Smokin' at the Half Note [Live] [Original recording remastered]

Amazon.com
Wes Montgomery brought the art of the electric guitar to new heights in the 1950s and 1960s before his untimely death at 43. His vaulting style employed octaves much as his main influence, Charlie Christian, did in the Benny Goodman Sextet. Montgomery's crowd-pleasing facility with the fretboard was best employed in live performance when he could stretch out and really be heard. Smokin' is a thoroughly satisfying live album recorded in 1965 and 1966 at the New York nightclub, with co-leader Wynton Kelly and his trio--Kelly on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and Jimmy Cobb on drums. Montgomery and Kelly are in perfect sync here, especially on "No Blues" and "If You Could See Me Now." --John Swenson

Smokin' at the Half Note,Wes Montgomery,Wynton Kelly,Verve,Hard Bop,Jazz,Pop,Soul-Jazz,United States of America

Average customer rating: Beyond Brilliant! This is just smokin hot!!! Guitar god The very finest guitar album ever made One of Wes's best One of two Wes Classics

Smokin' at the Half Note Wes Montgomery , and Wynton Kelly Manufacturer: Verve ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Bebop General | Bebop | Jazz | Styles | Music Hard Bop | Bebop | Jazz | Styles | Music General | Jazz | Styles | Music Bebop | Live Albums | Jazz | Styles | Music General | Live Albums | Jazz | Styles | Music Soul-Jazz & Boogaloo | Jazz | Styles | Music Verve | Verve Music Group | Specialty Stores | Music $9.99 and Under | Blowout Music | Stores | Music Jazz | Styles | Blowout Music | Stores | Music All Blowout Music | Blowout Music | Stores | Music $9.99 and Under | Prices | Blowout Music | Stores | Music More Titles at Least 25% Off | Blowout Music | Stores | Music Similar Items: The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery Complete Live in Paris 1965 Virtuoso (20 Bit Mastering) Idle Moments Midnight Blue ASIN: B0006VXF4G Release Date: 2005-02-15

Tracks:

1. No Blues
2. If You Could See Me Now
3. Unit 7
4. Four On Six
5. What's New?
6. Willow Weep For Me
7. Portrait Of Jennie
8. Surrey With The Fringe On Top
9. Oh, You Crazy Moon
10. Misty
11. Impressions

Amazon.com

Wes Montgomery brought the art of the electric guitar to new heights in the 1950s and 1960s before his untimely death at 43. His vaulting style employed octaves much as his main influence, Charlie Christian, did in the Benny Goodman Sextet. Montgomery's crowd-pleasing facility with the fretboard was best employed in live performance when he could stretch out and really be heard. Smokin' is a thoroughly satisfying live album recorded in 1965 and 1966 at the New York nightclub, with co-leader Wynton Kelly and his trio--Kelly on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and Jimmy Cobb on drums. Montgomery and Kelly are in perfect sync here, especially on "No Blues" and "If You Could See Me Now." --John Swenson

Customer Reviews:

Beyond Brilliant! This is just smokin hot!!!.......2006-12-08

Talk about a foursome! This is one of my top twenty favorite albums. Anyone who plays the guitar needs to purchase this album just to hear why many consider Wes to be the greatest guitar player in jazz history. I was actually turned on to this album by a buddy of mine who played guitar for a speed metal band. He was in awe, just as I was the first time I heard it and everytime I hear it to this day! However, it's not just Montgomery that shines. The rythm section of Cobb, Kelly and Chambers just might be the best you will ever hear. They are simply flawless and this is a 'live' album to boot. Chambers is my second favorite bass player right behind Mingus and he has never been better. I always thought that Jimmy Cobb was one of the most underated drummers of his time. This is also my favorite work of Wynton Kelly. His piano playing compliments Montgomery perfectly. All four of these artists brought their 'A' game to the table during this live session (augmented by a couple of studio tracks as well) and it really shows throughout. This one is truly special and everytime I hear it I enjoy it more than the last time (I always pick up something new!). I will not pretend to be a music and/or jazz scholar, nor am I a musician. I am however, someone who has listened to thousands of albums of all types of music (rock, jazz, soul, ska, punk, reggae, rap, country, bluegrass, folk, classical, etc...) and yet nothing puts a smile on my face and serenity in my soul like this does. All I have to say is thank you to the heavens for creating such wonderful artists who created such wonderful sounds. Beautiful music like this truly does help alleviate the pain and ennui of living in today's not so beautiful world.

