Wes Montgomery - Boss Guitar (150g)
Wes Montgomery – guitar [click here to see more vinyl featuring Wes Montgomery]
Jimmy Cobb – drums [click here to see other vinyl featuring Jimmy Cobb]
Melvin Rhyne – organ
Written by Consuelo Velasquez (A1), Sunny Skylar (A1), Jerome Kern (A2), Johnny Mercer (A2-3), Henry Mancini (A3), Wes Montgomery (A4, B2), Eddie Heywood (B1), Norman Gimbel (B1), Al Stillman (B3), Ernesto Lecuona (B3), Donald Meyer (B4), Elise Bretton (B4)
1 LP, standard sleeve
Original analog Master tape : YES
Heavy Press : 150g
Record color : Black
Speed : 33 RPM
Size : 12'’
Stereo
Studio
Record Press : Quality Record Pressings
Label : Original Jazz Classics
Original Label : Riverside
Recorded on April 22, 1963 at Plaza Sound Studios, New York City
Engineered by Ray Fowler
Produced by Orrin Keepnews
Mastered by Anne-Marie Suenram
Design by Ken Deardoff
Liner Notes by Joe Goldberg
Photography by Ed Michel
Originally released in July 1963
Reissued in 2024
Tracks:
Side A:
1. Besame Mucho
2. Dearly Beloved
3. Days of Wine and Roses
4. The Trick Bag
Side B:
1. Canadian Sunset
2. Fried Pies
3. The Breeze and I
4. For Heaven's Sake
Reviews:
“Before he moved away from straight-ahead jazz and starting playing what is now known as smooth jazz, Wes Montgomery was one of bop's finest guitarists. Montgomery's bop period ended much too soon, but thankfully, he recorded his share of rewarding bop albums when he was still bop-oriented -- and one of them is Boss Guitar, which Orrin Keepnews produced in 1963. It's a trio recording, employing Mel Rhyne on organ and Jimmy Cobb on performances that have held up well over time; Montgomery shows how expressive a ballad player he could be on the standards "For Heaven's Sake" and "Days of Wine and Roses," but the fast tempo exuberance of "The Trick Bag" (a Montgomery original) serves him equally well. Montgomery swings the blues with pleasing results on "Fried Pies" (another Montgomery original), while Consuelo Velázquez's "Besame Mucho" (which is usually played at a slow ballad tempo) is successfully transformed into medium-tempo Latin jazz. Boss Guitar is among the bop-oriented Montgomery albums that should continue to be savored after all these years.” AllMusic Review by Alex Henderson
Ratings:
AllMusic : 4 / 5 ; Discogs : 4.49 / 5