Remembering Wes

Chronique

Quiet intensity personified...if that is the way you like your jazz, specifically your organ combos, then Rhyne is your B-3 main man and this is his shining hour in a tribute to his now legendary bandmate, the late guitarist Wes Montgomery. Everything on this CD is ultimately appealing -- its sound, immaculate vision, unabashed groove, scholarly repertoire, controlled urgency, faithfulness to Wes, and the staunch individualism of Rhyne, guitarist Royce Campbell and drummer Killer Ray Appleton, all at their very best. Rhyne even stretches his legato phrases longer than usual like Larry Young; Campbell is out-and-out inspired and pristine in his approach, while Appleton is much more than a timekeeper, playing with the time while never losing it. You get seven of Montgomery's signature tunes, the big numbers included are an even-tempered "Jingles," the cookin' "Cariba" and boppin' "Geno," bro Buddy Montgomery's immortal "Bock to Bock" and the three standards "Days of Wine and Roses," "For All We Know" and "Yesterdays." Campbell contributes two dedications: the molasses-slow ballad "I Remember Wes," with the guitarist digging into a mix of chords with single lines (exactly like Wes), and "Wes," a midtempo blues with a quirky, head-nodding melody and small sparks flying. Upon repeated listenings, this record grows even more into your heart. Patience, style, elegance, grace, deep blue soul, sincerity, and maybe a pinprick of remorse or sorrow...all parts of a greater whole that made Wes and Mel the great musicians we know them to be, and the reasons they are so influential to this day. It's hard to top perfection, and this is a perfect recording.

© Michael G. Nastos /TiVo