Guitar god.......2006-01-26

with so many great guitar players referring to him as their favorite it was time to delve into jazz (a music I never really found myself loving - aside from bits of Django- )but after a couple of listens it's easy to overlook the grandiose over dramatic piano solos and buzzy bass noise.

This is a great album - Montgomery at first sounds choppy by comparison to Django who always struck me as just pure fluidity.
M. seems to want you to hear every note, clear and strong - his tone is very basic - a big jazzbox clearly amped - and you can hear him wide open - each formula piece of his lyrical leads is done with such casual ease you'd think it was something programmed. Players say he was "on" this night - and when you get your ear tuned to the musical style "be-bop" I guess - you can hear him fiddling with "salt-peanuts" and other brass instrument lines that come from his hands with ease.

a great album.
even for a die-hard punk enthusaist.

The very finest guitar album ever made.......2005-12-10

I'm a guitarist and composer, and while I am not a huge fan of jazz, this is one of my top ten records of all time. I can think of no other record that captures the feeling of being onstage, peforming with great musicians. Every single second is filled with brilliance. Montgomery is beyond comparison. When I was jsut 15, I met B.B. King and he played me a cut off of this record. I quickly bought my own copy, and have worn out several over the years. A must have. Quite a gift from the band to all of us who love music.

One of Wes's best.......2005-10-28

This live recording is Pat Metheny's favorite Wes album and who am I to argue. It features the Wynton Kelly trio with Paul Chambers and Jimmy Cobb. Wes really gets a chance to stretch out on the solos and he delivers. It contains two tunes he recorded many times, Unit 7 and Four On Six. Definitely a Wes you must have in your collection.

One of two Wes Classics.......2005-10-24

This cd and "Full House" are Wes Montgomery's two best cd's, and they are both live. If you like the one, get the other. If you have both, buy anything Wes did on Riverside. All those cd's are great!

Average customer rating: THE Quintessential Live Jazz Guitar Album Wes' Best Album Guru of the Guitar HEADS-UP TO ALL WES FANS.... Moments to treasure

Smokin' at the Half Note Wes Montgomery With Wynton Kelly Manufacturer: Polygram Records ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Bebop General | Bebop | Jazz | Styles | Music Hard Bop | Bebop | Jazz | Styles | Music General | Jazz | Styles | Music Bebop | Live Albums | Jazz | Styles | Music General | Live Albums | Jazz | Styles | Music Soul-Jazz & Boogaloo | Jazz | Styles | Music Similar Items: The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery Midnight Blue Boss Guitar Full House Green Street ASIN: B00000470Y Release Date: 1989-11-21

Tracks:

1. No Blues
2. If You Could See Me Now
3. Unit 7
4. Four On Six
5. What's New

Amazon.com

Wes Montgomery brought the art of the electric guitar to new heights in the 1950s and 1960s before his untimely death at 43. His vaulting style employed octaves much as his main influence, Charlie Christian, did in the Benny Goodman Sextet. Montgomery's crowd-pleasing facility with the fretboard was best employed in live performance when he could stretch out and really be heard. Smokin' is a thoroughly satisfying live album recorded in 1965 and 1966 at the New York nightclub, with co-leader Wynton Kelly and his trio--Kelly on piano, Paul Chambers on bass, and Jimmy Cobb on drums. Montgomery and Kelly are in perfect sync here, especially on "No Blues" and "If You Could See Me Now." --John Swenson

Customer Reviews:

THE Quintessential Live Jazz Guitar Album.......2004-10-01

Wes Montgomery's "Smokin' at the Half Note- Live" album is one of the best live jazz guitar albums ever made! Wes Montgomery had a gift for his clear expression of intricate melodies, along with a blend of interesting chord voicings, creative soloing ideas, and innovative techniques (such as his soloing in octaves, picking with his thumb, and amazing accuracy and dexterity), that have not been heard before or since.

