Grimace your assessment of these recordings is naive.
Of course the Blue Note recordings are ground breaking and the Riverside's show a focused mature artist.
The live working band recordings of Monk throughout the 60's are subtle, intense and sometimes wild and scary.... And these recordings presented in their entirety for the first time with the complete performances intact are beyond wonderful.
Also Monk's final trio recordings with Art Blakey and Al McKibbon ("Something in Blue" and "The Man I Love" on Black Lion)are as good as anything he ever recorded.... filled with humor and wisdom.
Of course the Blue Note recordings are ground breaking and the Riverside's show a focused mature artist.
The live working band recordings of Monk throughout the 60's are subtle, intense and sometimes wild and scary.... And these recordings presented in their entirety for the first time with the complete performances intact are beyond wonderful.
Also Monk's final trio recordings with Art Blakey and Al McKibbon ("Something in Blue" and "The Man I Love" on Black Lion)are as good as anything he ever recorded.... filled with humor and wisdom.