Rather than unfurl a series of complexly arranged chord progressions, he constructs a seemingly spontaneous solo with meticulous attention to each note as it builds upon the previous one. A love sick pining can be heard punctuating the evenly paced verses.
The track commences with one such dynamic flourish as Monk counts off the intro with a free form glide down the treble and bass clefs. With his trademark sense of drama, the artist resolves the angular harmonic and rhythmic phrases. Monk’s unusually understated arrangement is draped with lush, yet improbably timed runs up and down the keyboard. The melody is stark and memorably poignant and he fittingly kept it as a staple in his performance repertoire, recording it with a combo as well as an otherwise unaccompanied solo. “Ruby, My Dear” is one of Thelonious Monk’s (piano) most sentimental and otherwise affective love songs.