Thelonious Monk, music · Written in his early years at Minton's Playhouse, New York · Recorded by Monk for Blue Note, 1947
Well You Needn't
Thelonious Monk wrote Well You Needn't in 1944; the title comes from a reply by his student Charlie Beamon. Its A sections rock between two chords a half step apart, and the tune leaves soloists plenty of material. You can hear it on records by Monk, Miles Davis, Cannonball Adderley, Kenny Burrell and Emmet Cohen.
▶ Plays the whole path in order, one recording after another.
- 1 Learn the song Thelonious Monk Trio✓
- 2 Hear a horn quintet The Miles Davis Quintet✓
- 3 Hear Monk's quartet live Thelonious Monk Quartet✓
- 4 Hear an alto sax lead The Cannonball Adderley Quintet✓
- 5 Hear a guitar trio Kenny Burrell Trio✓
- 6 Hear a piano trio Phineas Newborn Jr. Trio✓
- 7 Hear a sung version Carmen McRae✓
- 8 Hear a recent version Emmet Cohen feat. Ron Carter, Jeremy Pelt and Joe Farnsworth✓
How the tune works
Well You Needn't runs 32 bars in AABA form, in F. Each A section lasts eight bars: F7 and G♭7 alternate for six bars, then F7 holds for the last two. The bridge moves by half steps through dominant chords and lands on C7, which leads back to F. Monk's own bridge opens with two bars of D♭7 and two of D7, then runs E♭7 to E7, E♭7 to D7, D♭7 to C7 and B7 to C7. The version Miles Davis made popular opens on G7 and A♭7 instead and ends G7 to C7. Published charts write these as dominant sevenths, while the transcription of Monk's 1947 take voices the bridge as major sevenths and sixths.
The changes in F, with Monk's own bridge. The A sections alternate F7 and G♭7, and the bridge climbs and falls by half steps.
The A sections follow The Real Book as shown in the Jazz-hitz article: F7 and G♭7 alternate for six bars, then F7 holds for two. Other charts write major sevenths or sixths there. The bridge is Monk's own, as Learn Jazz Standards lists it, and its roots match the transcription of Monk's 1947 solo in the same article. That transcription labels bar 24 as C7 alone, while Learn Jazz Standards writes B7 C7. The bridge Miles Davis made popular reads G7, G7, A♭7, A♭7, A7 B♭7, B7 B♭7, A7 A♭7, G7 C7. Published charts write the bridge chords as dominant sevenths, while the 1947 transcription voices them as major sevenths and sixths. Use the key buttons to move the chart to the key you play in.
Listen in this order
Play all 8 on YouTube ↗You hear Monk's own trio first, then the Miles Davis quintet and Monk's quartet live in 1965. An alto-led band, a guitar trio, a piano trio, a singer and a 2025 quartet follow.
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Step 1 · Learn the song Now playing
Thelonious Monk Trio 1947
Blue Note 543 single
Couldn't play this one here. Try the links below.
- Listen for
- In the first A section, Monk plays the melody as a single line while the bass alternates the root and fifth of each chord. In the second A section he plays the melody an octave lower and adds a left-hand line.
- Try this
- Play the root and fifth of F7 in your left hand for one bar, then the root and fifth of G♭7 for the next bar. Keep alternating through the eight bars of an A section, and add the right hand when the left feels steady.
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Step 2 · Hear a horn quintet Now playing
The Miles Davis Quintet 1956
Steamin' with the Miles Davis Quintet
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- Listen for
- Count the 32-bar choruses as Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Red Garland and Paul Chambers each solo. At about 237 beats a minute, one chorus lasts about half a minute.
- Try this
- Play F7 for one bar and G♭7 for the next through the first eight bars of the head. The tempo is very fast, so slow the recording to half speed first if you need to.
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Step 3 · Hear Monk's quartet live Now playing
Thelonious Monk Quartet 1965
“Well, You Needn't (Live at Brandeis University)”, Misterioso
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- Listen for
- Charlie Rouse's tenor sax joins Monk's piano, so the band has a horn that the 1947 trio did not. Count the 32-bar choruses and tap on bar 17 each time the bridge returns.
