MONK'S MUSIC TRIO: Monk On Mondays

Monk's Music Trio

Monk On Mondays

© 2007 Boogie San Productions (837101342995)

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A classic, cohesive, swinging bebop piano trio that has now become the longest running Monk repertoire band in the history of Jazz.

notes

Monday's are Monk days at San Francisco's Simple Pleasure Cafe', where the Monk's Music Trio has been holding forth regularly since August 1999, making it the longest lasting of the Monk repertory bands in history of Jazz. During those eight years the firmly established unit under the leadership of veteran Chuck Bernstein and featuring musical director/pianist Si Perkoff, and bassist Sam Bevan, has developed a resounding rapport with the repertoire of Jazz's most iconoclastic composer, presenting personal interpretations of his tunes both familiar and obscure, that are true to the spirit of Monk while still showcasing their own individual talents. On "Monk on Mondays", the group's fourth CD, the trio demonstrates their remarkable command of the compositions in Monk's canon with thirteen new renditions of the pianist's pieces---including "Locomotive" one of the least performed and recorded Monk compositions.

A FEW THOUGHTS AND COMMENTS FROM CHUCK BERNSTEIN:

"Since August 23, 1999, "Monk's Music Trio" has been continuously performing two to three Mondays' a month at the
Simple Pleasures Cafe' in San Francisco. this cafe' is a marvelous old-fashioned, funky coffee house in the outer Richmond district of the city. While practicing your instrument and rehearsals are necessary, in my opinion, the best way to mature and develop as a jazz musician is in front of an audience. In that respect Ahmed Riad and his staff have always been gracious, supportive, and give us a positive environment in which to create and develop our interpretations of Thelonious Monk's music.
Over the years, I have always enjoyed rehearsing at Si Perkoff's house in Mill Valley. Two of the main reasons that make it such an enjoyable experience are that first, the room we practice in has wonderful acoustical properties, and second, I get to hear Si play on his beautiful 1906 Steinway grand piano. Given those two aspects, plus the fact that Si has recorded two of his own CDs there, I thought we could get excellent results, but it would also be a memorable experience. Just to be on the safe side, I had our engineer, Chris Seifert, come to Si's house and check out the acoustical properites of the room. After we got the go ahead from Chris, we checked our schedules, and found that August 2005 would be an ideal time to record.
To help reduce the anxieties of recording, get everyone in a relaxed state of mind, and get a good momentum going, I decided that, instead of recording the usual one or two days, we would have the luxury of four days to record our CD. As it turns out, that was a good decision, and all of us feel that, to date, this is our best trio recording. Our hope is that you enjoy listening to "Monk On Mondays" as much as we had recording it."
Chuck Bernstein
May 2007

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  • Great jazz from a trio that can do no wrong, a wonderful statement
    author: John Book, Music For America

    If you're a resident of San Francisco, then you may be at least be familiar with the Monk's Music Trio. The group, headed by drummer Chuck Bernstein, and featuring pianist Si Perkoff and bassist Sam Bevan, have been dedicated to the legacy of the late Thelonious Monk for over eight years. In that time they have played hundreds of shows and released a few recordings. Monk On Mondays (CMB) is their fourth album, and if you're a Monk head you will definitely get into what these guys are about. The one thing that stands out about this album is that, while they are Monk devotees, and they are playing Monk songs, they play in their own style so what you hear isn't just a watered down carbon-copy of the originals. Oh no, they do play in the spirit of Monk but also show off their own characteristics in each of these songs. The entire album was recorded live in the studio, so you get to hear the energy of the music and the musicians wanting to give the best performances they can, which can be heard in brilliant renditions of "Green Chimneys", "Straight No Chaser", and the album opener "Let's Call This". Even the most jaded Monk fan will find this album to be a delight, and in truth this trio could do no wrong, regardless of the music they choose to play. A wonderful statement.

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