John Coltrane 100: Olé & Monk

# How these two records grabbed one listener

In a mid-1990s summer between college and whatever came next, Paul Acquaro found a pile of records in a shared house. With a working turntable and time to listen, he encountered two Coltrane records that shaped his appreciation: Olé and Thelonious Monk with John Coltrane.

Olé — a modal, rhythmically dense gateway

The B-side contains "Dahomey Dance" and "Aisha," tunes that felt more immediately familiar to Acquaro as a jazz listener, but it was the A-side's hook and rhythmic density that pulled him further into Coltrane's sound. The recording features long-time associates Tyner and Jones, plus bassists Reggie Workman and Art Davis.

Thelonious Monk with John Coltrane — intimacy and contrast

While hunting for a later, more experimental Coltrane recording, Acquaro paused on Thelonious Monk with John Coltrane. Released in 1961 on Jazzland but recorded in 1957–58, the set captures Monk's repertoire with Coltrane in changing rhythm sections. The author writes that two seconds of the opening "Ruby, My Dear" made him stop and listen.

"Ruby, My Dear" is described as slow, melancholic, and instantly romantic, with a yearning saxophone carrying the melody. Faster numbers such as "Tinkle, Tinkle" give Coltrane room to display the "sheets of sound" technique he's known for, while "Nutty" offers flowing solos punctuated by reminders of the head. The album documents a significant period when Coltrane, after cleaning himself up and leaving Miles Davis' group, worked closely with Monk during a celebrated residency at the Five Spot in New York.

Acquaro frames the Monk record as a bookend to the exploratory urges heard on Olé: where Olé gestured toward modal expansion and new textures, the Monk sessions reveal Coltrane's melodic sensitivity and his ability to operate within Monk's distinctive rhythmic and harmonic world.

Why these records matter to the writer

Listening to them in sequence showed Acquaro how one artist's work can hold contrasting approaches and still feel connected — an entry path for a listener unsure where to begin with Coltrane's vast catalogue.