His stirring performances of "No Blues" and "Four on Six," in particular, stand out as amazing examples of his innovation, creativity and outstanding jazz guitar technique.

If you are interested in hearing some of Wes' best studio work, check out "The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery"- one of the best jazz guitar albums of all time!

Thank you, Wes, for inspiring countless jazz guitarists, and music-lovers everywhere!

Wes' Best Album.......2004-07-24

I think this is the best thing Wes ever recording, and I think it's one of the best jazz CDs ever produced. You must have it. wes' solo on "All Blues" is one of the best ever. You must have it.

linc
www.learnjazzguitar.net

Guru of the Guitar.......2004-06-01

Wes arrived late (he was 35) and checked out early (fewer than 10 years in the spotlight). Still, no guitarist has had a greater impact in the history of this music. By the time he had moved on from Riverside to this session for Verve, he had little to prove to musicians and was beginning to accept more accessible, popular assignments that would broaden his appeal to the general public. "Smokin'," despite lacking any tunes as challenging as "Airegin" ("The Incredible Guitar Artistry of"), can stand alongside his Riverside work as an example of creative, inspired playing. And the presence of Wyn Kelley along with Chambers and Cobb definitely raises the swing factor a notch.

If you're new to Wes, don't expect to be blown away by just one recording. Guitar is such a popular if not universal instrument that to be designated "number one" often seems to over-inflate listeners' expectations, inviting subsequent doubt and dissent. What sets Wes apart from the field is not pyrotechnical legerdemain or bold innovation but every "little" thing that he does so well so effortlessly so much of the time. The sound he gets out of the instrument is of itself a marvel. It has a deep and meaty, utterly natural, resonance, almost as if the tone is doubling itself, reminding me less of other guitarists than of Bird and Clifford. Additionally, there's never a microsecond of doubt in his playing or solo constructions. Nothing is tentative--in terms of notes, phrases, or choruses. It's all so completely lyrical and logical that the listener's biggest challenge can be not to take it for granted.

His solo on Sam Jones' "Unit 7" might serve as a touchstone to all of his playing. He starts with inventive single note melodic ideas, then moves to octaves without the faintest suggestion of slowing down to accommodate the extra note, then finally kicks it into high gear with a fully chorded "out" chorus that feels as forceful as a shout chorus by the whole Count Basie Band.

I never caught Wes live, but I've heard that visually he was the mirror image of his music--efficient, composed, resourceful, economical--not the least hint of wasted motion, just like Bird and Tatum. Genius requires a level of concentration that the rest of us probably have little to no experience with. Wes Montgomery is one of those artists who can take the listener beyond the music, producing vibrations that are not merely satisfying at a sensual or emotional-intellectual level: his music is capable of leading to discoveries about the creative process itself.

HEADS-UP TO ALL WES FANS...........2003-10-17

Just wanted to say there's a new Live release of Wes in Paris, in 1965, that is killer, called "Complete Live In Paris 1965"

Moments to treasure.......2003-06-07

One of the most memorable events of my youth was in 1967, the year before Wes Montgomery died. I and another guitar player friend sat just feet from Wes in Washington DC's Bohemian Caverns club as he tore into number after number, in total command of his fabulous L-5 Gibson guitar. I even recall the first tune of the night: "I Could Write a Book." If I could revisit any one time and place in my life, that would be it. The Half Note album is another session on that order. Oh, how I wish I could have been there..and at Tsubo in San Francisco to hear him with Wynton Kelly and sax man Johnnie Griffin. Moments like those are meant to live forever. Thank God someone recorded it. Get this CD and dream of being in the audience. These moments in history only happen once.

