Thelonious Monk once told Frank London Brown that "everything I play is different, different melody, different harmony, different structure. Each piece is different from the other one. I have a standard, and when the song tells a story, when it gets a certain sound then it's through, completed."

The most important jazz composer without doubt was Duke Ellington, but not far behind the Duke was Thelonious Monk. Monk, quite rightly so, has always been looked upon as a non-conformist, yet the tunes he wrote since the 1940s were played by a wide range of musicians of the day: Cootie Williams, Charlie Parker, Bud Powell, Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis. 31 tracks dating from 1941-51 are presented on this 2 CD set and Monk is supported by the likes of Coleman Hawkins, Art Blakey, Charlie Christian and Milt Jackson.

CD 1:
[1] SWING TO BOP (Christian) 1941
[2] STOMPING AT THE SAVOY (Goodman, Sampson, Webb) 1941
[3] RECOLLECTIONS (Thomas) 1944
[4] DRIFTING ON A REED (Thomas) 1944
[5] FLYIN HAWK (Thomas) 1944
[6] ON THE BEAN (Thomas) 1944
[7] HUMPH (Monk) 1948
[8] EVONCE (Sulieman, Quebec) 1947
[9] SUBURBAN EYES (Quebec) 1947
[10] THELONIOUS (Monk) 1947
[11] NICE WORK IF YOU CAN GET IT (Gershwin) 1947
[12] RUBY MY DEAR (Monk) 1947
[13] WELL YOU NEEDNT (Monk) 1947
[14] APRIL IN PARIS (Duke, Harburg) 1947

CD 2:
[1] OFF MINOR (Monk) 1947
[2] IN WALKED BUD Monk 1947
[3] MONKS MOOD (Monk) 1947
[4] WHO KNOWS (Monk) 1947
[5] ROUND ABOUT MIDNIGHT (Monk) 1947
[6] ALL THE THINGS YOU ARE (Hammerstein, Kern) 1948
[7] I SHOULD CARE (Cahn, Stordahl, Weston) 1948
[8] EVIDENCE (Monk) 1948
[9] MISTERIOSO (Monk) 1948
[10] EPISTROPHY (Monk, Clarke) 1948
[11] I MEAN YOU (Monk) 1948
[12] FOUR IN ONE (Monk) 1951
[13] CRISS CROSS (Monk) 1951
[14] ERONEL (Monk) 1951
[15] STRAIGHT NO CHASER (Monk) 1951
[16] ASK ME NOW (Monk) 1951
[17] WILLOW WEEP FOR ME (Ronnell) 1951

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