"Rootie Tootie" is destroyed by an overwrought brass section that completely drowns Monk. "Consecutive Seconds" ? one of the two compositions penned by producer Teo Macero ? is simply abysmal. If this was an attempt to get Monk to play soul music, it failed. It does succeed in sounding embarrassingly dated, however. Monk's genius shines through on some of the more sensible and sensitive arrangements, such as "Reflections," "Monk's Point," and the surprisingly tasteful "Brilliant Corners." The 1994 CD edition adds two performances not featured on the vinyl incarnation. "Blue Monk" features a stirring solo from Monk. "'Round Midnight" is a previously unissued solo side cut at the Monk's Blues sessions. The sheer brilliance in Monk's emotive and seemingly frustrated intonations may well be an exorcism for the sins of the rest of the album.