Thelonious Monk’s 7 Deadly Sins on the Bandstand
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Jazz saxophonist Steve Lacy was a diehard follower of Thelonious Monk. He wasn't just a fan, either; Lacy became known for his recorded renditions of Monk tunes and later played in Monk's band of the early '60s.
When the master spoke, Lacy listened -- and even wrote down Monk's words of wisdom.
Stay with us here, because another great saxophonist and music educator, Jamey Aebersold, recently shared some of Lacy's handwritten notes with the good folks at Steve Maxwell Drums, who in turn posted the notes on their website.
And we now share some favorites with you. We found the following seven bits of Monk wisdom particularly ageless and profound.
1. “Stop playing all those weird notes. Play the melody.”
2. “Don’t play the piano part, I’m playing that.”
3. “The inside of a tune (the bridge) is the part that makes the
outside sound good.”
4. “Don’t play everything or every time; let some things go by.”
5. “Stay in shape! Sometimes a musician waits for a gig and when it
comes, he’s out of shape and can’t make the gig.”
6. “Don’t sound [sic] anybody for a gig. Just be on the scene.”
7. “Just because you’re not a drummer, doesn’t mean you don’t have to keep time.”
No deadly sin, but our favorite: “You’ve got to dig it to dig it, you dig?”
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October 9th, 2009 - 09:21
brilliant – the mad man wasn’t quite so mad was he? useful advice for ANY discipline, including business
October 19th, 2009 - 18:41
Its great to get some advice from Monk on a guitar based site. He’s been an influence on my playing for years. Definitely a hero of mine!
October 19th, 2009 - 18:45
I just noticed another “tip” from the original notes that struck me, “A genius is the one most like himself.” Brew on that one for a while, reminds me of the temple at Delphi…… Anyone???
October 20th, 2009 - 12:40
Yeah man, they tried to make me hate african-american people too. Then I moved to Chicago and met some of the absolute most beautiful black people on the planet. Bar-none! they accepted me, even though I am a NUT, I mean certifiably, needs to be locked up NUT. They loved me and nurtured my guitar playing by putting me in a small gospel group and LOVED ME UNCONDITIONALLY. I CANNOT even bring myself to dislike ANYONE anymore,no matter what they look like, or what color they are.
November 14th, 2009 - 02:25
Wasn’t it Monk who said “without music, this world ain’t shit” ?