Thelonious Monk & "Meet Me Tonight in Dreamland"

[Guy Berger]

I had the following exchange on the site-which-must-not-be-named:

Guy

In comment #1394902 xxxx wrote something like this:

"Dreamland" is a.k.a. "Unidentified Solo Piano" and is the first track on Disc 8 of Thelonious Monk: The Complete Riverside Recordings. I guess Motian gave it the title "Dreamland". It's on "I Have the Room Above Her". I saw Motian's chart for this tune at the Vanguard a couple of years ago. The title on the chart was "Monk Played This".

This is the tune "Meet Me Tonight in Dreamland", actually written by Leo Friedman and Beth Slater Witson. Monk also recorded it on the London Collection. I would never have known Monk didn't record it except in his review of the Motian album, Kevin Whitehead mentioned its origins.

other poster

That's interesting but I don't think it solves the mystery. The tune in question —as played by Monk on the London Collection and the Complete Riverside Recordings and as played by Motian — doesn't resemble the tune on this sheet music for Friedman and Wilson's "Meet Me Tonight In Dreamland":

http://history.amusement-parks.com/meetme.htm

Perhaps this tune was misidentified as the Friedman/Wilson piece on the London Collection which is why Motian called it "Dreamland" and credited Monk as the composer

Any thoughts? The tune doesn't sound like a Monk composition, IMHO.

Guy

Edited October 24, 2006 by Guy