PAPATAMUS REDUX

CHICAGO JAZZ ORCHESTRA RECORDS (RELEASED MARCH 28, 2025)

If imitation is the greatest form of flattery, guitarist Wes Montgomery should be flattered by More Amor, A Tribute to Wes Montgomery from the Chicago Jazz Orchestra (CJO) featuring guitarist Bobby Broom. In 1963, Riverside Records released Fusion, the first pairing of Montgomery with an orchestra that included tunes such as “Baubles, Bangles and Beads” and “Somewhere.” In the late 1960s, Creed Taylor helped put Montgomery on the charts when he enveloped the guitarist in lush orchestrations on tunes such as “Road Song” and “What The World Needs Now Is Love.” The CJO and Broom recast these classic tunes with passion, precision and pizazz thanks in part to the arrangements of Alex Brown, Tom Garling and Charley Harrison as well as transcriptions of Don Sebesky and Oliver Nelson arrangements from CJO artistic director Jeff Lindberg. Other tunes featured on More Amor such as “Four on Six,” “West Coast Blues,” “Fried Pies” and “Boss City,” which were originally recorded by Montgomery with quartets, sextets, organ groups or brass sections, are performed with newly written orchestral arrangements on More Amor. Despite the fact that the arrangements are meticulous, the solos are inspired and the CJO lives up to its reputation as one of the best big band in the country, I will most likely get my “Wes” fix by going back to the original recordings I cherished in my youth. With that said, More Amor may introduce a whole new generation to the music of Montgomery and eventually they will find their way back to records such as “So Much Guitar,” “Full House,” “Willow Weep for Me,” and who could forget “Smokin’ at The Half Note.” I can only hope so.

BOTTOM LINE: More Amor, A Tribute to Wes Montgomery recasts ten classic tracks recorded by Montgomery between 1961-1968 with new orchestrations, the tight playing of the Chicago Jazz Ensemble and the soulful sound of guitarist Bobby Broom. Although it’s nice to hear these tunes 40 years after they first appeared on record, they are still no substitute for the real “Wes.”