Ruby, My Dear
Barry counted Ruby, My Dear among the Monk pieces he called works of art and played it often in concert. In class it comes up only as one of the Monk songs he told students to play, rather than trying to copy Monk’s playing.
- moments in class
- 8
- recordings
- 6
- Barry plays it
- 12
What he teaches through it
Barry said he would not advise anyone to learn jazz by studying Monk’s playing, which he found unorthodox and too individual. What Monk gave us, he said, is his pretty songs, and he wished he could write ballads like Monk’s. Ruby, My Dear is one of the songs he names there (the captions are garbled). Play the songs, he said, but don’t try to play like Monk.
The 2016 workshop, part 3: Monk’s tunes, not his style0:000:331:292:122:507:007:35
In talks he listed Ruby, My Dear with ‘Round Midnight and Pannonica as Monk pieces that are works of art, and named it among the Monk tunes that he and his fellow musicians loved.
Interview: Bird, Hawkins, Monk and New York25:45Believe: a talk to musicians49:39
On stage he made playing Monk a matter of principle: a jazz musician proves he can really play with songs by Monk, Bird or Bud, not only his own originals, and someone who plays a jazz concert without one of their songs is not a jazz musician. In Almería he introduced Ruby, My Dear as a song said to have been written for Monk’s first girlfriend, Ruby.
Barry Harris Live In Rennes40:2240:55Barry Harris Trio - 2003-06-13, Le Franc Pinot, Paris, France19:46Barry Harris Trio - Live at Clasijazz (Full concert)32:5433:29
In his own words
All his tunes, his ballads, they’re all just beautiful things... Ruby, My Dear, all these things are just works of art.
I love the songs, but I’m not going to try to play [like] Monk. But I’ll play his songs.
This was written for his first girlfriend, they say. Her name happen to have been Ruby. So this song is called Ruby, My Dear.
When I play, I play Bud Powell, I play Bird, I play Monk. That’s what... a jazz musician is supposed to do.
In class
Every moment he works on it, with the ideas of the method it shows.
The 2016 workshop, part 3: Monk’s tunes, not his style
Interview: Bird, Hawkins, Monk and New York
- 25:45
Radio, 1988: Pannonica, ‘Round Midnight, Ruby, My Dear are works of art.
Believe: a talk to musicians
- 49:39
Almería talk: Monk added tunes to jazz that they loved, such as ‘Round Midnight and Ruby, My Dear.
Barry Harris Trio - 2003-06-13, Le Franc Pinot, Paris, France
- 19:46
Paris concert, 2003: ‘let’s play something by Monk’, just before Ruby, My Dear and Pannonica.
Barry Harris Live In Rennes
- 40:22
Rennes concert, 2009: a jazz musician plays Bud, Bird and Monk; then plays Ruby, My Dear.
Barry Harris Trio - Live at Clasijazz (Full concert)
- 32:54
Almería concert, 2014: introduces the tune as written for Monk’s first girlfriend, Ruby.
Barry plays it
- Barry Harris - 2018-10-14, The Jazz Room, Wayne, NJ2024, 84 min YouTube
- Barry Harris Trio - 2003-06-13, Le Franc Pinot, Paris, France2023, 2.1 h YouTube
- Ruby, My Dear - Barry Harris Trio 1988Madrid, 1988, 4 min YouTube
- Barry Harris - 2019-10-02, Village Vanguard, New York, NYNew York City, 2008–19, 75 min YouTube
- Barry Harris Trio - 2005-07-08, North Sea Jazz Festival, Netherlands2022, 80 min YouTube
- Barry Harris — Interpretations Of Monk CD22021, 52 min YouTube
- Barry Harris Live In Rennes2021, 77 min YouTube
- Barry Harris Trio - Live at Clasijazz (Full concert)Almería, 2014, 1.7 h YouTube
- Barry Harris Trio - Live at Dizzy’s, New York, June 2017 Part 2New York City, 2017, 61 min YouTube
- Barry Harris performs Ruby My Dear live on WBGO’s Morning Jazz with Gary Walkervarious, 1987–2019, 4 min YouTube
- Ruby My Dear2014, 5 min YouTube
- Barry Harris Trio - Ruby, my dear (Thelonious Monk)Almería, 2014, 4 min YouTube
In the method
The ideas of the method these moments show, and how many moments each.