Every instrument in the standard jazz orchestra has its founding players, as well as those players in whom their chosen vehicle achieved its highest realization. Guitarists of the “single-string style” regard Charlie Christian—the consumptive, Depression-era picker who died at 25—as their patriarch. But it was Christian’s disciple and emulator, Wes Montgomery, who led them to the Promised Land.
An unrefined exemplar of pure musical genius, John Leslie “Wes” Montgomery was a self-schooled Hoosier with a double-jointed thumb and perfect pitch; a thoroughly intuitive player who could barely read music and who used his finger calluses rather than a pick. But from such unorthodox materials came incomparably sophisticated results: Montgomery’s distinctive, ringing octaves and lazily zig-zagging runs of notes became a working definition of the “Cool” style of jazz in the ’50s and ’60s, and a model for blues and rock guitarists as well as the jazzmen who followed him.
Ironic, perhaps, that this self-created, unorthodox giant—already the subject of several tribute efforts in recent years—should now be the object of a two-night homage at Smoke by Peter Bernstein, the most erudite of guitar traditionalists. Bernstein has been steadily building a reputation with his regular gigs at the club, as well as his recordings both as a front- and a sideman. His intelligent, precise playing verges on the scholarly without ever being bloodless (very much like the efforts of that other embodiment of elegant musical conservatism, Bill Charlap). But to know Bernstein’s work is to understand his connection to Wes immediately: Montgomery was famous for the “horn-like” tone of his guitar, and Bernstein has spoken to interviewers of his love for the saxophone and its vocal qualities—as well as his goal of making his guitar “breathe.” These difficult and evocative effects were second nature to Montgomery, and no doubt a source of Bernstein’s identification with the master.
A huge addition to the upcoming Smoke bill is the inclusion of organist Melvin Rhyne, a fabled player who Bernstein regularly backed when Rhyne returned to active recording in the ’90s. Rhyne’s credentials as a Montgomery celebrant are unimpeachable: He appeared on four of Wes’s celestial Riverside albums and recorded a well-regarded Montgomery tribute of his own for Savant in 1999. Rhyne’s swinging B3 sound was an integral part of several Montgomery rhythm sections in the leader’s heyday, and the septuagenarian’s participation in the Smoke tribute will evoke a bluesy, still-vibrant component of the Montgomery legacy. Also in the mix is Kenny Washington, the drumming member of Bill Charlap’s impeccable trio, a crisp and decisive player whose seamless timing should keep the trio ripping along.
March 23-March 24, Smoke Jazz Club & Lounge, 2751 B’way (betw. W. 105th & W. 106th Sts.), 212-864-6662; 8; 10; 11:30, $25.