Average customer rating:

Smokin' At the Half Note,Japanese Import Wes Montgomery Manufacturer: verve ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | Jazz | Styles | Music Verve | Verve Music Group | Specialty Stores | Music ASIN: B000NP0U8E

Product Description

Live recording by Wes Montgomery.

Average customer rating:

Smokin' at the Half Note Wynton Kelly Manufacturer: Verve ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Bebop General | Bebop | Jazz | Styles | Music Hard Bop | Bebop | Jazz | Styles | Music General | Jazz | Styles | Music ASIN: B00008KKTK Release Date: 2003-05-05

Tracks:

1. No Blues
2. If You Could See Me Now
3. Unit 7
4. Four on Six
5. What's New?

Average customer rating:

Smokin' at the Half Note Volume 2 Manufacturer: Phantom Sound & Vision ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Bebop General | Bebop | Jazz | Styles | Music General | Jazz | Styles | Music Bebop | Live Albums | Jazz | Styles | Music General | Live Albums | Jazz | Styles | Music Soul-Jazz & Boogaloo | Jazz | Styles | Music Jazz | Imports | Stores | Music Similar Items: Complete Live in Paris 1965 ASIN: B0000565GE Release Date: 2005-01-25

Tracks:

1. No Blues
2. If You Could See Me Now
3. Willow Weep For Me
4. Impressions
5. Portrait Of Jennie
6. The Surry With The Fringe On Top
7. Oh, You Crazy Moon
8. Four On Six
9. Misty

Album Description

Essential listening for anyone who wants to hear why Montgomery's dynamic live shows were considered the pinnacle of his brilliant and incredibly influential guitar playing. Pat Metheny calls this 'the absolute greatest jazz guitar album ever made,' and with performances of this caliber ('Unit 7' boasts one of the greatest guitar solos ever recorded) his statement is easily validated. He's supported every step of the way by a genuinely smokin' Wynton Kelly Trio. Originally released in 1965. 24 bit remastered. Polygram Records. 2000.

Average customer rating:

Smokin' at the Half Note Vol 2 Wes Montgomery ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Bebop General | Bebop | Jazz | Styles | Music General | Jazz | Styles | Music Soul-Jazz & Boogaloo | Jazz | Styles | Music ASIN: B000MC7RQQ

Product Description

Rare Japanese release. Track Listings 1. No Blues - Wynton Kelly Trio, Wes Montgomery 2. If You Could See Me Now - Wynton Kelly Trio, Wes Montgomery 3. Willow Weep for Me - Wynton Kelly Trio, Wes Montgomery 4. Impressions - Wynton Kelly Trio, Wes Montgomery 5. Portrait of Jennie - Wynton Kelly Trio, Wes Montgomery 6. Surrey With the Fringe on Top - Wynton Kelly Trio, Wes Montgomery 7. Oh, You Crazy Moon - Wynton Kelly Trio, Wes Montgomery 8. Four on Six - Wynton Kelly Trio, Wes Montgomery 9. Misty - Wynton Kelly Trio, Wes Montgomery

Average customer rating:

Smokin' at the Half Note Wynton Kelly Manufacturer: Verve ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD Bebop General | Bebop | Jazz | Styles | Music Hard Bop | Bebop | Jazz | Styles | Music General | Jazz | Styles | Music General | Live Albums | Jazz | Styles | Music Ska General | Ska | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music Jazz | Imports | Stores | Music ASIN: B000197JSQ Release Date: 1965-01-01

Tracks:

1. No Blues
2. If You Could See Me Now
3. Unit 7
4. Four on Six
5. What's New?

Album Description

Japanese reissue of 1956 album packaged in a miniature LPsleeve. Verve. 2004.

Album Details

Japanese Limited Edition Gold CD in an LP-STYLE Slipcase.

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