Danilo Perez: Evidence and Four in One

Monk's music can make a person uncomfortable. Even with the most basic blues forms, his off-kilter phrasing had that patting my head while rubbing my tummy kind of thing going on. Ugly beauty indeed! Danilo Perez takes the role of stunt pianist here, playing Evidence with the left hand, and Four In One with the right. Cynics might scoff at such a trick, yet the results are anything but gimmicky. With the center section swinging like mad on the double-composition hybrid, Perez cleanly illuminates the brilliance of Monk's music.