye-Ya
4. Light Blue   39. Who Knows
5. Evidence   40. Green Chimneys
6. Crepuscule With Nellie   41. Blue Sphere
7. San Francisco Holiday   42. Ugly Beauty
8. Monk's Point   43. Oska T.
9. Shuffle Boil   44. Hackensack
10. Jackie-Ing   45. Ask Me Now
11. Criss Cross   46. I Mean You
12. Introspection   47. 52nd Street Theme
13. Functional   48. Something In Blue
14. We See   49. Nutty
15. Sixteen   50. Off Minor
16. Misterioso   51. Two-Timer
17. Humph   52. In Walked Bud
18. Teo   53. Monk's Mood
19. Hornin' In   54. Let's Call This
20. Raise Four   55. Let's Cool One
21. Skippy   56. Children's Song
22. Pannonica   57. Boo Boo's Birthday
23. Think Of One   58. Rhythm-A-Ning
24. Wll You Needn't   59. North Of The Sunset
25. Bolivar Blues   60. Epistrophy
26. Monk's Dream   61. Coming On The Hudson
27. Little Rootie Tootie   62. Bright Mississippi
28. Eronel   63. Trinkle Tinkle
29. Thelonious   64. Reflections
30. Ruby, My Dear   65. Brake's Sake
31. Four In One   66. Straight No Chaser
32. Blue Hawk   67. Friday The 13th
33. Stuffy Turkey   68. 'round Midnight
34. A Merrier Christmas   69. Work
35. Played Twice   70. Blue Monk