Thelonius Monk’s advice to saxophonist Steve Lacy (1960)

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A Genius is the one most like himself.
– Thelonius Monk

Thelonius Monk’s advice to saxophonist Steve Lacy (1960)

15 Comments leave a comment below

  1. Being in love with all things “beat” generation, this is PRETTY much the best thing I’ve seen all month. Someone needs to help me start a revival of using the word “DIG”

  2. i love seeing stuff like this! thanks!

  3. amazing quote!! also love his appreciation for modern design…
    “what you don’t play can be more important than what you do”.

  4. This is amazing. As a designer, musician, and control freak… this definitely hit home haha. Where did you find this?

  5. Dear Miss Eisenberg,

    WHY ARE YOU SO HOT?

    Sincerely,
    Drew

  6. Can you site where this originated from?
    I’m so curious!
    thanks
    susan

  7. I found this at Eric Alba’s blog. (See link at the bottom of the post)

  8. “You have to dig it to dig it, you dig.”
    Why is it that the simplest things are the most meaningful.

    And I have a had time liking white people myself. and I’m white.

  9. “You have to dig it to dig it, you dig.”
    Why is it that the simplest things are the most meaningful.

    And I have a hard time liking white people myself. and I’m white.

    (I should read my stuff before posting)

  10. “It’s always night, or we wouldn’t need light” as a quote by Thelonius Monk is set at the begin of the book I’m just reading (Against the day by Thomas Pynchon).

  11. Great post, one of my hero’s. You really do it all here.

  12. Thats to much Tanks man you are great!

  13. the truth is that you are cruel Josesito. so that to monk attack my friend steve ?
    perhaps lacy jus´t wants to adorn those coarse and abrupt and sometimes distorcionantes notes of my beloved and admired monk. anyway ……….I am nobody to say such thing, that music they play that night .only people who lived and shared that divine and wonderful moment. knows.
    talvez lacy was nostalgic and monk aggressive, that does not mean that thelonius is superior .
    . the musicians express their feelings, I publish, rather the one listens to that it, simply it enjoys and it is overcome with notes,ritmo y sonidos =sounds.
    anyway at stv lacy watches what beams in front of a great pianist of that know talaje.ya it. latinglish
    my opinion.
    carlito estrada

  14. these two pages of scribbled words changed my life forever. i don’t know if it’s the actual words, or the man who wrote them. i think maybe it’s both. any one who plays jazz should read this. it was like i got a pep talk and i didn’t know i needed one. i can’t believe i’ve been playing drums for 30 years and i never looked at “it” this way. my life has changed and tonight……. i played better.

    all day joey k.

  15. Hi there just wanted to give you a quick heads up. The text in
    your article seem to be running off the screen in Ie. I’m not sure if this is a format issue or something to do with browser compatibility but I figured I’d
    post to let you know. The design look great though! Hope you
    get the problem fixed soon. Many thanks