The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery

I'm going to start everything with one of most prolific, important, and brilliant jazz musicians ever to play the music: guitarist Wes Montgomery. This record, "The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery", is without a doubt one of my all time favorites. This is the record that got me into jazz guitar. I had played it beforehand, but never really liked listening to it until I heard this. I recommend that each of you go out and buy this classic immediately if you don't have it already and listen to it at least once a day for at least a week. That goes double for all you guitarists out there. And if you have it already, let it be one of the records that's in your CD player right now.

Now, what makes this album so good is the group. With Tommy Flanagan on piano, Percy Heath on Bass, Albert Heath on drums, and needless to say, Wes Montgomery on guitar, the group simply gels, allowing each tune to reach its full potential. Each tune, four of which are Wes originals, has its own unique feeling and possesses a certain energy that keeps the listener alive. The first track, "Airegin," a Sonny Rollins tune, is played at a pretty fast tempo and thrives off its relentless swing. The second track, "D-Natural Blues" contrasts the prior track with a slow, mellow, gut-wrenching melody line improvised by Wes on the set. The soloists, piano, guitar, and bass, solo largely in double time, keeping the tune mellow, but generating more depth to the tune. The third track is my favorite ballad, "Polka Dots and Moonbeams." I'll just say this: I never really liked ballads until I hears Wes play this tune.

The fourth track is another Wes original entitled "Four on Six." This tune is as fun to listen to as it is to play. Of all the tunes it probably swings the hardest. But moreover, Wes lays down one of the greatest, if not the greatest, jazz guitar solo ever (definitely my favorite). Note to all: after hearing this tune you may want to stop the record immediately and start playing guitar on the spot. Don't do it! Wait until after the record is done because there is more to come. The fifth track is another Wes tune entitled "West Coast Blues." It is mellower than "Four on Six," providing you a nice opportunity to sit back down in your seat and listen to some "chill" music, much like they would do on the west coast itself.

Following "West Coast Blues" is a pretty ballad by jazz great Dave Brubeck called "In Your Own Sweet Way." This tune features the piano works of Tommy Flanagan, providing a slight shift from Wesmania. But do not fear, Wesmania strikes again right afterwords with another Wes original, "Mr. Walker." This tune, played with a Latin feel, makes you want to get up again and start dancing on the spot. It is absolutely one of the sexiest songs you'll hear Wes Montgomery play. And when he steps up to solo it may overwhelm you so much that you'll stop dancing. Finally the set closes with a medium swinger called "Gone With the Wind." This tune carries you out to the end of the album, and has a nice final feeling about it that does not bring down the energy, but rather leaves you scrambling to start the album over again. From top to bottom, this record is like a gift from God. I'm sure that you'll all go out and get this gift for yourselves now.