Thelonious Monk

Pianist / Composer / Jazz Musician

Name at birth: Thellous Junior Monk

Thelonious Sphere Monk is considered one of the most important (and eccentric) jazz composers of the century. One of the early practitioners of bebop during the 1940s and '50s, his complex compositions featured irregular rhythms, dissonant sounds and a quirky sense of humor. He was the composer of such jazz standards as "'Round Midnight" and "Straight No Chaser."

Extra credit: His son is noted jazz drummer T. S. Monk.

Other jazz greats on Who2 include Louis Armstrong, John Coltrane and Don Ellis,