California Dreaming (album)
Encyclopedia
California Dreaming is a jazz
album recorded by guitar
ist Wes Montgomery
and released in 1966. It reached number one on the Billboard
Jazz album chart and number 4 on the R&B
chart. It was reissued on CD in 2007 with an alternate take of "Sunny".
wrote: "The material is strictly pop fluff of the era and the great guitarist has little opportunity to do much other than state the melody in his trademark octaves. This record was perfect for AM radio of the period."
Production notes:
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
album recorded by guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
ist Wes Montgomery
Wes Montgomery
John Leslie "Wes" Montgomery was an American jazz guitarist. He is widely considered one of the major jazz guitarists, emerging after such seminal figures as Django Reinhardt and Charlie Christian and influencing countless others, including Pat Martino, George Benson, Russell Malone, Emily...
and released in 1966. It reached number one on the Billboard
Billboard charts
The Billboard charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs or albums in the United States. The results are published in Billboard magazine...
Jazz album chart and number 4 on the R&B
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
chart. It was reissued on CD in 2007 with an alternate take of "Sunny".
Reception
In his review for Allmusic, jazz critic Scott YanowScott Yanow
Scott Yanow is an American jazz commentator, known for many contributions to the Allmusic website, for writing ten books on jazz and for reviewing jazz recordings for over 30 years.-Biography:...
wrote: "The material is strictly pop fluff of the era and the great guitarist has little opportunity to do much other than state the melody in his trademark octaves. This record was perfect for AM radio of the period."
Track listing
- "California DreamingCalifornia Dreamin'"California Dreamin is a popular song by The Mamas & the Papas, first released in 1965. The song is #89 in Rolling Stones list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time...
" (John PhillipsJohn Phillips (musician)John Edmund Andrew Phillips , was an American singer, guitarist, songwriter and promoter . Known as Papa John, Phillips was a member and leader of the singing group The Mamas & the Papas...
, Michelle PhillipsMichelle PhillipsMichelle Phillips is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She gained fame as a member of the 1960s group The Mamas & the Papas, and is the last surviving original member of the group.-Early life:...
) – 3:08 - "Sun Down" (Wes Montgomery) – 6:03
- "Oh, You Crazy Moon" Jimmy Van Heusen, Johnny BurkeJohnny Burke (lyricist)Johnny Burke was a lyricist, widely regarded as one of the finest writers of popular songs in America between the 1920s and 1950s.-Biography:...
) – 3:44 - "More, More, Amor" (Sol Lake) – 2:54
- "Without You" (Marino, Myers) – 3:05
- "Winds of Barcelona" (Lake) – 3:07
- "Sunny [alternate take]" (Bobby HebbBobby HebbBobby Hebb was an American singer and songwriter, best known for his writing and recording of "Sunny".-Biography:...
) – 3:07 - "Sunny" (Hebb) – 4:04
- "Green Peppers" (Lake) – 2:56
- "Mr. Walker" (Montgomery) – 3:39
- "South of the BorderSouth of the Border (1939 song)"South of the Border" is a popular song describing a trip to Mexico, written by Jimmy Kennedy and Michael Carr and published in 1939 for the film of the same name starring country star Gene Autry....
" (Jimmy KennedyJimmy KennedyJimmy Kennedy OBE was an Irish songwriter, predominantly a lyricist, putting words to existing music such as "Teddy Bears' Picnic" and "My Prayer", or co-writing with the composers Michael Carr, Wilhelm Grosz and Nat Simon amongst others.-Biography:Kennedy was born near Omagh...
, Michael CarrMichael Carr (composer)Michael Carr , real name Maurice Alfred Cohen, was a British light music composer born in Leeds. He is best remembered for the song "South of the Border ", written with Jimmy Kennedy for the 1939 film of the same name.Among Carr's other compositions were The Shadows instrumental hits "Man of...
