#billholman

Bill Holman – tenor saxophone Mel Lewis – drums Jimmy Rowles – piano Lee Katzman – trumpet Wilford Middlebrook – bass

Kicking back on day one of my weekend, alone, except for my Oppo 105D playing this superb XRCD of Bill Holman’s arrangements of ten tunes by the immortal Thelonious Monk in a big band setting. This is how Monk should have been handled all along. Real arrangements designed to highlight the uniqueness of Monk’s compositions - not just vehicles for solos. Yes, there are wonderful solos in here, but always done in service of the music of Monk. Released in 1997, this music still sounds as fresh as both the day Monk wrote the tunes and Holman arranged them. As the quote from jazz critic Doug Ramsey notes: “My conclusion is that Willis Leonard Holmanis a wonder. Monk should have stuck around for this one.” Truer words were never written. This is a fabulous disc of superb arrangements of one of America’s iconic jazz writers. The sound is superb. I can’t recommend this XRCD highly enough. Find a copy if you don’t already have one. And if you do, it high time you pulled off the shelf and gave it a spin. #xrcd #billholman #jazz #theloniousmonk #music #redbook #digitalmusic #stereo #audio #highendaudio #audiophilerecording #audiophile https://www.instagram.com/p/CA8X1TMpDKp/?igshid=1vji2whsuobm9

#bobcooper #billholman #frankrosolino #kentonpresents 4xCD #mosaicrecords #boxset #jazz (at Siren Records) https://www.instagram.com/p/ByGNjgvJIYE/?igshid=16ja1llznx5v7