(Hard Bop) [LP] [24/96] Wes Montgomery - The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery - 1960/1974, FLAC (tracks)

VINYL ARCHAEOLOGY
transfer by crispi
Jan 2023
matrix info:
RLP 12320A 121* QF
RLP 12320B 111*
Turntable: Rega Planar 6 / RB330 Arm / Neo PSU
Cartridge: Audio Technica AT33PTG/II MC
Phono Preamp: Musical Surroundings Phonomena II+
Digital Recorder: Tascam DR-100 MkIII
Audio Post-Processing / Tagging: iZotope RX9 / Yate
Scanning / Photo Editing: Canon LiDE 220 / Affinity Photo
Record Cleaning Machine: Okki Nokki II / L'Art du Son Fluid
Vinyl Archaeologist with 15 years of experience transferring vinyl. I start with the purest possible signal path: the feed of an unmodified Rega turntable goes into the phono preamp and from there on directly into a battery-powered portable recorder. All post-production is carried out in iZotope RX. Manual declicking is done with the visual aid of the spectrogram, allowing surgical precision and avoiding unintentional softening of transients. No noise reduction or equalisation is employed.

foobar2000 1.6.16 / Dynamic Range Meter 1.1.1
log date: 2023-02-06 17:09:31
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Analyzed: Wes Montgomery / The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery
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DR Peak RMS Duration Track
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DR12 -0.03 dB -16.27 dB 4:32 01-Airegin
DR12 -1.22 dB -18.30 dB 5:26 02-D-Natural Blues
DR15 -3.02 dB -22.56 dB 4:46 03-Polka Dots and Moonbeams
DR12 -2.07 dB -17.33 dB 6:19 04-Four on Six
DR12 -2.13 dB -16.95 dB 7:31 05-West Coast Blues
DR11 -5.77 dB -21.81 dB 4:57 06-In Your Own Sweet Way
DR13 -2.03 dB -18.49 dB 4:36 07-Mister Walker
DR13 -4.02 dB -19.19 dB 6:24 08-Gone with the Wind
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Number of tracks: 8
Official DR value: DR12
Samplerate: 96000 Hz
Channels: 2
Bits per sample: 24
Bitrate: 2699 kbps
Codec: FLAC
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The incredible Wes Montgomery of 1960 was more discernible and distinctive than the guitarist who would emerge a few years later as a pop stylist and precursor to George Benson in the '70s. On this landmark recording, Montgomery veered away from his home Indianapolis-based organ combo with Melvin Rhyne, the California-based Montgomery Brothers band, and other studio sidemen he had been placed with briefly. Off to New York City and a date with Tommy Flanagan's trio, Montgomery seems in his post- to hard bop element, swinging fluently with purpose, drive, and vigor not heard in an electric guitarist since bop progenitor Charlie Christian. Setting him apart from the rest, this recording established Montgomery as the most formidable modern guitarist of the era, and eventually its most influential. There's some classic material here, including the cat-quick but perhaps a trifle anxious version of the Sonny Rollins bop evergreen "Airegin," the famous repeated modal progressive and hard bop jam "Four on Six," and Montgomery's immortal soul waltz "West Coast Blues," effortlessly rendered with its memorable melody and flowing, elegant chiffon-like lines. Flanagan, at a time shortly after leaving his native Detroit, is the perfect pianist for this session. He plays forcefully but never overtly so on the bop tracks, offering up his trademark delicacy on the laid-back "Polka Dots and Moonbeams" and easy-as-pie "Gone with the Wind." With the dynamic Philadelphia rhythm section of brothers Percy Heath on bass and drummer Albert Heath, they play a healthy Latin beat on the choppy and dramatic melody of Montgomery's original "Mr. Walker." Montgomery is clearly talented beyond convention, consistently brilliant, and indeed incredible in the company of his sidemen, and this recording -- an essential addition to every jazz guitarist fan's collection -- put him on the map.

Wes Montgomery - guitar
Tommy Flanagan - piano
Percy Heath - bass
Albert Heath - drums
Recorded in New York on January 26-28, 1960.