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The Incredible Jazz Guitar Of Wes Montgomery is a dazzling display of the unorthodox technique and emotional power that combined to make Wes a literally “incredible” artist. Ever since its initial release in 1960, this album has been a consensus choice of musicians, critics and knowledgeable listeners as a matchless example of the talents of one of the finest jazz instrumentalists of all times.
Personnel: Wes Montgomery – guitar, Tommy Flanagan – piano, Percy Heath – bass, Albert “Tootie” Heath – drums
Producer: Orrin Keepnews
Record Date: New York City – January 26 & 28, 1960
Cover Art: Produced and designed by Paul Bacon, Ken Braren and Harris Lewine
Songs: Airegin, D-Natural Blues, Polka Dots & Moonbeams, Four On Six, West Coast Blues, In Your Own Sweet Way, Mr. Walker (Renie), Gone With The Wind
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Jazz In Film
La Route du Bonheur (The Road To Happiness) is a 1952 film directed by Carlo Mastelli, the young radio presenter of “New Voices” has run short of ideas and his program is likely to be suspended from the radio schedule if he does not find any new ones. He is saved by chance in the person of Marina, a charming young school teacher, who takes advantage of the presence of a radio crew in her village for the recording of a singing contest to broadcast an appeal in favor of Tonino, the most underprivileged of her pupils.
Directors: Carlo Mastelli,Maurice Labro and Giorgio Simonelli
Stars: Georges Guetary, Luis Mariano and Nilla Pizzi
Musical appearances by Louis Armstrong and His Orchestra, Sidney Bechet, Claude Luter, Django Reinhardt and Hubert Rostaing.
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The Cats: In the Fifties, Tommy Flanagan was one of the most highly valued pianists in jazz. His appearance on record was primarily as a sideman, well appreciated by his fellow musicians but not recognized for their display of his superior abilities by a wider audience.
This album contains a Flanagan trio track “How Long Has This Been Going On?” surrounded with the choice, empathetic soloists as Coltrane, Burrell and Sulieman. It is still a delight to hear their interaction to this day with Tommy and the all-Detroit rhythm section of Doug Watkins and Louis Hayes. Flanagan penned all of the originals on this album.
Personnel: Tommy Flanagan – piano, John Coltrane – tenor saxophone, Idrees Sulieman – trumpet, Kenny Burrell – guitar, Doug Watkins – bass, Louis Hayes – drums
Record date: Hackensack, New Jersey – April 18, 1957
Supervised by: Bob Weinstock
Songs: Minor Mishap; How Long Has This Been Going On; Eclypso; Solacium; Tommy’s Tune
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Sarah Vaughan with Clifford Brown: When Two Geniuses Met for One Perfect Album
Sometimes magic happens when the right artists meet at exactly the right moment. Sarah Vaughan with Clifford Brown—originally released simply as Sarah Vaughan in 1954—is one of those rare, lightning-in-a-bottle collaborations that captured two towering talents at their creative peaks.
An Unlikely Pairing That Shouldn’t Have Worked—But Did
On paper, pairing the Grammy Award-winning vocal virtuoso Sarah Vaughan with the brilliant young trumpeter Clifford Brown might have seemed risky. Vaughan’s voice was an instrument unto itself, capable of operatic range, breathtaking improvisation, and emotional depths that could break your heart. Brown, meanwhile, was revolutionizing jazz trumpet with his warm tone, flawless technique, and lyrical approach that suggested both bebop fire and romantic elegance.
Together? Pure alchemy.
A Single Session, An Enduring Legacy
The album was released on the EmArcy label and remains the only collaboration between this extraordinary pair, a tantalizing “what if” for jazz fans who can only imagine what further recordings might have produced. The original release bore only Vaughan’s name, but when reissued, the title was changed to emphasize Brown’s participation, recognizing that this was a true partnership between equals.
Critical Reception and Personal Favorite
The album was well-received upon release, though not without some criticism—as is often the case with ambitious artistic statements that don’t follow predictable formulas. Some critics felt the arrangements were too lush, others wanted more interaction between the two principals. But Vaughan herself had no doubts: this remained her personal favorite among all her recordings through 1980, a remarkable statement from an artist with a discography spanning decades and hundreds of albums.
She knew what she’d captured in that studio—something special, something that transcended the usual vocalist-with-accompaniment formula.
Recognition and Immortality
History has vindicated Vaughan’s judgment. In 1999, the album was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, joining the pantheon of recordings deemed “qualitatively or historically significant” and worthy of permanent preservation.
A Bittersweet Postscript
There’s an inevitable sadness knowing this was the only time these two artists recorded together. Just two years after this session, Clifford Brown died in a car accident at age 25, robbing jazz of one of its most promising voices. This album stands as both a celebration of what Brown achieved in his brief life and a poignant reminder of what was lost.
Why It Still Matters
Sarah Vaughan with Clifford Brown isn’t just a historical artifact or a completist’s curiosity—it’s a masterclass in musical communication. Listen to how Brown’s trumpet seems to converse with Vaughan’s voice, how they finish each other’s musical thoughts, how the space between their phrases breathes with meaning.
This is what happens when two artists at the top of their game truly listen to each other and respond with honesty, generosity, and brilliance.
For anyone who loves vocal jazz, trumpet playing, or simply the sound of two masters making something beautiful together, this album remains essential—a 1954 gift that keeps giving, seven decades later.
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Sketches of Spain: When Miles Davis Went to Andalusia (Without Leaving New York)
What happens when you put Miles Davis‘ trumpet against the backdrop of Spanish classical music and flamenco? You get one of the most daring, gorgeous albums in jazz history.
Sketches of Spain (1960) was the third collaboration between Miles Davis and arranger/conductor Gil Evans, and it remains their most audacious. This isn’t just jazz—it’s a complete reimagining of Spanish music through an American lens, a cultural bridge built in sound. Rolling Stone ranked it #350 on their list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, and once you hear it, you’ll understand why.
Recorded between November 1959 and March 1960 at Columbia’s legendary 30th Street Studio in New York City, the sessions brought together Miles’ core rhythm section—Paul Chambers on bass, Jimmy Cobb on drums, plus the great Elvin Jones adding percussion—with an absolutely massive orchestra. We’re talking French horns, oboes, bassoons, tuba, harp, flutes, and more, featuring stellar musicians like Danny Bank, Bill Barber, Johnny Coles, Bernie Glow, Ernie Royal, and Janet Putnam among many others.
Gil Evans’ arrangements are nothing short of miraculous—lush, evocative, cinematic. He doesn’t just accompany Miles; he creates entire sonic landscapes for that singular trumpet voice to soar over. The album opens with their interpretation of Joaquín Rodrigo’s “Concierto de Aranjuez,” and from the first mournful notes, you’re transported.
Across five tracks—”Concierto de Aranjuez,” “Will O’ the Wisp,” “The Pan Piper,” “Saeta,” and “Solea”—Miles and Gil paint with broader strokes than most jazz albums dare. This is music that breathes, broods, and burns with quiet intensity.
Producers Teo Macero and Irving Townsend captured something timeless when they released this on July 18, 1960. It’s been over six decades, and Sketches of Spain still sounds like nothing else, a masterpiece that proved jazz could go anywhere, be anything, as long as the vision was clear and the artists were fearless.
Put this on, close your eyes, and let Miles take you to Spain.
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