Thelonious Monk - Brilliant Corners (1957) 

UPC: 888072402041
Label: CRAFT RECORDINGS
Format: LP
Release Date: May 23, 2025
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Michael Fremer Rated 11/10 Music, 10/10 Sound!

Thelonious Monk's Brilliant Corners is a landmark title in the pianist's celebrated catalog. The 1957 album not only introduces several Monk originals, but also features an all-star lineup, including Sonny Rollins, Max Roach and Paul ChaBrilliant.

Small Batch Series features lacquers cut from the original tapes (AAA) by Bernie Grundman and pressed on 180g vinyl at RTI using Neotech's VR900 compound. This one-step lacquer process (as opposed to the standard three-step process) allows for the utmost level of musical detail, clarity and dynamics while reducing the amount of surface noise on the record.

Each copy is individually numbered and encased in a foil-stamped, linen-wrapped slipcase featuring an acrylic inset of the original artwork. Housed in a reproduction of the album's original tip-on jacket from Riverside Records and protected by an archival-quality inner sleeve. New liner notes from Ashley Kahn completes the package.

Released in April 1957, Brilliant Corners was transformative for Monk's career, delivering him a major comeback. The album was met with wide acclaim, including from DownBeat's Nat Hentoff, who proclaimed it "Riverside's most important modern jazz LP to date." In 2003, the album was among the first 50 recordings chosen for the Library of Congress's National Recording Registry, while over the decades, Brilliant Corners has ranked regularly as an essential jazz title.

• Numbered, Limited Edition
• Small Batch Series
• Neotech VR900 180g Vinyl LP
• One-Step Lacquer Process
• All-Analog Mastering by Bernie Grundman from the Original Master Tapes
• Mono
• Foil-Stamped, Linen-Wrapped Slipcase
• Reproduction of the Original Tip-On Jacket from Riverside Records
• Archival Quality Inner Sleeve
• Liner Notes by Ashley Kahn

TRACK LIST:

Side 1:

1. Brilliant Corners
2. Ba-Lue Bolivar Ba-Lues-are

Side 2:

1. Pannonica
2. I Surrender, Dear
3. Bemsha Swing