I saw Wes many times at the old Showboat in Philadelphia. He was as classy a person as he was a musician. I always sat and chatted with him on breaks and he was warm, friendly and intelligent and spoke with me like a friend. He was always original and never played any song the same way twice. Truly one of a kind and in a class by himself.
The Showboat...yeah...just what you say...sooo intimate. And the ability to hang out with those greats in between sets. We were really lucky man. Your words brought it all back. mmmmm
@@sathya999 Nothing like it today. I sat and talked with so many great musicians. They were all cordial, open and highly intelligent. Cannonball Adderley, Charles Lloyd, Kieth Jarrett, Art Blakey, Gary Burton, Larry Coryell, Pat Martino, Horace Silver and many more. You sat no more than 20 feet from the band stand or 10 feet if you sat at the bar. $3 cover charge which allowed you to get three drinks. Great times that will live with me forever.
Did you ever see him or any other jazz legend live? I'll always be saddened by the fact I will never get to see majority of my favorites play live, very thankful for todays technology for recordings like these.
I believe that Wes, Benson, and rheinhardt, did always do just that, and would have learned to very quickly. It's what happens when you that good. I could nearly do it on pedal steel but not fully....less so on guitar....improving but it will never ever ever be like Wes....🙄.....@maccrazyg5
These guys were never "surprised" that they played exactly the notes they intended to play. George Benson provided proof by scatting (singing ) the notes along with his guitar during solos.
That isn't such an unusual ability, I think most if not all professional jazz musicians know exactly what they are about to play and hear it in their head beforehand.
Wes smoked pot and enjoyed a drink, and of course chain smoked cigarettes (which killed him), but I don't believe he did smack--though indeed his bearing of "underwater cool" is often associated with it. Unfortunately smack was--and is--very common in jazz circles.
My great guitar teacher (who teaches mostly music theory, music notes, and no tab) Ralf told me that Wes played a gig almost every day which is amazing.
"There was never a finer guitarist than Wes Montgomery" - B.B. King (said to the crowd at the 1999 Indianapolis Jazz Festival) Nobody played with a deeper, more lyrical, effortlessly natural blues feel...and he never bent a string.
@@076657 stupidest thing I've ever heard. Every possible note made by an instrument is different, and every different way of phrasing, whether that be bending, trills, sliding, etc allows for a different emotion to be evoked. Bending is the closest way for a guitar to mimic the human voice, which has in my opinion the most beautiful tone of any instrument. Most jazz guitarists emulate horn lines, hence the lack of bends, but to say that using bends is a sign of mediocrity is really ignorant.
Wes and joe pass and pat martino and to a lesser degreee pat metheney are my favorite jazz guitarists but this is great playing I love Wes also check out bill frissell he’s another great guitar player with total tone control very ethereal out of San fran
Well, I don't think many people h.ave expressed disagreement with your comment thus far. I, for one, find myself to be in strong agreement with your statement
@@Yourbankaccount I believe imbesss2 is right, we can disagree but Wes playing was sooth, and of course it doesn't sound 100% like todays smooth jazz but I think the roots of this permutation of jazz its in Wes's music, much like the roots of bebop were in Charlie Christian's music
I started listening to this as a random RU-vid video since I was 16 in high school. I’m about to be 27 this year and nothing has ever topped this talent. Rest in paradise G
This is what my daughter played for her music school audition. Straight A s for my baby. My wife and I waited in the hallway. Four years later my daughter graduated with the highest honors. A month later my wife died of cancer. I know this tune.
We are all privileged to have such great video of such a wonderful performance. This version has stood the test of time...55+ years later and still no one can replicate the tone, taste and touch of Wes Montgomery. A true Master!
There is such a unique beauty in Wes's sound production, the thumb technique, soft easy stroking, portamento, slurs, glisses, lovely concept of phrasing, immaculate attack, subtle rhythmic precision, all making for music beyond mere guitaring, or jazzing.., so poetic and beautiful and full though quiet...
That smile when he is going to play the final cadenza, and the public starts to clap thinking it has already ended, that smile says absolutely all about him as person, and in general about what jazz is supposed to be. And music.
Without a shadow of doubt the greatest decoration of time with a guitar ever captured on camera…. Long live the great Wes Montgomerys music, name, spirit and legacy
His thumb -- the human touch on strings -- makes his sound warm -- like he's in the next room. I could listen to him all night and frequently have done just that. The best.
LIKE WHEN YOU'RE FEELING TIRED AND WORE DOWN AND YOUR SON JUST OUT OF THE BLUE SAYS HE LOVES YOU CAUSE YOU'RE HIS DAD.THAT'S THE FEELING I FEEL WATCHING THIS IN 2020
My only regret in life is ,,,"I DIDN'T GO SEE WES WHEN I HAD THE CHANCE" . He played at a jazz club in Hermosa Beach m CA called The Lighthouse many times and I never went. I thought he would be around for ever but God had other plans for Wes. We miss you Wes. DD
I saw Wes live every time he performed in Washington DC. The last time was a couple of months prior to his untimely death. He was one of the nicest humans anyone could meet. Wes had a great personality and made you feel like an old friend. I've never heard anyone play the guitar like Wes. He was the Big Daddy of modern jazz guitar. A true master of single note, octaves and block chord solos. And, he made it look so easy! He would be looking around the club smiling at the audience and playing impossible stuff without looking at the fretboard. Wes gave me some advice the last time I saw him at the Bohemian Caverns and it took me almost ten years to figure out what he was really telling me. He was a true genius!
