Stark Reality was an American jazz-rock band that was active between 1969 and 1970. The group included Monty Stark on vibraphone, Carl Atkins on saxophone, John Abercrombie on guitar, Phil Morrison on bass, and Vinnie Johnson on drums. In 1970, the band released Discovers Hoagy Carmichael's Music Shop, a heavily improvised reinvention of a 1958 children's album by songwriter Hoagy Carmichael for a PBS television show. The album was released by AJP Records and later reissued by Now-Again in 2003, gaining recognition among hip-hop producers such as Pete Rock and Q-Tip. Despite their innovative sound, which blended psychedelic rock with bebop jazz, the band struggled to gain a substantial following and disbanded after unsuccessful tours.
