Portraits in Jazz ( A Tribute to Wes Montgomery) from Ed Bicket, Sonny Greenwich and more

Ever since his emergence in 1959,​ ​Wes Montgomery​ has been a major influence on other jazz guitarists. Wes was greatly touched by​ ​Charlie Christian's​ single­note bop lines, although by mastering octaves and developing a slightly different sound, he was able to stand out a bit from the influence. On this consistently swinging set, six different Canadian guitarists pay homage to Montgomery​ by performing two songs apiece with a trio; there are eight standards plus four originals in​ ​Montgomery's​ style. All of the guitarists (​Peter Leitch,​ ​ ​Reg Schwager,​ ​ ​Ed Bickert​, Rob Piltch​,​ ​Ted Quinlan​ and​ ​Sonny Greenwich)​ were influenced by​ ​Wes's​ sound, although Greenwich​ has long had his own slightly different style. The trios, except in the case of​ ​Piltch (who utilizes organist​ ​Doug Riley​ in addition to drummer​ ​Bob McLaren)​ , feature the lead soloist accompanied by bass and drums. Of the dozen selections,​ ​Leitch's​ rendition of "If I Should Lose You,"​ ​Quinlan's​ "Wes Blues" and​ ​Bickert's​ swinging version of "Whisper Not" are highlights. This well­conceived tribute set is worth searching for. ~ Jazz Review by Scott Yanow

Track listing

1​ ​Reg Schwager Trio​ - Siblings of Groove

2​ ​Ed Bickert Trio​ ­- September Song 

3​ ​Rob Piltch Trio​ ­- 'Round Midnight 

4​ ​Ted Quinlan Trio -​ ­ Wes Blues 

5​ ​Sonny Greenwich Trio​ -­ The Best Thing for You (Would Be Me) 

6​ ​Peter Leitch Trio​ ­- J.L.M. 

7​ ​Ed Bickert Trio​ ­- Twisted Blues 

8​ ​Ted Quinlan Trio -​ ­ Whisper Not 

9​ ​Rob Piltch Trio​ ­- Descendants 

10​ ​Reg Schwager Trio​ -­ Far Wes 

11​ ​Sonny Greenwich Trio​ -­ Summertime