Monk Montgomery – Reality

William Howard “Monk” Montgomery is widely known as the man who “de-bastardized the Fender bass.” Monk worked with Lionel Hampton’s orchestra in the early 50’s and legitimized the then-nascent Fender electric bass guitar with his superb walking basslines, melodies, and ostinatos, later becoming possibly the first to put the instrument to record with 1953’s The Art Farmer Septet. Monk’s third and final solo album Reality is an underrated Philly soul-jazz classic featuring members of MFSB and the original Salsoul Orchestra. Monk’s electric bass takes on deep jazz-funk grooves, classic melodies, solos, and just about everything in between…

Recommended – A1 Reality, Full Listen