Johnny Griffin
Tenor Sax Solo on
Misterioso

About

Johnny Griffin's tenor saxophone solo is the first of two improvisations on this performance of the album's title track. Taking ten choruses of the 12-bar blues in B-flat at a slow 80 BPM, Griffin delivers a monumental solo that ranks among his finest recorded work. The deliberate tempo allows his improvisations to unfold with unusual breadth and detail, his playing ranging from whispered, introspective passages to fierce, declarative statements. The ten-chorus span gives this solo an epic quality, each chorus revealing new facets of Griffin's approach to Monk's distinctive blues framework.

Johnny Griffin was 29 to 30 years old at the time.