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Genius Of Modern Music, Vol. 1 (Blue Note Classic Vinyl Series)[LP]

LP

Thelonious Monk T. S. Monk Format: Vinyl
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 249 ratings
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Track Listings

1 'Round Midnight
2 Off Minor
3 Ruby My Dear
4 I Mean You
5 April in Paris
6 In Walked Bud
7 Thelonious
8 Epistrophy
9 Misterioso
10 Well You Needn't
11 Introspection
12 Humph

Editorial Reviews

Legendary pianist and composer Thelonious Monk made his earliest recordings as a leader for Blue Note in 1947-48 as heard on the 1956 compilation Genius of Modern Music, Volume One (Blue Note 1510), released as part of the 1500 series featuring timeless Monk compositions including "'Round Midnight," "Ruby My Dear," "In Walked Bud," and "Well You Needn't." Blue Note Classic Vinyl Series is all-analog, mastered by Kevin Gray from the original master tapes, and pressed on 180-gram vinyl at Optimal.

Product details

  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 12.32 x 12.28 x 0.16 inches; 10.4 ounces
  • Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ Blue Note
  • Original Release Date ‏ : ‎ 2022
  • Date First Available ‏ : ‎ October 21, 2022
  • Label ‏ : ‎ Blue Note
  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0BJVVSLC1
  • Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ USA
  • Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 249 ratings

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
249 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

MusikNonStop
5.0 out of 5 stars A Historic CD!
Reviewed in the United States on March 11, 2024
Verified Purchase
Must have as a Jazz lover!
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Danny W.
5.0 out of 5 stars Love this album!
Reviewed in the United States on October 12, 2023
Verified Purchase
I have liked jazz all of my life but only recently started collecting seriously. This has got to be one of my favorites. Thelonius Monk really was a standout pianist. Get this album, you won’t regret it.
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Transfigured Knight
5.0 out of 5 stars Classic Monk Recordings
Reviewed in the United States on October 28, 2008
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Anyone who collects Thelonious Monk should or probably already owns his Blue Note discography, which didn't really consist of that many recordings. I can only suggest you pick up "Genius Of Modern Music, Volumes 1 and 2" together instead of "The Complete Blue Note Recordings." The sound quality is much better on these single disc collections. The other Blue Note recordings that you should pick up are Sonny Rollins' release simply called "Volume 2" and Monk's "Discovery: Live At The Five Spot" and the newly discovered "Thelonious Monk Quartet with John Coltrane: Live At Carnegie Hall," which is an amazing discovery with superb sound quality. All of these albums you can find at reasonable prices.

"Genius Of Modern Music, Vol. 1" like the second volume, captures Monk at the very beginning of his career. Most of these recordings are rough sketches and aren't quite as defined as his later work for Prestige, Riverside, and Columbia, but they offer an insight into a younger Monk and the listener is treated to some of the most innovative jazz music of all time. You're hearing a young master at work with these recordings.

I consider these Blue Note records essential to jazz fans because they show his beginnings as a unique pianist and composer. They also show how unconventional he was with his use of space, angular melodies, and unorthodox harmonies.

I can't stress how important these Blue Note releases are. If you're a fan of Monk, then you should get your hands on everything this madman has done, but start with these albums.
11 people found this helpful
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Jason Smith
5.0 out of 5 stars Great sound on a 70 year old recording!
Reviewed in the United States on October 11, 2012
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I am reviewing this more for the DOXY reissue and the sound of the vinyl rather than the music itself. Of course everyone who knows anything about jazz (and I don't know that much!) knows this is an important recording. I have just been getting into vinyl lately, and this album is exactly what I was looking for in my quest for a more organic sound. On my Thorens 166 turntable this DOXY reissue brings Monk and his colleagues into my living room. There's a slight brightness to the sound that I chalk up to the original recording and maybe my preamp which needs upgrading (I have to turn the treble down to -1) and there's a small presence of tape hiss, but all of this is forgivable considering the age of the recording. What strikes me the most listening to this is that you can hear Monk's humming in the background. You just get a feeling that you are a fly on the wall at some of the most important studio sessions in jazz history. Put this album on your must have list. Get the 2 disc (volume 1 and 2) 180 gram reissue! On the down side, though not a big deal, it would have been better if the album was a gatefold, as both discs have to fit in the same housing, but I guess they wanted to stick to the look of the original.
One person found this helpful
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Fred C.
4.0 out of 5 stars Jazz Images GOMM 2-CD Set: Faded but enjoyable
Reviewed in the United States on September 15, 2023
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The main problem with CDs is that they can be copied exactly by ripping them with error-correction. So, the best versions of some recordings are reserved for LPs to allow the copyright holder to retain control over the best version. Since Monk's music is classic, I tend to doubt that the best versions are put on CD in any case. According to an Amazon review of the RVG-series Genius LP and CD by "Igloo," the LP sounds better than the CD, and he indicated that he was aware that CDs have the potential to sound as good as LPs (actually, better), so he seems to be unbiased. However, he didn't seem to understand that the recordings put on some CDs are deliberately degraded, or he was using a cover-story. There are many ways to degrade a recording for CD, but in a few cases, the polarity is simply inverted, which can be corrected.

