Wes Montgomery
Wes Montgomery, born John Leslie Montgomery in Indianapolis, was a renowned African American jazz guitarist celebrated for his unique sound and innovative playing techniques. He began his musical journey influenced by his family, particularly his brother Monk, and developed his skills through intense self-practice, learning many of Charlie Christian's solos by ear. Montgomery's career saw him playing in various local clubs before he gained significant recognition while touring with vibraphonist Lionel Hampton. Despite facing challenges in balancing family responsibilities and his musical ambitions, he eventually became a leading figure in jazz during the 1960s, known for his expressive improvisation and distinctive thumb-picking technique.
Montgomery's approach to guitar playing involved melodic solos, rhythmic patterns, and chordal structures, contributing to a unique sound that bridged the gap between jazz and popular music. His commercial success in the mid-1960s included reinterpretations of contemporary hits, which, while critiqued by some purists, demonstrated his ability to adapt and reach broader audiences. Throughout his short but impactful career, Montgomery left a lasting legacy, influencing countless musicians, including George Benson, and solidifying his place as a key figure in the jazz genre. He passed away in 1968, at the height of his career, yet his music continues to resonate and inspire.
Wes Montgomery
- Born: March 6, 1925
- Birthplace: Indianapolis, Indiana
- Died: June 15, 1968
- Place of death: Indianapolis, Indiana
American jazz composer and guitarist
At a time when jazz had been eclipsed in popularity by guitar-dominated rock, Montgomery elevated the guitar in jazz to a new level of dynamic intensity.
The Life
John Leslie “Wes” Montgomery was born in Indianapolis to a hard-working African American family. His siblings played music, and one of Montgomery’s earliest musical influences was his older brother Monk, a bassist who gave Montgomery a four-stringed tenor guitar. Although he did not acquire a six-stringed electric guitar and amplifier until a few years later, he practiced intensely, and he learned by ear many of Charlie Christian’s recorded solos. This feat earned him a job playing in local clubs. Although he went on the road several times with various musical acts, these early efforts did not generate enough income to support his family, and he returned to Indianapolis, working outside of music during the day, while continuing to play at night. In 1948 Montgomery began a promising period of work with vibraphonist Lionel Hampton, but Montgomery missed his family, and after two years he returned to Indianapolis, where he worked during the day as a welder, while continuing to play professionally at night over the next decade. He began playing and recording with his brothers, who moved to the West Coast in 1957. During the 1960’s Montgomery became internationally famous, leading his own groups and recording sessions. Tragically, he died of a heart attack in 1968, at the peak of his career.
The Music
Unique Techniques. Along with his rhythmic accuracy, inventive melodies, and other attributes, Montgomery produced a highly individual sound on the guitar. Part of this was achieved though his special techniques. He sounded the strings with his thumb rather than a plectrum, producing a deeper tone, and he developed complementary left-hand muting techniques so that he could maintain a powerful stroke with his right hand when strumming octaves. In this way the strokes could encompass three strings, but the middle string would be muted, adding to the depth of the attack. When playing octaves, Montgomery would occasionally use his right-hand fingers for the higher notes, creating further variations in tone.
In jazz soloing, it is desirable for solos to have an overall compositional structure, even though the details of that structure are determined spontaneously through improvisation. While he varied it considerably, Montgomery’s fundamental approach to building a solo was surprisingly simple in concept, yet he took full advantage of his prodigious technique in three different dimensions. First, he would play long, flowing single-note lines, with interesting rhythmic patterns and sequences. Next, he would play melodic solos with his characteristic octave doubling, often sliding into notes with expressive glissandi but stopping at just the right moments for the target notes to be heard clearly. Finally, he would change to homophonic chordal playing. The overall effect was a constant increase in intensity.
Hampton and the Montgomery Brothers. Montgomery’s first recordings, made with Hampton, show the strong influence of Christian, whose recordings had provided Montgomery with his initial concepts of guitar soloing. Montgomery, who played primarily by ear, gained a great deal of valuable experience as he toured with this group, which included not only Hampton but also other important jazz musicians, such as bassist Charles Mingus. Aside from this two-year period, from 1948 to 1950, and his final eight years as a star, Montgomery conducted most of his musical activities in his hometown, often with his brothers: Monk, who played electric bass, and Buddy, who played piano and vibraphone. When Monk and Buddy moved to the West Coast in 1957, they invited Montgomery to join them on recordings and performances.
