"Four on Six" is one of Wes Montgomery's most famous original compositions and one of the defining performances on his 1960 album The Incredible Jazz Guitar. The 16-bar form in G minor, built on a riff that has become one of the most recognizable themes in jazz guitar history, provides a framework for an epic nine-chorus guitar solo at 204 beats per minute that fully justifies the album's title. Montgomery's solo is a masterclass in construction, moving through his three signature textures of single notes, octaves, and block chords with a logic that makes each transition feel inevitable. Tommy Flanagan's four-chorus piano solo is equally distinguished, his melodic invention and rhythmic precision contributing to a performance of the highest order. Bassist Percy Heath adds two choruses, his solo bringing a different timbral quality to the proceedings. The composition's title refers to Montgomery's guitar technique, with four notes played by the thumb against six strings. Recorded at Reeves Sound Studios for Riverside Records, this track has been transcribed, studied, and performed by generations of guitarists, its influence so pervasive that it is difficult to imagine modern jazz guitar without it. The performance remains as thrilling today as it was more than six decades ago.
