Steve Lacy/Roswell Rudd

Steve Lacy/Roswell Rudd: Monk's Dream

by Mark Corroto
April 1, 2000

I ran a coffeehouse and performance space in the early nineties, the only requirement I had of the bands that performed is that they must play a Thelonious Monk tune. Most worked up a rendition of the blues-based “Straight, No Chaser” rather than tackle the difficult “Epistrophy.” For me, it was the test of their ability to play modern jazz, not just fake it. For many listeners, Monk is the measuring stick for grading the latest greatest jazz star. But ...