Blue Note used the recording studios at WOR, which was at the time a massive operation with the best gear and some of the best recording engineers. Monk's 1947 Blue Note recording-sessions would have been recorded to disc (perhaps two, since WOR typically cut two discs in parallel at the time). His later Blue Note sessions were apparently recorded to disc and tape, because WOR typically recorded to disc and tape in parallel at that time. I've seen references to both being used as sources for particular releases. Discs were preferred for quality, and tapes for the ability to edit them. Stereo apparently wasn't available at the time. [1]

Initially, I was disappointed in the sound quality of this CD-set, which is faded and doesn't have much in the way of lows, highs, or dynamic range in general, although it's better in some places. But when I played the first CD after a stressful day, I went into an alpha state and really enjoyed the music, despite the faded sound quality.

It wasn't until I got a Zen DAC V2 that realized how perfectly "analog" CDs can sound. When playing United We Swing by the Wynton Marsalis Septet through the Zen, I heard a high end on par with moving coil cartridges playing 45 RPM direct-to-disc LPs. Before using the Zen, I was using a Topping D10s, which sounds like a toy compared to the Zen. For details on the Zen and the TI/Burr-Brown Advanced Segment DAC-chip used in the Zen, see my review at AudioCleanAndCheap<dot>blogspot<dot>com.

Notes

[1] According to A World Of Recording at WOR in the February 1952 edition of Audio Record (available online as Audio-Record-1952-02.pdf):

"The WOR Recording Studios were opened in 1942-with a full complement of what was at that time the finest disc recording equipment obtainable. FOR THE NEXT SIX YEARS THE ENTIRE OPERATION WAS ON A DISC BASIS. [So, Monk's 1947 sessions would have been recorded to disc only.] Then, in 1945, tape entered the picture. It was at first tried out on an experimental basis, but later on, as the quality of both the tape and the recording equipment was improved, this phase of the operation grew rapidly in importance. And today. the recording work done here is about equally divided between discs and tape. During this period of evolution, the disc recording end of the business did not remain static either. For as quickly as improvements in disc equipment were made available, they were put into use at WOR, to keep the quality of the recorded sound at the highest level obtainable.
[...]
"Mr. Ralph Schlegel, WOR's Recording Supervisor, believes that the studio's operation as carried on today, with a fairly equal division of load between tape and disc recording, is pretty well stabilized, and will continue on that basis for a long time to come. IN HIS OPINION, THE LACQUER DISC STILL REPRESENTS THE FINEST AVAILABLE MEDIUM FOR TOP QUALITY RECORDING AND REPRODUCTION AND FOR PERMANENT STORAGE OF VALUABLE RECORDINGS. Tape, on the other hand, with its easy editing and very high quality standards, is the preferable medium for many types of recording work carried on in any large studio operation. Many clients prefer to use tape, even though the cost for a given program time is considerably higher - largely because changes and corrections can he made so easily after the recording is completed.
[...]
"Where previously double discs were cut on every recording, it is now the usual practice to make one disc and one tape. Sometimes double tapes are made, with no disc recording at all. Tape recordings at WOR are made at 7, 15 or 30 inch speed, with about 90 per cent of the work done at 15 inches per second. Studios and equipment for making high fidelity sound on film, with complete services for advertising agencies and TV producers are now being planned."

So, Monk's post-1947 Blue Note sessions were apparently recorded to disc and tape. Some releases were made from the original tape, and others were made from the disc-recording. In about 2000, Rudy Van Gelder, a famous recording engineer, made 24-bit digital copies of the original disc recordings, and these were released on two LPs and two CDs. Based on the aforementioned review of GOMM-1, the LP is excellent, but the CD isn't nearly as good, and I suspect that it was deliberately degraded.
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Top reviews from other countries

