The Complete 1957 Riverside Recordings

Disc 1
1	Monk's Mood False Start 0:55
2	Monk's Mood 7:52
3	Crepuscule with Nellie 1 4:34
4	Crepuscule with Nellie previously unreleased / Take 2 4:42
5	Crepuscule with Nellie (Breakdown) 0:55
6	Blues for Tomorrow First Stereo Release 13:33
7	Crepuscule with Nellie Edited: Re-Takes 4 & 5 4:46
8	Crepuscule with Nellie Edited: Re-Take 6 4:39
9	Off Minor Take 4 5:15
10	Off Minor Take 5 5:07
Disc 2
1	Abide with Me previously unreleased / Take 1 0:54
2	Abide with Me 0:54
3	Epistrophy Short Version 3:09
4	Epistrophy 10:46
5	Well, You Needn't 1:26
6	Well, You Needn't 11:23
7	Ruby, My Dear 5:25
8	Ruby, My Dear 6:21
9	Nutty 6:38
10	Trinkle, Tinkle 6:39

Barnes & Noble

Recorded at the beginning of John Coltrane’s five-month tenure with Thelonious Monk, when the two men were still learning each other’s moves, the eight lengthy compositions here (most of which appeared on Monk’s Music and Thelonious Monk and John Coltrane, as well as on numerous reissues thereafter), constituted the only documentation of this transformative association for close to half a century. These studio sessions -- a drummerless trio with Monk, Coltrane, and bassist Wilbur Ware; a septet propelled by Art Blakey and pairing Coltrane with Coleman Hawkins, Monk’s early employer and supporter; and three legendary tracks by the first Five Spot quartet, with Shadow Wilson fueling the fire on drums -- were superseded in 2005 with the release of At Carnegie Hall, based on newly discovered, professional-quality tapes of two Monk-Coltrane sets from their fourth month together. This release collates the entire proceedings of the four studio sessions, including five takes of “Crepuscule with Nellie,” among them a breakdown take on which Monk falls asleep at the piano; a false start of “Monk’s Mood”; and an aborted run-through of “Well, You Needn’t.” More essential perhaps is the 24-bit digital remastering and a detailed, first-person account by producer Orrin Keepnews. Hearing Monk and Coltrane coalesce from the rather tentative readings of “Well, You Needn’t” and “Off Minor” to the assured mastery of “Ruby, My Dear,” “Nutty,” and “Trinkle, Tinkle” from the quartet sessions is nothing less than fascinating. Coleman Hawkins’s own reading of "Ruby My Dear" remains, and will forever be, a masterpiece of the canon. Ted Panken

All Music Guide

Hardcore jazzheads with no doubt be delighted with this double-disc set that includes all the recordings Thelonious Monk and John Coltrane did together in 1957 for Riverside. Never mind that the vast majority of this material has been issued several times. There are two cuts that have never appeared before: an alternate of "Crepuscule with Nellie" from the septet sessions for Monk's Music on June 25 and 26 ( with Gigi Gryce, Coleman Hawkins, bassist Wilbur Ware, and drummer Shadow Wilson), and an alternate of "Abide with Me" with just Trane, Hawkins, and Gryce. There are also two tracks -- one of them a false start with Ware and Coltrane -- of "Monk's Mood," recorded on April 12 for inclusion on the otherwise solo Thelonious Himself album. The remaining three cuts with Ware, Wilson, and Coltrane were taken form the At the Five Spot live recording. Orrin Keepnews compiled this collection and wrote a wonderful and insightful essay about recording this music. It was all arranged chronologically, meaning there are no less than five takes in total of "Crepuscule with Nellie" taking up the vast majority of disc one. For those who have to have absolutely everything. Thom Jurek

San Francisco Chronicle

Monk's jagged, harmonically challenging style was an ideal catalyst for Coltrane's free-flowing approach to improvisation, making for one of the most monumental matches in jazz history. Lee Hildebrand

Los Angeles Daily News

1/2 The packaging is first-rate, and producer Orrin Keepnews' insightful essay about the making of these sublime recordings is almost worth the price alone. Glenn Whipp