When Thelonious Monk passed away in 1982, his status as an innovator and one of the leading figures in modern jazz music was well established. A pianist who cut his first recording in 1944, Monk went on to work with fantastic musicians over his remarkable career including Sonny Rollins (tenor sax), Art Blakey (drums), Miles Davis (trumpet), John Coltrane (tenor sax) and many others. An unusual and versatile performer, Monk’s personal behavior was often just as spontaneous, and his relationships with others, including his wife and child, were as challenging as some of his best music. more ›

Promotional still from Alamo website Music Mondays: My Name Is Albert AylerMonday, November 19Alamo Drafthouse Downtown (320 E 6th Street)(9:45pm, $2)[info] | [tickets]Though not as well known as Ornette Coleman or John Coltrane, Albert Ayler is seen by many as one of the most important figures of the free jazz movement. Over the course of 16 studio albums and countless live releases, Ayler's passionate, aggressive saxophone playing pushed jazz back toward its improvisational heyday--an idea... more ›

Boubacar Joseph Ndiaye & Youssou N’Dour at the Maison des Esclaves AFS Presents Return to GoréeTuesday, November 6thAlamo Drafthouse South Lamar (1120 S. Lamar)$4 / Free for AFS members, 7pm[info]The place where my fathers died, return to the land of Gorée, the place where my mothers cried, return to the land of Gorée. – Harmony Harmoneers We'll admit it: our jazz knowledge consists of a couple of Miles Davis and John Coltrane albums mixed with... more ›

It was announced today that Austin-based scribe Lawrence Wright was awarded the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for general non-fiction. This is not the only award his book, The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11, has won, but it is one of the more illustrious honors it has received. Wright is currently a staff writer for the New York Times New Yorker, has written for Texas Monthly, and helped pen the screenplay for the Denzel... more ›

You are a self-professed Daniel Johnston obsessive. Can you remember when you first heard about Daniel Johnston? I was a college radio DJ [in New Jersey], and word was trickling up from Austin, Texas, through this underground network of people--before there was an internet—through fanzine culture. I was reading a lot of fanzines, which was an underground publishing network. Word was trickling up through this network of a few hundred people around the country from... more ›

T U E S D A Y [27] film · Scion presents their weekly screening + Q&A at the Drafthouse South Lamar. This week: Adam Bhala Lough's "Bomb the System", with music provided by DJ Mel. (RSVP, 6:30pm)music · Zookeeper, Goldrush and Hopewell at Stubb's music · The Black Angels, The Black and Lalaland at Emo's books/pop-culture · UT Professor S. Craig Watkins discusses his latest book, Hip Hop Matters: Politics, Popular Culture, and the... more ›

See any good shows this weekend? Don't forget to send us your Reader Weekend Reviews! Send 'em here. M O N D A Y music · Green Potato Ventures presents Chicago's The City on Film, Stories from the Frontier and Sad Accordians at Emo's. Inside, 10pm [myspace stream: Stories From the Frontier] [mp3: The City On Film - For Holly] music · "Puyo Punk Music for All": Gadjo Bango at The Parlor [mp3: Gadjo Bango... more ›