I picked up this jazz CD ...

... Thelonius Monk Quartet with John Coltrane at Carnegie Hall and it rocks my face off.

I mean ... no, it's not real hard of anything, it is just great music. I've always liked jazz but never really explored too much. I just liked what I heard. This CD is cool because you've got two greats just playing and enjoying themselves. The drums and bass stay back throughout the whole thing (they don't solo) and let Monk and Coltrane just play. And they do.

The piano's often haunting and many times you have no idea what he's doing. Sometimes it's out there, but Monk always sort of plays with the melody. Coltrane just lays down notes like crazy. But somehow they all fit. He does the high-speed runs and just keeps riffing on them.

The songs are great, especially because I'm pretty sure I played a couple of them back in clarinet lessons. Good stuff.