The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery

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The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery
Studio album by Wes Montgomery

Publication
(s)

1960

admission

January 26th and 28th, 1960

Label (s) Riverside Records

Genre (s)

jazz

Title (number)

8th

running time

44:18

occupation

production

Orrin Keepnews

Studio (s)

Reeves Sound Studios, New York

chronology
Pretty Blue
(1959) 		The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery Movin 'Along
(1960)

The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery is a music album by the American jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery . It is seen as his masterpiece by many fans and critics.

history

Wes Montgomery had only started making records in 1958 at the age of 35. After moving from the Pacific Jazz label to Riverside , he recorded The Wes Montgomery Trio in 1959 with Melvin Rhyne (organ) and Paul Parker (bass). On a trip to New York , he was invited to play with Horace Silver for an evening , which led to a storm of enthusiasm among the public. For his next album, The Incredible Jazz Guitar , Riverside teamed him up with some of New York's best known session musicians, pianist Tommy Flanagan , who had recently performed on John Coltrane's Giant Steps , and brothers Percy and Albert Heath . Flanagan later reported that Montgomery was very nervous because he could not read music and was in the studio with stars of this caliber for the first time. His unique technique (he only played with the thumb instead of, like other guitarists, with a pick or several fingers) quickly convinced the rhythm section .

Important titles

Wes Montgomery chose a mixture of well-known jazz standards and original compositions for this album , some of which became standards themselves.

"Airegin" is a composition by tenor saxophonist Sonny Rollins , which was recorded for the first time in 1956 by the Miles Davis Quintet for the album Cookin ' . It is characterized above all by its very high level of technical difficulty. The name Nigeria is written out backwards.
"Polka Dots and Moonbeams" is one of the best known and most played jazz standards , there are famous recordings by Sarah Vaughan and Frank Sinatra , who had his first big hit with it.
"Four on Six" is one of Montgomery's most popular pieces and has been played by many jazz guitarists, including Lee Ritenour , Pat Martino and John Abercrombie . It can also be heard on the live record Smokin 'at the Half Note by Wes Montgomery and Wynton Kelly .
The waltz "West Coast Blues" is without a doubt Montgomery's most famous piece and is u. a. to be heard on the recordings Complete Live in Paris 1965 and on the DVD Jazz Icons: Wes Montgomery Live in '65 . The authors Richard Cook and Brian Morton describe Montgomery's playing in this piece as "almost unbelievable".
" In Your Own Sweet Way " is one of the most famous compositions by pianist Dave Brubeck and has been interpreted by Montgomery as well as by artists such as Miles Davis, Kenny Garrett and Bill Evans .

Rating of the album

Michael G. Nastos described The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery in the All Music Guide as a milestone and the definitive departure from his early style of organ combo with Melvin Rhyne and his brothers' band. Montgomery is in its post to hard bop element, playing with swinging flow and drive and an energy that has not been heard in the days of Charlie Christian . These recordings established him as the most distinguished modern jazz guitarist of the time, and ultimately the most influential of all. Here is his classic material like Sonny Rollins evergreen “Airegin”, the famous modal jam “Four on Six” and Montgomery's immortal soul waltz “West Coast Blues”. Flanagan, who had just left his hometown Detroit at the time, is the perfect pianist for this session. The album is essential for any serious collection of jazz guitarists.

Richard Cook and Brian Morton consider The Incredible Jazz Guitar to be the best album in the guitarist's discography and give it the highest rating of four stars. Even Brian Priestley stands in jazz - Rough Guide the album as one of the most important in Montgomery discography forth; his first quartet album is "a definitive statement, with the original version of the 'West Coast Blues' and other riffs like Mister Walker".

The music magazine Jazzwise added the album to The 100 Jazz Albums That Shook the World list ; Charles Alexander wrote:

" Every track on this album is a classic and his songs 'West Coast Blues' and 'Four on Six' have become part of the jazz canon ".

Awards

Track list

Percy Heath; 1977
  1. "Airegin" (Sonny Rollins) - 4:26
  2. "D-Natural Blues" (Montgomery) - 5:23
  3. "Polka Dots and Moonbeams" ( Burke , Van Heusen ) - 4:44
  4. "Four on Six" (Montgomery) - 6:15
  5. "West Coast Blues" (Montgomery) - 7:26
  6. "In Your Own Sweet Way" ( Dave Brubeck ) - 4:53
  7. "Mr. Walker "(Montgomery) - 4:33
  8. " Gone with the Wind " ( Magidson , Wrubel ) - 6:24
  • Tracks 1, 2, 4, 5 and 6 were recorded at Reeves Sound Studios, New York City, on January 26, 1960; tracks 3, 7 and 8 at Reeves Sound Studios, New York City, on January 28 Recorded in 1960.

Web links

Tommy Flanagan

swell

Footnotes

  1. ↑ The Penguin Guide to Jazz gave it the highest rating in all editions.
  2. ↑ http://www.fergusonguitar.com/wes.html
  3. ↑ Quoted from Cook Morton, 6th edition, p. 1055.
  4. ↑ See Cook & Morton.
  5. ^ Brian Priestley, p. 450.
  6. ^ The 100 Jazz Albums That Shook The World
  7. ↑ Grammy.com (Retrieved April 18, 2009)