Full House is the seventh album and first live jazz album by American jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery, released in 1962.
The performance was recorded live at Tsubo in Berkeley, California on June 25, 1962. The session featured a quintet that included Wynton Kelly on piano, Johnny Griffin on tenor saxophone, Paul Chambers on bass, and Jimmy Cobb on drums.
The original release was on the Riverside Records label. There have been a number of reissues of the recording, most including alternate takes of several tracks. A 1987 CD release on Riverside Records/Original Jazz Classics was digitally remastered by Danny Kopelson at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley, California. A more recent, 2007 Riverside release features additional bonus tracks.
That's how many stars this incredible Live recording rates. There are so
many special moments, musically, to treasure here that it's hard to
know where to start. Wes' treatment of "I've Grown Accustomed To Her
Face" is a solo showcase for his genius for musical dynamics - the way
he thumb-strums the melody; the way he pauses and 'slurs down' on the
two "words", referencing the lyrics; the way he intro's (and 'out-ros')
in a different key...the next moment that comes to mind is in "Blue 'N
Boogie". Wes gets off some machine gun licks, then hands it off to
Wynton, Paul, and Jimmy. Listen to how Jimmy Cobb shifts the dynamic of
the beat at the start of Wynton's third verse, bumping the off-beat and
rim-clicking the 2/4 - literally creating a new level for Wynton to go
to (which he does, with a Red Garland-esque block chord ending). The
most amazing thing of all is that this is all a prelude to Johnnie
Griffin's solo, followed by all around 'trading fours' to the end. It's a
clinic in dynamics, group-style. On the next track, "Cariba", Wes gives
a clinic on how to build, chorus after chorus, upon each previous
statement. I think it may be one of his best solos of the night. Every
track could be broken down into these kind of moments (I'll spare
you...), but the point is that this band - specifically Wes with the
Wynton Kelly trio, as Johnny Griffin is sweet icing on that cake, was
one of the tightest, most dynamic jazz units to ever grace a stage. What
a moment in Time that night must have been. What a CD this is.
Forget "The Incredible". This is Wes's masterwork, performed live with a
band finally up to his genius. Despite all the praise he got as a
player, I think this album makes the argument that he's STILL
under-appreciated. His solo on "Blue N' Boogie" is as fine a piece of
spontaneous composition as exists. If you like jazz guitar, if you like
jazz... hell, if you like music, don't wait another second. Get it.
"Smokin at the Half Note" is usually touted as Wes' best recorded work
and understandably so. However, in my opinion, "Full House" makes for a
much better record. "Smokin'" as orginally issued is a piecemeal
recording. Only the first two cuts are recorded live. The other tracts
were recorded later at the Van Gelder Studios. Subsequently, "Willow
Weep for Me" was issued posthumously containing the other tunes from the
Half Note dates but with the cuts unfortunately overdubbed with a horn
section. The most exciting cut from the Half Note dates, "Impressions"
was absent from both records, only to appear on a later Verve
collection. Just way too much tampering with a live performance for my
taste. Full House is unadulterated and Wes plays with just as much
fire. The feeling of "actually being there" is much better represented
by this record. My only complaint is the needless repetition of the same
songs one right after the other. If you're going to put on alternate
performances, put them at the end of the record for crying out loud!
Still, Full House is so good in spite of this that I can't bring myself
to give it anything less than five stars. If I could only own one Wes
cd it would be this one.
I love guitar jazz. Real guitar jazz, not the watered down sap they play
on 'smooth jazz' radio or the avantgarde dreck intellectuals play at
their dinner parties. The category is chock full with wonderful players,
both living and dead; alas, Wes is no longer with us, but his influence
is all over the place. He was a great technician but also a brilliant
interpreter who could achieve gorgeous tone, and sometimes slipping into
schmaltzy pop modes. None of that on this disc, sparkling and
freshly-remastered, that showcases Wes at the absolute top of his
game...and of the guitar jazz heap.
As one of the most influential jazz guitarists of all time (second only
to perhaps Charlie Christian), Wes Montgomery created a vocabulary of
techniques and mannerisms for jazzers similar to how Andres Segovia did
for classical players. His trademarks - octaves, extended block chord
solos, and above all, melodicism - blew many away in the forceful manner
which Wes employed them. I feel that on this release, Full House, Wes
demonstrates his talents as a bandleader and player better than most of
his recordings, except for perhaps the legendary Smokin' at the Half
Note.
The engineering on this record is superb; every instrument
comes through in the mix loud and clear, yet retains a special spot in
the audio spectrum and blends nicely with the other instruments. I
personally own the 20-bit remaster, but it sounds to me like the basic
mix itself was pretty good to begin with.
