This LP was Thelonious Monk’s second album for Columbia Records after Monk’s Dream; much of it was recorded at the sessions which produced that album and Monk and his producer Teo Macero may have been holding their best stuff back, because it’s even better than Dream. The quartet of Monk, Rouse, Ore and Dunlop had been playing together almost five years by this point, and here they’re in perfect lockstep, brimming with confidence, whether tackling pop standards or re-shaping the leader’s own, singular compositions.

Thus, ‘Hackensack’ - a typically frenetic Monk original - opens proceedings by demonstrating the bandleader’s strength in a quartet environment. The solid rhythmic support of the trio seems to unfetter Monk, who’s given the confidence to experiment wildly, unleashing torrents of percussive inflections and intoxicating chord progressions. The title track, which subsequently became a Monk standard (and which was chosen as the ‘Castaway’s Favourite’ by legendary writer/photographer, and regular Jazzwise contributor Val Wilmer when she appeared on the BBC’s Desert Island Discs earlier this year) also reflects the ability of the backing musicians to keep up with the pianist’s jaw-dropping imaginative flourishes and rhythmic/harmonic diversions. The more straightforward ‘Tea for Two’ showcases Monk’s appreciation for the stride piano style of James P Johnson and Willie ‘The Lion’ Smith, but of course the tune is given a delightfuly elliptical twist.Also demonstrating Monk’s love of, and debt to, the stride pianists of an earlier era is ‘Don’t Blame Me’ with its dazzling extended runs up and down the keyboard.

Little more needs to be said about this classic recording, other than if you don’t have it in your collection, you need to acquire a copy pronto. And this great-sounding analogue LP – mastered by Ray Staff at AIR Studios – is your ideal opportunity to do so.