A Day in the Life (Wes Montgomery album)

A Day in the Life
Studio album by Wes Montgomery
Released	September 1967 [1]
Recorded	June 6 & 26, 1967
Studio	Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey
Genre	Jazz
Length	34:21
Label	A&M/CTI
Producer	Creed Taylor
Wes Montgomery chronology
Tequila (1966) A Day in the Life (1967) Down Here on the Ground (1968)

A Day in the Life is an album by the jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery, released in 1967. It reached number one on the Billboard Jazz album chart and number 2 on the R&B chart. It also reached number 13 on the Billboard 200. The single "Windy" became his biggest Hot 100 hit, peaking at number forty-four.

After recording for Riverside and Verve, Montgomery signed with A&M. His renditions of pop hits were played regularly on Top 40 radio. ^[2]

Reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings	[3]
The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide	[4]

In his AllMusic review of the album, Scott Yanow wrote:

In most cases the guitarist did little more than play the melody, using his distinctive octaves, and it was enough to make him saleable. Of his three A&M recordings, A Day in the Life (the first one) was by far the best and, although the jazz content is almost nil, the results are pleasing as background music. ^[2]

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"A Day in the Life"	John Lennon, Paul McCartney	5:45
2.	"Watch What Happens"	Jacques Demy, Norman Gimbel, Michel Legrand	2:43
3.	"When a Man Loves a Woman"	Calvin Lewis, Andrew Wright	2:52
4.	"California Nights"	Marvin Hamlisch, Howard Liebling	2:29
5.	"Angel"	Wes Montgomery	2:46
6.	"Eleanor Rigby"	Lennon, McCartney	3:04
7.	"Willow Weep for Me"	Ann Ronell	4:31
8.	"Windy"	Ruthann Friedman	2:20
9.	"Trust in Me"	Milton Ager, Jean Schwartz, Ned Wever	4:25
10.	"The Joker"	Leslie Bricusse, Anthony Newley	3:26

Personnel

• Wes Montgomery – guitar
• Herbie Hancock  – piano
• Ron Carter  – bass
• Grady Tate  – drums
• Ray Barretto  – percussion
• Jack Jennings – percussion
• Joe Wohletz – percussion
• Ray Alonge – French horn
• Phil Bodner  – woodwind
• Julius Brand – violin
• Peter Buonconsigilio – violin
• Mac Ceppos – violin
• Lewis Eley – violin
• Harry Glickman – violin
• Harry Katzman – violin
• Leo Krucczek – violin
• Sylvan Shulman – violin
• Gene Orloff  – violin
• Tosha Samaroff – violin
• Jack Zayde – violin
• Harry Urbont – violin
• Harold Coletta – viola
• Emanuel Vardi – viola
• George Marge – flute
• Joe Soldo – flute
• Romeo Penque – flute
• Margaret Ross – harp
• Alan Shulman – cello
• Charles McCracken – cello
• Stanley Webb – flute, woodwind

Production notes:

• Creed Taylor  – producer
• Don Sebesky  – arranger, conductor
• Rudy Van Gelder  – engineer
• Pete Turner – photography

Chart positions

Year	Chart	Position
1967	Billboard Jazz Albums	1
	Billboard R&B Albums	2
	The Billboard 200	13

References

1. "Billboard". September 16, 1967.
2. Yanow, Scott. "A Day in the Life > Review". AllMusic . Retrieved December 17, 2010.
3. Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (2008). The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings (9th ed.). Penguin. p. 1028. ISBN   978-0-141-03401-0.
4. Swenson, J., ed. (1985). The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide. USA: Random House/Rolling Stone. p. 147. ISBN   0-394-72643-X.