Between those, there are eight more selections culled from the remainder of his Riverside catalogue. There is a sweet collaboration with vibraphonist Milt Jackson on "Delilah" from Bags Meets Wes! and a swinging version of Montgomery's own composition "Four on Six" from The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery. Also from that album is a dynamic take on the classic "Gone With the Wind" and an impressive excursion into "West Coast Blues," another Montgomery original. Tommy Flanagan plays piano on both; bassist Percy Heath and drummer Albert "Tootie" Heath round out the quartet.
There is an interesting take on Clifford Brown's "Sandu" where he is joined at the start by the wispy flute of James Clay and offers a nice bass solo from Sam Jones. "I'm Just a Lucky So and So" is a classic swinger, and the album closes with a live performance of the guitarist's "Cariba" from Full House. It is an Afro-Cuban romp that gives everyone in the ensemble—Johnny Griffen (tenor sax), Wynton Kelly (piano), Paul Chambers (bass), Jimmy Cobb (drums)—a shot at the spotlight. It's the kind of exciting jam that ends the album on a high note.
The Very Best of Wes Montgomery may be somewhat limited in its scope. Certainly there will be those that object to the idea of a "very best" that doesn't include some of the guitarist's most popular work, but the objection can really only be about the title, not the content. There may be more performances deserving of the title "very best," but that's not to say that anything on this disc is unworthy and needs to be replaced.
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