- Try this
- Play only the A sections of the chart with the recording, F7 for one bar and G♭7 for the next, and rest through the bridge until the next chorus starts.
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Step 4 · Hear an alto sax lead Now playing
The Cannonball Adderley Quintet 1961
The Cannonball Adderley Quintet Plus
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- Listen for
- Cannonball Adderley plays alto sax and Nat Adderley plays cornet. Victor Feldman adds vibraphone, so listen for it alongside Wynton Kelly's piano.
- Try this
- Loop the bridge from the chart, bars 17 to 24, one chord per bar (two chords where the chart shows two). Start slowly and speed up when the changes feel familiar.
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Step 5 · Hear a guitar trio Now playing
Kenny Burrell Trio 1959
“Well You Needn't (Live at the Village Vanguard, New York / 1959)”, A Night at the Vanguard
Couldn't play this one here. Try the links below.
- Listen for
- With no piano or horn, the guitar and bass carry the chords. Count the 32-bar choruses and tap bar 17 as each bridge arrives.
- Try this
- Pick one three-note shape for F7 and slide the same shape up a half step for G♭7. Alternate the two bar by bar through an A section.
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Step 6 · Hear a piano trio Now playing
Phineas Newborn Jr. Trio 1962
“Well, You Needn't”, The Great Jazz Piano of Phineas Newborn Jr.
Couldn't play this one here. Try the links below.
- Listen for
- Piano, bass and drums play it with no horns, the same kind of lineup as Monk's 1947 take. Listen to the A sections first, then count to bar 17 for the bridge.
- Try this
- Play the melody and the chart's chords for one chorus. If the melody is too fast, play only the chords, one per bar, and add the melody later.
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Step 7 · Hear a sung version Now playing
Carmen McRae 1988
“It's Over Now”, Carmen Sings Monk
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- Listen for
- Mike Ferro wrote the words to this version. Clifford Jordan plays tenor sax with a piano, bass and drums rhythm section behind the singer.
- Try this
- Sing or hum the tune with the recording through the first A section while you play F7 and G♭7, one chord per bar.
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Step 8 · Hear a recent version Now playing
Emmet Cohen feat. Ron Carter, Jeremy Pelt and Joe Farnsworth 2025
Universal Truth
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- Listen for
- Ron Carter plays bass and Jeremy Pelt takes the trumpet solo. Compare the pace with the 1956 Miles Davis take.
- Try this
- Count the 32-bar choruses with the recording and tap bar 17 at each bridge. Then play the chart's bridge chords, one per bar, under your count.
More great versions
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Miles Davis Quartet 1954
Miles Davis Vol. 3
Davis recorded the tune in 1954 with Horace Silver, Percy Heath and Art Blakey, in a quartet.
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Thelonious Monk 1954
Piano Solo
Monk plays the tune alone at the piano in Paris in 1954.
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Frank Morgan Sextet 1956
“Well, You Needn't”, Frank Morgan
Alto saxophonist Frank Morgan leads a sextet with trumpet and tenor sax at The Crescendo in Los Angeles.
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Thelonious Monk Septet 1957
“Well, You Needn't”, Monk's Music
Monk leads a septet with Coleman Hawkins and John Coltrane on tenor sax, Ray Copeland on trumpet and Gigi Gryce on alto.
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Thelonious Monk Quartet 1961
“Well, You Needn't (Live in Paris / 1961)”, The Complete Riverside Recordings
Monk's quartet with Charlie Rouse plays the tune at the Paris Olympia in April 1961.
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Kenny Barron 1990
“Well You Needn't (Live at Maybeck Recital Hall, Berkeley, CA / December 3, 1990)”, Live at Maybeck Recital Hall, Volume Ten
Kenny Barron plays the tune at Maybeck Recital Hall in Berkeley on December 3, 1990.