{"product_id":"jimmy-smith-wes-montgomery-jimmy-wes-the-dynamic-duo-verve-vault-reissue","title":"Jimmy Smith \u0026 Wes Montgomery – Jimmy \u0026 Wes The Dynamic Duo (Verve Vault Reissue)","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c!--StartFragment --\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eReleased in 1966 on Verve Records, \u003cem\u003eJimmy \u0026amp; Wes (The Dynamic Duo)\u003c\/em\u003e, captures the only full-length studio collaboration between Hammond B3 organist Jimmy Smith and guitarist Wes Montgomery. Produced by Creed Taylor and arranged by Oliver Nelson, Jimmy \u0026amp; Wes brought together two of jazz’s most distinctive voices in an expansive big band setting. Recorded over three days in September 1966 at Rudy Van Gelder’s Englewood Cliffs studio, the sessions featured a brass-and reed-heavy ensemble and a top-tier rhythm section with drummer Grady Tate and bassist Richard Davis. Montgomery’s melodic guitar lines and Smith’s fiery organ grooves find a vibrant setting in Nelson’s tight, punchy arrangements — rich in harmonic color and rhythmic drive. The program blends originals and standards, including Smith’s bluesy “James and Wes” and a reimagined “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” transformed into a simmering, minor-key vamp. Nelson’s orchestrations give the album cinematic sweep without sacrificing the interplay between its stars. The result is a rare meeting of two jazz giants, captured during a period of broad popular success, with the added presence of one of the era’s most accomplished arrangers.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Verve Vault series is always mastered from analog tapes and pressed on 180g vinyl at Optimal. — (via \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/store.ververecords.com\/products\/jimmy-wes-the-dynamic-duo-verve-vault-series-lp?srsltid=AfmBOoqxJ770rSo5nN09355s3esdJac3xK2o1vHZK9HuFCFySDPQKntU\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"\u003eLabel\u003c\/a\u003e)\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e—\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCreed Taylor matched two of his most famous artists, Wes Montgomery and Jimmy Smith, on this session (Montgomery's last for Verve), and the results are incendiary — a near-ideal meeting of yin and yang. Smith comes at your throat with his big attacks and blues runs while Montgomery responds with rounder, smoother octaves and single notes that still convey much heat.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThey are an amazing pair, complementing each other, driving each other, using their bop and blues taproots to fuse together a sound. The romping, aggressive big band charts — Oliver Nelson at his best — on \"Down by the Riverside\" and \"Night Train,\" and the pungently haunting chart for Gary McFarland's \"13\" (Death March)\" still leave plenty of room for the soloists to stretch out. \"James and Wes\" and \"Baby, It's Cold Outside\" include drummer Grady Tate and conguero Ray Barretto, with Smith's own feet working the organ pedals.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Verve Master Edition reissue also includes an alternate take of \"O.G.D.\" with Tate and Barretto, a track previously surfacing on a long-gone Encyclopedia of Jazz anthology LP from the '60s — a neat bonus that makes this the preferred version. — (via \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.allmusic.com\/album\/jimmy-wes-the-dynamic-duo-mw0000192516\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"\u003eAll Music\u003c\/a\u003e)\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ciframe width=\"100%\" height=\"352\" style=\"border-radius: 12px;\" data-testid=\"embed-iframe\" src=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/embed\/album\/7mUk12jQQ51pJ0xHosHA90?utm_source=generator\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture\" loading=\"lazy\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eVinyl Tracklist\u003cbr\u003eA1 Down By The Riverside \u003cbr\u003eA2 Night Train \u003cbr\u003eB1 James \u0026amp; Wes \u003cbr\u003eB2 13 (Death March)\u003cbr\u003eB3 Baby, It’s Cold Outside\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e↓\u003cbr\u003eLabel: Verve Records\u003cbr\u003eFormat: Vinyl, LP, Album, Reissue, Stereo, Gatefold, 180 gram\u003cbr\u003eReissued: 2025 \/ Originally Released: 1966\u003cbr\u003eGenre: Jazz\u003cbr\u003eStyle: Post Bop\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFile under: Audiophile Jazz\u003cbr\u003e⦿\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c!--EndFragment --\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Verve","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46388933525662,"sku":"602478261749","price":60.0,"currency_code":"SGD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0584\/5434\/3838\/files\/817MuyFKgoL.jpg?v=1768036969","url":"https:\/\/theanalogvault.com\/products\/jimmy-smith-wes-montgomery-jimmy-wes-the-dynamic-duo-verve-vault-reissue","provider":"The Analog Vault","version":"1.0","type":"link"}