Tony Kofi & 52nd Street

Tony Kofi & 52nd Street is a new project which explores the beginnings of bebop, when New York’s 52nd Street was buzzing with the new music and the first generation of modern jazz musicians was turning the music world on its head.

The quintet plays the great pieces that have since been neglected, by composers such as Tadd Dameron, Fats Navarro and Bud Powell – though of course there are also classic tunes by the leaders of the movement, Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie. High Priest of Bop Thelonious Monk is represented by his early works, Humph and Evonce – and, inevitably, 52nd St Theme.