John Beasley has an impressive CV – work with Miles Davis, Freddie Hubbard, Herbie Hancock, Al Jarreau, Steely Dan and others, as well as extensive film (such as Spectre and Skyfall) and television soundtracks. He received two Grammy nominations for MONK’estra Vo¡. 1 and Vo¡. 2 respectively, while this third MONK’estra album, Plays John Beasley, sees the focus shifting to his own compositions, four Monk tunes and a classic each from Duke Ellington and Charlie Parker. While there's an element of ‘being what a big band should be’ in his often antiphonal writing, it is often offset by a quirkiness, or angularity, of melody associated with the Monk brand. Sometimes this can err towards quirkiness for quirkiness's sake, but the precise execution of these top pros, and a willingness to use unusual orchestral colours that although not central to Beasley's purpose, maintain interest in his ensembles. However, as each of the guest soloists marches out to the solo microphone for somewhat overlong features that split the arrangements in two, a star is docked for predictability