Group Leader. After being recommended by visiting musicians in 1959, Montgomery started to lead his own recording sessions for Riverside Records, and he led his own groups in performances. He included his brothers in some of these projects, and in addition he recorded with other musicians, including vibraphonist Milt Jackson, saxophonists Cannonball Adderly and Johnny Griffin, as well as members of Miles Davis’s rhythm section, bassist Paul Chambers, pianist Wynton Kelly, and drummer Jimmy Cobb. During this period, he played with saxophonist John Coltrane and his group, although they did not record together. Montgomery was a fan of both Davis and Coltrane, but he avoided the dissonant trends of Coltrane’s late period, preferring to refine his own approaches to improvisation. Montgomery’s fame increased, and he won awards in Down Beat and other important music publications.
Commercial Recordings. In 1965, when Montgomery left Riverside Records for Verve Records, Verve producer Creed Taylor decided on a new marketing direction for Montgomery, featuring him in instrumental arrangements of current hit songs. To some extent, Montgomery was continuing the jazz tradition of reinterpreting popular music, but in this case he was doing this with soft rock pieces that had just recently been introduced to the public rather than the older standards. One of the first of these was “Goin’ Out of My Head.” These arrangements, including many by Don Sebesky, often added layers of other instruments such as bowed strings, recorded on tracks that were superimposed over an initial recording with Montgomery and a rhythm section. The beautiful tone and subtle embellishments that Montgomery had cultivated fit well in these settings, even though his improvisation was increasingly restricted in length and dissonance as he became more popular. While some jazz critics were disappointed in this commercial trend, Montgomery continued to be respected by many jazz musicians, who remembered his artistry as an improviser.
Musical Legacy
Montgomery reestablished a connection between jazz and popular music through the voice of the electric guitar, which along with the drum set and piano remained a common instrument in both genres. He had a profound influence on George Benson and other jazz guitarists. He is also recognized as a composer of jazz pieces, several of which have entered the standard repertoire.
Bibliography
Giddins, Gary. Riding on a Blue Note: Jazz and American Pop. New York: Da Capo Press, 2004. Exploration of the relationship of the two fields, with a full chapter on Montgomery. Includes index.
Ingram, Adrian. Wes Montgomery. Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England: Ashley Mark, 1985. Definitive biography, with photographs, illustrations, discography, lists of compositions, and references.
Montgomery, Wes, and Wolf Marshall. Best of Wes Montgomery. Milwaukee, Wis.: Hal Leonard, 2001. Music transcription and analysis of solos, for music study. Includes compact disc.
Morgenstern, Dan. Living with Jazz. Edited by Sheldon Meyer. New York: Pantheon Books, 2004. Collection of reviews, liner notes, and other pieces by a prolific and influential jazz critic, including a perceptive review of Mongtomery’s album A Day in the Life.
Principal Recordings
albums:Fingerpickin’, 1957; Far Wes, 1958; Kismet, 1958; Montgomery Brothers, 1958 (with Buddy Montgomery and Monk Montgomery); Guitar on the Go, 1959; Pretty Blue, 1959; The Wes Montgomery Trio, 1959 (with the Wes Montgomery Trio); Yesterdays, 1959; The Alternative Wes Montgomery, 1960; The IncredibleJazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery, 1960; Movin’ Along, 1960; So Much Guitar, 1961; Wes and Friends, 1961 (with others); Boss Guitar, 1963; Fusion! Wes Montgomery with Strings, 1963; Portrait of Wes, 1963; Movin’ Wes, 1964; Bumpin’, 1965; Goin’ Out of My Head, 1965; Impressions, 1965; Soliture, 1965; California Dreaming, 1966; Further Adventures of Jimmy and Wes, 1966 (with Jimmy Smith); Tequila, 1966; A Day in the Life, 1967; Down Home on the Ground, 1967; Road Song, 1968.