So yesterday’s random numbers were 3 and 5. Those numbers led me to one blues album from Robben Ford and the Blue Line and a jazz album from Wes Montgomery. The Robben Ford album is his 1995 release Handful of Blues. The Wes Montgomery album was Movin’ Wes, released in 1964 on the Verve label.
Robben Ford -Handful of Blues
Robben Ford is one of the artists I like when I hear his music but I tend not to search out his music. Part of the reason is I really didnt care for a few of his more recent albums. Therefore, I probably haven’t given his current albums a good listen. Bottom line , I just havent been listening to his music much anymore.
Although, after listening to Handful of Blues I may need to listen to his more recent albums again. Rignt now I am listening to Lost in Paris Blues Band. It sounds pretty good to me.
Anyway let’s get back to Handful of Blues. Listening to the album I thought it sounded more bluesy than some of the albums I remember. Then I read this at All Music from Stephen Thomas Erlewine….
On Handful of Blues, Robben Ford strips his sound back to the basics, recording a set of blues with only a bassist and a drummer. The group runs through a handful of standards, including “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood” and “I Just Want to Make Love to You,” and a number of made-to-order origin
So the bottmline is listening to Handful of Blues has reminded me how good a guitarist Robben Ford is and I really do need to revisit a lot of his albums!!
Wes Montgomery – Movin’ Wes
Speaking good guitarists,Wes Montgomey is one that I never forget how great he was. I discovered Wes’s music a few years after Movin’ On, which was released in 1964.
I admit that I became a fan when Wes crossed over and recorded his albums on A&M. Those albums were more pop than pure jazz. However, I soon discovered the great jazz recordings. I quickly added several of those album to my music collection.
According to the Movin’ Wes liner notes by 1964, Wes’s pop crossover was in full swing. Two of the songs included on the album “People” and “Matchmaker” were from the popular music of the day. In the notes written in 1997 Zan Stewart writes:
…To be sure Movin’ Wes is not Montgomery’s finest hour. That position will always be reserved for his small group effort’s from The Incredible Jazz Guitar of West Montgomery on Riverside to Smokin’ at the Half Note on Verve. But it is decidedly not a bad album, unworthy of the lambasting Montgomery took in the jazz press for it and the subsequent albums. On the other hand many colleagues from Kenny Burrell to John Schofield think these commercial albums are first rate. And even if Movin’ Wes is regarded as pop music as the guitarist felt it should be, it is certainly grand pop music; if only pop music sounded this good all the time.
How right he is!
So yesterday’s random CD selection process led me to two of my favorite guitarists, Robben Ford and Wes Montgomery. Check Them Out!
Links for the Further Exploration of the Music of Robben and Wes
Robben Ford
Website
Facebook
YouTube
Amazon
Wes Montgomery
Website
Wikipedia
YouTube
Amazon
Here’s the title track from Movin’ Wes and a Robben Ford performance of “Tired of Talkin’ from Handful of Blues