Epistrophy

Epistrophy

Thelonious Monk

“Epistrophy” was the first tune copyrighted by Thelonious Monk. It is a relatively atonal 32-bar tune in ABCB-form, though the key center is C♯. The main melodic theme was composed by Kenny Clarke, after experimenting with fingerings on the ukulele, and the chords were written by Monk. The tune appears on almost every single live album by Monk, as it was the closing tune of each set from Monk’s days at Minton’s Playhouse onwards.

The first recording was by Cootie Williams on April 1, 1942, and it was later recorded by Clarke’s band on September 5, 1946. It was not recorded by Monk before July 2, 1948, for the Wizard of the Vibes sessions, featuring Milt Jackson. It was later recorded for Monk’s Music and was an outtake from the It’s Monk’s Time sessions.