Thelonious Monk: Straight, No Chaser [1988] (REGION 1) (NTSC)

Customer Reviews:

Seeing is believing.......2007-03-04

You'll come back again and again to the performances on this video, recorded in studio and on the European tour in 1968 with a hilariously under-rehearsed nonet - but, somehow, they pull it off. A few solo performances are the unforgettable highlights. But tell me, why do music documentary makers think we want to listen to a load of none-entities tell us how great someone is instead of just giving us the music? There's so little footage of Monk, I don't know why they don't just release what they have complete, without cropping it up with boring talking heads. Still, thank heaven it exists at all.

THE Monk documentary.......2005-03-01

Whenever we see jazz-history programs on TV, we see very little of Thelonious Monk; there's always that short footage of him wearing slim sunglasses, sitting on a fold-out chair playing the piano, and stomping his foot. I had never even heard Monk talk prior to this presentation of him ...it's a good thing there are subtitles ;)
Watching this highly informative and well presented 90-minute documentary about him and his music got me so excited that I had to throw on the old "Straight No Chaser" record when it was over - I guess I actually needed a chaser.
A common mistake in presentations of musical documentaries is that there isn't enough music; people usually talk over it, but that is NOT the case here; footage from recording sessions and concerts are distinctly kept apart from interviews, which is a big plus. Something that isn't much discussed here, though, are the highlights of Monk's career, i.e. when he had success with certain compositions or recordings,--or even which recordings that were successful--he's more presented "on the whole", even though the documentary basically is chronological. There is, however, a "Monk Career Highlights" feature in text, but it's very short; the career-highlight feature of executive producer Clint Eastwood is twice as long.
"Straight No Chaser" is probably the most informative documentary made of Monk so far. There's a short theatrical trailer, and subtitles in four different languages, plus this DVD has no problems with either audio or picture, which is nice and unusual. Highly recommended! 4.5 stars!

Essential viewing.......2004-12-18

Monk was a legend, and this movie further enhances his reputation as a mysterious, misunderstood, slightly troubled musical genius. Great to see the great pianist behind the scenes, especially in the studio with Teo Macero. I would like to have seen more uninterrupted live concert footage, but perhaps this is something that can be experienced elsewhere. That said, this is a DVD I will be watching again and again.

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