Wes Montgomery: The Complete Riverside Recordings

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The Complete Riverside Recordings
Wes Montgomery Complete Riverside.jpg
Box set by
Wes Montgomery
Released1992
RecordedOctober 5, 1959 – November 27, 1963
Genre Jazz
Length805:05
Label Riverside
Producer Orrin Keepnews

The Complete Riverside Recordings is a box set of American jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery's early recordings on the Riverside label. It is a twelve-CD box set and was released in 1992. It contains 157 songs and includes 15 previously unissued performances, six re-edited versions of previously issued numbers and 29 alternate takes. The extensive liner notes by producer Orrin Keepnews and Jim Ferguson, session notes, and photographs. [1] Keepnews and Ferguson received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Album Notes.

Contents

The collection covers Montgomery's recordings from 1959 until late 1963 before he moved to the Verve label. The recordings made during this period are considered by fans and jazz historians to be his best and most influential. [2] It includes recordings with his siblings Monk and Buddy, Tommy Flanagan, Nat and Cannonball Adderley, Milt Jackson, George Shearing, Johnny Griffin and many others.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svg [1]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svg [3]

In his Allmusic review, critic Scott Yanow stated, "All in all, there is a tremendous amount of rewarding performances included in this essential set, most of which show why Wes Montgomery is still considered one of the all-time great jazz guitarists." [1]

Writing for the Los Angeles Times , Zan Stewart praised the box-set, writing "Time has done little to diminish the elegant charm that Montgomery offered in his ardently swinging improvisations. On a ballad such as "Born to be Blue," he could be relaxed and luxuriant. For a blues, he was straightforward and melodic, never opting for funk cliches, while on the up tempos he displayed a rippling muscularity... a must-have for the jazz guitar enthusiast." [4]

Personnel

Production notes:

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Yanow, Scott. "The Complete Riverside Recordings > Review". Allmusic . Retrieved March 31, 2010.
  2. ↑ All About Jazz biography of Wes Montgomery. Retrieved November 2009.
  3. ↑ Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (2008). The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings (9th ed.). Penguin. p. 1026. ISBN   978-0-141-03401-0.
  4. ↑ Stewart, Zan (January 29, 1993). "Revisiting Wes Montgomery's Early Gems". LA Times. Retrieved December 17, 2010.
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