Down Here On The Ground [Digipak]

Performer: Wes Montgomery
Artist: Ron Carter; Grady Tate; Herbie Hancock; Ray Barretto; Mike Mainieri; Hubert Laws
Distributor: Universal Distribution

Notes: Personnel: Wes Montgomery (guitar); Eumir Deodato, Don Sebesky (conductor); Hubert Laws, George Marge, Romeo Penque (flute, oboe); Gene Orloff, Raoul Poliakin (violin); Emanuel Vardi (viola); George Ricci (cello); Mike Mainieri (vibraphone); Herbie Hancock (piano); Ron Carter (bass); Grady Tate (drums); Ray Barretto, Bobby Rosengarden (percussion). Recorded at the Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey on December 20 & 21, 1967 and January 22 & 26, 1968. While it may be frustrating that Wes Montgomery all but stopped making "real" jazz records after the demise of the Riverside label in 1963, he didn't stop being a great musician, even if later recordings gave him less room to manifest the more exciting aspects of his talent. He continued to write and record original tunes, create turbulently logical solos with those dazzling octaves and block chords, and to include at least a few cooking tunes on his more produced albums. "Up and At It" is one of these, and while there isn't that much room to stretch out, it's still Montgomery all the way. Likewise the other original, "Goin' On to Detroit," is hardly the sound of a man just laying down the melody in octaves, as Montgomery was often accused of doing during this period. The rhythm section is none too shabby either: Herbie Hancock on piano, Ron Carter on bass, and Grady Tate on drums.

Wes Montgomery's warm sound and hard-driving swing are, for many listeners, the epitome of jazz guitar. Rising from relative obscurity in the late 1950s, he became a huge sensation in the '60s, to the point that his recording career veered increasingly into commercial realms. Montgomery could tear off exhilarating solos with effortless grace, and in his relatively brief career he left an enduring legacy of brilliant playing.

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