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Adagio
5.0 out of 5 stars This review is for Genius Of Modern Music (Blue Note Classic Series)
Reviewed in Canada on May 21, 2023
Verified Purchase
Probably goes without saying that this music is essential, so this is a review of the product and shipping quality. Ordered with three other albums
1) Each LP Individually protected within a cardboard sleeve
2) Outer sleeve in perfect condition, not a single crease
3) Vinyl perfectly fat
4) Completely noise free pressing (playing with sensitive Ortofon 2M Black)
5) Mastering is really good. (as per usual Kevin Gary)
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Ispettore Morse
5.0 out of 5 stars Per capire il jazz
Reviewed in Italy on August 1, 2022
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Indispensabile.
One person found this helpful
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igloo
5.0 out of 5 stars Vinyl 5* tremendous sound quality CD 2* Indifferent, muted, muffled, lifeless
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 12, 2022
Verified Purchase
(CD review after vinyl review)
Vinyl Review: Blue Note Classic Series
Cover: Reasonable card stock, crisp clear images and typography
Liner: Poly-lined paper
Vinyl: Flat, silent, no visible defects plays very well

5* recording, this is a fabulous sounding recording whose only fault is that it can sound a little brittle at times. There is however a clarity, power and punch to the fabulous music.

• Clarity - outstanding
• Channel separation - Mono
• Channel balance – excellent, spacious, airy, instruments well spaced despite being a mono recording
• Sound Stage – very deep and detailed but it’s mono so all centre BUT has a lot of projection into the room
• Distortion – non audible
• Compression – excellent frequency & dynamic range
• Atmosphere – intimate and personal, very up-close
• Bass – low frequencies – rich, warm and detailed. The drums are very sparse
• Treble – high frequencies – the piano sound is excellent having richness, tone & decay. The piano has a lot of attack and clarity. On the tracks with horns their sound is good but on occasion the vibes can sound brittle and a touch delicate
• Vocals – None but Monk can be clearly heard at times

I have not set out to write reviews of the music content as “beauty is in the ears of the listener”. These reviews are about the quality (or not) of the recorded sound. To read about how the reviews are done please see my profile.

As a general rule of thumb recordings from the 1960’s, 70’s and 80’s are nearly always better on the original vinyl. Remasters often fail to please as it’s just not possible to make a silk purse from a sows ear, i.e. the original recording lacks the necessary detail to be processed digitally and show an audible improvement. Indeed such processing can make the sound worse.

Modern recordings which have been processed digitally from start to finish can be as good as vinyl. CD’s are often unfairly criticised for being poor quality. This is not the case, it is the original recording or the process which is to blame. Modern “remasters” can both enhance and degrade a recording. The statement GIGO (Garbage In Garbage Out) is the limiting factor. Ignore this at your cost.

CD Review: Blue Note RVG edition 2001

Whilst the music is great not so the sound quality, this compilation has suffered in the making, the sound is flat and lifeless. The bass and drum sound is poor whilst the piano and horns lack crispness and fail to soar, sounds as if very limited. An unappealing recording which detracts from the music.

I have not set out to write reviews of the music content as “beauty is in the ears of the listener”. These reviews are about the quality (or not) of the recorded sound. To read about how the reviews are done please see my profile.

• Clarity - OK
• Channel separation – None Mono
• Channel balance – None mono
• Sound Stage – limited as a mono recording, little depth or projected image
• Distortion – non audible
• Compression – only reasonable frequency range, fails to soar, sounds muted and muffled
• Atmosphere – none to speak of, no sense of space or place
• Bass – low frequencies – indifferent, the acoustic bass is audible as are the drums but they sound flat and muted, just no life in the sound?
• Treble – high frequencies – The horns sound constrained, the cymbal sound is poor, the instruments fail to soar, the piano sound is on the whole indifferent
• Vocals - none

As a general rule of thumb recordings from the 1960’s, 70’s and 80’s are nearly always better on the original vinyl. Remasters often fail to please as it’s just not possible to make a silk purse from a sows ear, i.e. the original recording lacks the necessary detail to be processed digitally and show an audible improvement. Indeed such processing can make the sound worse.

Modern recordings which have been processed digitally from start to finish can be as good as vinyl. CD’s are often unfairly criticised for being poor quality. This is not the case, it is the original recording or the process which is to blame. Modern “remasters” can both enhance and degrade a recording. The statement GIGO (Garbage In Garbage Out) is the limiting factor. Ignore this at your cost.
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I JL.I
5.0 out of 5 stars Magnifico
Reviewed in Mexico on June 1, 2017
Verified Purchase
Excelente álbum, la calidad de audio es extraordinaria y el precio fue muy bueno, sin duda alguna; una muy buena compra.
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アツク
5.0 out of 5 stars 購入して良かったです
Reviewed in Japan on April 23, 2023
Verified Purchase
モンクのアルバム気に入ってます
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