This is one of the most
superb bands that jazz has perhaps ever seen. We have the esteemed
Wynton Kelly trio, with Wynton Kelly on piano, Paul Chambers on bass,
and Jimmy Cobb on drums, to back up Wes, of course, and also on this
occasion the formidable talents of saxophonist Johnny Griffin (who would
pair with the same quartet on several later dates). Wes and Johnny
often harmonize on the melodies, especially on "Cariba" and "S.O.S.",
and it works quite well, especially with the notable difference in tone
color between their instruments. Griffin has a sound that I can't quite
pin down; to my ears, it doesn't sound distinctly like any of the sax
masters, so it's a surprise that he isn't better known in the jazz
canon. Regardless, his playing is superb and he goes toe-to-toe with
Wes on nearly every cut.
The blues is in strong effect on this
record, as with most Wes recordings; "Cariba", in fact, is at its core a
basic 12-bar Latin blues, with a unique bassline that gives it a little
bit of a distinctive sound. "Cariba" is also the cut with the best Wes
solo (although "Full House" comes rather close as well). Really, the
whole ensemble works together to make an overall appealing sound, and
it's not just like the rhythm section is ticking away while the soloists
blow. The drummer and Wynton are always in tune with the soloists,
whether they're doing repeating riffs and Cobb comes in with a few
synchronized cymbal hits, or the soloists step it up dynamically and the
rhythm section follows them all the way. This is a little more evident
on Smokin' at the Half Note, but that was several years later, when Wes
had been playing with Wynton's trio on a regular basis; this is the
genesis of their collaboration, and it's an impressive one.
So
why only 4 stars if the record is overall incredible? Well, having
multiple takes of the same song to fill space on a jazz record is not
something I am particularly fond of. It makes it a little hard to
listen to the record straight through multiple times and not get a
little annoyed. Plus, each extra take is pretty routine. Also, the
track selection is not quite perfect; "I've Grown Accustomed to Her
Face" was not a good choice, as Wes's chord-melody playing is nowhere
near his octave- or single-note talents. He is a master chord soloist,
true, but he can't play chord-melody like Joe Pass or anything. Also,
"Come Rain or Come Shine" is kind of a substandard tune on the record -
not bad by any means, but every other track is killer, so it weighs down
the others a bit.
This is still a very worthy purchase; the band
is hot, and so are Johnny Griffin and Wes, and that's pretty much the
fundamental selling point of any great jazz record. If multiple takes
don't bother you much, this record is only more recommended. For
everyone else, it's still a great album to just plain listen to; it's
not boring like some jazz records, due to the incredibly dynamic playing
of the band. Plus, hearing Wes live is pretty much the only way to go,
and that's probably the best compliment I can give. I'm sure the club
was a Full House on this night for sure.
Track listing
Original Issue
"Full House" (Wes Montgomery) – 9:14
"I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face" (Alan Jay Lerner, Frederick Loewe) – 3:18
"Blue 'n' Boogie" (Dizzy Gillespie, Frank Paparelli) – 9:31
"Come Rain or Come Shine" (Johnny Mercer, Harold Arlen) – 6:49
"S.O.S." (Montgomery) – 4:57
"Born To Be Blue" (Mel Tormé, Robert Wells) – 7:23
2007 Reissue by Riverside
"Full House" (Wes Montgomery) - 9:16
"I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face" (Lerner, Loewe) - 3:29
"Blue 'N' Boogle" (Gillespie, Paparelli) - 9:38
"Cariba (Take 2)" (Wes Montgomery) - 9:41
"Come Rain or Come Shine [Take 2]" (Arlen, Mercer) - 6:57
"S.O.S. (Take 3)" (Wes Montgomery) - 5:03
"Cariba" (Wes Montgomery) - 8:28
"Come Rain or Come Shine" (Arlen, Mercer) - 7:21
"S.O.S." (Wes Montgomery) - 4:49
"Born to Be Blue" (Tormé, Wells) - 7:27
"Born to Be Blue (alternate take)" (Tormé, Wells) - 7:35
Personnel
Wes Montgomery – guitar
Johnny Griffin – tenor sax
Wynton Kelly – piano
Paul Chambers – bass
Jimmy Cobb – drums
Haven't heard this ever. But if it's in the same league with Smokin' At The Half Note, it should be nothing less than stunning. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteThank you!
ReplyDeletemy favourite Wes' record! i have all the 1987 vinyl reissues but i have been looking for this in digital format.. thank you so much!
ReplyDeleteUm clássico! Obrigado!
ReplyDeleteHola buenas noches, me parece un portal bastante bueno, lo que no encuentro son los Links de descarga, alguien me puede decir donde estan?
ReplyDeleteGracia.
Thanks for this great live Wes.
ReplyDeleteMany thx, especially because it's the 2007 reissue!
ReplyDeleteCan we get new links? Many thanks!
ReplyDeleteNew link!
Deletehttps://workupload.com/file/W8G6aeJUrGY
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