Thelonious Monk - 5 by Monk by 5

During his half-dozen years at Riverside, Thelonious Monk recorded in a wide variety of settings, but this is his only use of the trumpet/tenor saxophone/rhythm lineup that was the most common recording-studio format of the post-bop era. The personnel here was Monk's 1959 working group (with Charlie Rouse close to the start of his decade-long association with the pianist), plus one guest. That guest was Thad Jones, then best known as a member of the Count Basie Orchestra and one of a very select group of horn men (Clark Terry and Donald Byrd were others) who could play his music with accuracy and also with enough fire and imagination to satisfy Thelonious.

Originally released in 1959.

Thelonious Monk, piano
Sam Jones, bass
Thad Jones, cornet
Art Taylor, drums