) – 3:13
Personnel
- Wes MontgomeryWes MontgomeryJohn Leslie "Wes" Montgomery was an American jazz guitarist. He is widely considered one of the major jazz guitarists, emerging after such seminal figures as Django Reinhardt and Charlie Christian and influencing countless others, including Pat Martino, George Benson, Russell Malone, Emily...
– guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with... - Herbie HancockHerbie HancockHerbert Jeffrey "Herbie" Hancock is an American pianist, bandleader and composer. As part of Miles Davis's "second great quintet," Hancock helped to redefine the role of a jazz rhythm section and was one of the primary architects of the "post-bop" sound...
– piano - Bucky PizzarelliBucky PizzarelliJohn Paul "Bucky" Pizzarelli is an American Jazz guitarist and banjoist, and the father of jazz guitarist John Pizzarelli and upright bassist Martin Pizzarelli. Pizzarelli has also worked for NBC as a staffman for Dick Cavett and also ABC with Bobby Rosengarden in...
– guitar - Ray BarrettoRay BarrettoRay Barretto was a Grammy Award-winning Puerto Rican jazz musician.-Early years:Barretto was born in New York City of Puerto Rican descent...
– percussion - Grady TateGrady TateGrady Tate, , is a hard bop and soul-jazz drummer and singer.He has played with Lional Hampton, Jimmy Smith, Grant Green, Lena Horne, Astrud Gilberto, Ella Fitzgerald, Miles Davis, Blossom Dearie, Chris Connor, Sarah Vaughan, Ray Charles, Cal Tjader, Peggy Lee, Bill Evans, Duke Ellington, Count...
– drums - Al Casamenti – guitar
- Richard Davis – bass
- Bernie GlowBernie GlowBernie Glow was a trumpet player who specialized in jazz and commercial lead trumpet from the 1940s to 1970s....
– trumpet - Mel DavisMel Davis (musician)Mel Davis was a multi-talented musician and arranger, best known for his trumpet playing. As well trumpet, he played piano, violin, drums, tuba, bass, accordion and ocarina. He was also known as a vocalist. He was born in Philadelphia in 1955 and died in Florida on Dec...
– trumpet - Jimmy Nottingham – trumpet
- Wayne AndreWayne AndreWayne Andre was an American jazz trombonist, best known for his work as a session musician.Andre's father was a saxophonist, and he took private music lessons from age 15. He played with Charlie Spivak in the early 1950s before spending some time in the U.S. Air Force...
– trombone - Johnny Messner – trombone
- Bill WatrousBill WatrousWilliam Russell Watrous III is a jazz trombonist. He is perhaps best known by casual fans of jazz music for his rendition of Sammy Nestico's arrangement of the Johnny Mandel ballad "A Time for Love," which he recorded on a 1993 album of the same name...
– trombone - Stan Webb – clarinet, English Horn, saxophone
- Raymond Beckenstein – flute, piccolo, saxophone
- James Buffington – French Horn
- Jack Jennings – castanets, scratching, vibraphone
- Don Butterfield – tuba
Production notes:
- Creed TaylorCreed TaylorCreed Taylor is an American record producer, best known for his work with CTI Records, which he founded in 1968. Taylor’s career also included work at Bethlehem Records, ABC-Paramount, Verve, and A&M Records...
– producer - Don SebeskyDon SebeskyDon Sebesky is an American jazz trombonist and arranger.-Biography:Sebesky trained in trombone at the Manhattan School of Music; in his early career, he played with Kai Winding, Claude Thornhill, Tommy Dorsey, Warren Covington, Maynard Ferguson and Stan Kenton...
– arranger, conductor - Rudy Van GelderRudy Van GelderRudy Van Gelder is an American recording engineer specializing in jazz.Often regarded as one of the most important recording engineers in music history, Van Gelder has recorded several thousand jazz sessions, including many widely recognized as classics, in a career spanning more than half a century...
– engineer - Gert Van Hoeyen – remastering
- Dennis Drake – remastering
- Ken Whitmore – cover photo, photography
Chart positions
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1967 | Billboard Jazz Albums | 1 |
| Billboard R&B Albums | 4 | |
| The Billboard 200 | 65 | |