Wes and his magical thumb.While many used four fingers and a thumb,or a plectrum,he only needed that thumb to make magical music.Rip Mr.Montgomery,you are sorely missed.
That's funny.......I just happened to say that......" Wes, seems to be a nice person " I guess his expression .... we feel the same way. I play guitar so little...& " Autumn Leaves " ...its a great song....I do play it. To make history short.....I will try....ok ! 3 friends just sold their houses within the past 2 yrs.......& we used to get together an average once a month/once every 2 months......She played the piano ...so nice...& played a couple of times for "Yes".. .... Jim was the Saxo.man & high most of the time...... lol The drummer boy... (piano girl husb)......he really enjoyed each time....we got together......and Me...the only Latino & @ the Spanish guitar...of course. Ohhh forgot the drummer......I like when he sang ..... " Mack the Knife"...and imitating Luis Amgstrom strong voice........he was very funny. We played past 5 New Yrs eve... ..and that eve..... was our band climax...(I call it)..lol. My my point is....." I miss them all ..very much " ..even Jim the Sax.man wasn't my favorite player......& I say it.. 'cause each time I wanted to sing.....he hated......I know it was my Latin accent singing.....he hated. Anyway..... can't wait...to visit them & have the reunion of our lives. Thnks for reading me...!!!! Finally the mssg is....." it's nothing better ...than playing an instrument " ..it does relaxes U..! besides.....friends love when U play....for them . No matter your age......U can play...!
Lest we not forget, Wes Montgomery established "Smooth Jazz" on the radio. Radio executives took his style and created a radio institution. Tho Wes never received credit.
If you're still there very well put ...ol man way down in TX coming home from military in late dec67 I would plug his 8track and drive or just sit in the car playin it over and Over and over and Over......again smooth as warm butter !
Woodsheding with Wes and Company ,Make My Time Well Spent❤ Thanks all for His Music Posted for All Of Us John Barnett thanks ❤ Revisited 27 September 2023
+Denian Arcoleo As well as a very studious musician, he'd been a professional recording musician with his brothers early in his life. You can't be that good without knowing music theory intimately, and a natural gift just augments your ability. It's the phrasing that separates the greats from the rest of the field.
+Allen C. Been transcribing lots of his lines recently and his phrasing is utterly genius. How could he craft such intelligent lines into his solos, I'll never know.
I play acoustic. Various styles. Some jazz ballads and swing. I fingerpic, jazz pinch, and play leads with a pic. I try to relate to the Wes style. So much thumb. That is one smart thumb. I enjoy the fleshy sound, but the faster runs...just don't know he does those. Bravo. Beyond smooth..Uber Smooth. An American Crown Jewel! Bravo, again.
I have travelled far and wide in the guitar universe, but one always ends up at Wes Montgomery's door when it comes to the greatest jazz guitarist ever.
I think that after this there is nothing more to hear from any guitarists, the lucky ones will be close, but nobody will reach perfection like this Wes recording.
Iveseen many great jazz guitarists live, such KennyBurrell, Joe Pass, Gene Bertoncini, George Benson, Laurinda Almeida, Ting Hrines, Mickey Baker, and a few others, but there has been no other guitarist that has motivated, moved me, and shapedmy feel and style like Wes Montgomery. Sadly, he died the year I had just started to learn how to play.
3:22 u can see in his face he was disappointed he messed up that part first time and shakes his head, second time he gives it more focus and does it perfect, on third time he still slips up a little, this was a true genius and prob biggest critic of himself thats why he was the greatest
I fell in love with jazz as a fresh out of highschool in 2018, thank you Spotify for choosing to recommend me that late night jazz playlist. Shit has been life changing.
This is one of the most thrilling and innovative versions of this famous tune. I've been playing this for decades and this gives me all kinds of NEW ideas. Not just what Wes is doing, but the whole band.
Wes is by far the best guitarist to study in the pursuit of jazz. Any negative comments are from those with little to no understanding of the amazing music that jazz is.
@@ronnieboucherthecrystalcraftsm Thanks Ronnie - for reminding us that in the mid 60s most rhythm sections indeed had their identities veiled in the mass media - simply as a sensible protective measure. At the time, Khrushchev's KGB was poisoning as many Western drummers as possible, in order to deny NATO countries 'the Capitalist decadence of jazz', which the communists believed gave an advantage in Cold War strategising. Ronnie's message, while blunt and to the point, should implore us not to forget the countless percussionists who keeled over onto their floor toms - never to rise again - in order that we could have a world free of secret police, show trials and mass starvation.
How could you unlike this ?! At this day in age , this is still some greatest guitar instrumental to date. He was just trying to sound different, are we so different in 2018?. This is what 8 hours of practice and a heart that’s driven to create music looks like 🌹
Far as I am concerned, Wes is the greatest jazz guitarist of all time - all of the rest are fighting for second place. And he belongs in the pantheon of the all-time greatest jazz musicians, regardless of instrument. The kind of talent he possessed comes along so seldom and is so rare! We are fortunate he recorded frequently so that his genius can live on for generations to come.
Yes, but I bitterly regret the lack of filmed live JAZZ performances - those that exist for some strange reason date only from 1965 and the live audio surviving from his late career eg the half note [also 65] proved he had only just changed gear to 5th compared to his early /mid career - yes, Georgia Boy1961, if forced to make a choice between Wes and all other jazz guitarists I agree its got to be Wes
John mayer got me into bill evans but I didn’t connect with bill but then I came across Wes and 1. I’m just blown away. 2. Right now he’s all I want to listen to & is keeping me sane. Such beauty.
