Wes Montgomery • Echoes Of Indiana Avenue

Review by Thom Jurek

Let's put the hook in right from the jump: Echoes of Indiana Avenue is perhaps the most significant release of previously unissued material by a major jazz artist since the The Thelonious Monk Quartet with John Coltrane: At Carnegie Hall appeared in 2005. That's not hyperbole. These tapes, which consist of two live recordings and one studio demo, were cut, presumably, between 1957 and 1958, with various groupings of musicians, including his brothers Monk and Buddy, as well as pianist Earl Van Riper and bassist Mingo Jones. All of the tunes here are now regarded as standards, but some were current then, freshly added in that era, such as Shorty Rogers' "Diablo's Dance," Horace Silver's "Nica's Dream," and perhaps most importantly, Thelonious Monk's "'Round Midnight" and "Straight No Chaser." The former, recorded in an organ trio format with Melvin Rhyne on the B-3 and Paul Parker on drums, reveals, even at this early date, how well-developed Montgomery's improvisational language was. His reverent opening is ever so gradually replaced by a shimmering movement toward something approaching early soul-jazz, yet his ability to use the instrument's tonal subtleties and harmonic possibilities add a very different dimension to its harmonic architecture. (And while he recorded it several times during his all-too-brief life, this version is the earliest one we now have of him.) The hard swinging "Take the 'A' Train" showcases the already distinctive and innovative voicings on the bass strings Montgomery developed. These examples aside, there isn't a weak or middling moment throughout the proceedings. At this early date as a leader, Montgomery was in command, pushing hard at the Charlie Christian-isms that dominated his playing with Lionel Hampton. Sound quality can be a tiny bit rough in places, but it hardly matters when the material is this fine.

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Reseña de Thom Jurek

Pongamos el gancho justo desde el salto: Ecos de la Avenida Indiana es quizás el lanzamiento más significativo de material no editado anteriormente por un gran artista de jazz desde el Cuarteto Thelonious Monk con John Coltrane: En el Carnegie Hall apareció en 2005. Eso no es una hipérbole. Estas cintas, que consisten en dos grabaciones en vivo y un demo de estudio, fueron cortadas, presumiblemente, entre 1957 y 1958, con varias agrupaciones de músicos, incluyendo sus hermanos Monk y Buddy, así como el pianista Earl Van Riper y el bajista Mingo Jones. Todas las canciones aquí son consideradas ahora como estándares, pero algunas eran actuales entonces, recién añadidas en esa época, como "Diablo's Dance" de Shorty Rogers, "Nica's Dream" de Horace Silver, y quizás lo más importante, "Round Midnight" y "Straight No Chaser" de Thelonious Monk. La primera, grabada en formato de trío de órgano con Melvin Rhyne en el B-3 y Paul Parker en la batería, revela, incluso en esta fecha temprana, lo bien desarrollado que estaba el lenguaje de improvisación de Montgomery. Su reverente apertura es reemplazada gradualmente por un movimiento brillante hacia algo que se aproxima al soul-jazz temprano, pero su habilidad para usar las sutilezas tonales y las posibilidades armónicas del instrumento añaden una dimensión muy diferente a su arquitectura armónica. (Y aunque lo grabó varias veces durante su vida demasiado breve, esta versión es la más temprana que tenemos de él). El duro balanceo de "Take the 'A' Train" muestra las ya distintivas e innovadoras voces de las cuerdas de bajo que Montgomery desarrolló. Dejando de lado estos ejemplos, no hay un momento débil o intermedio en todo el proceso. En esta temprana fecha como líder, Montgomery estaba al mando, presionando fuertemente a los Charlie Christian-ismos que dominaban su forma de tocar con Lionel Hampton. La calidad del sonido puede ser un poco áspera en algunos lugares, pero apenas importa cuando el material es tan fino.

Tracklist
1 Diablo's Dance 4:15
2 Round Midnight 7:33
3 Straight No Chaser 7:37
4 Nica's Dream 4:58
5 Darn That Dream 5:51
6 Take The A Train 6:21
7 Misty 4:32
8 Body And Soul 4:29
9 After Hours Blues (Improvisation) 6:36

Personnel: Wes Montgomery: guitar; Monk Montgomery: bass (3); Buddy Montgomery: piano (3); Mingo Jones: bass (6-9); Earl Van Riper: piano (6-9); Sonny Johnson: drums (6-8); Melvin Rhyne: piano (1, 4), organ (2, 5); Paul Parker: drums (1, 2, 4, 5); Unknown bassist (1, 4).

Recorded 1957-58.
Tracks 1, 2, 4 & 5: Possibly recorded in Indianapolis (studio unknown).
Tracks 6-9: Recorded live, possibly at the Hub Bub, Indianapolis.
Track 3: Recorded live, possibly Indianapolis.

 

 

 

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