Before Wes Montgomery played Octaves...

[Hardbopjazz]

Were there any other guitarist before Wes that made octaves a part of the everyday playing? I can't seem to come up with anyone. Since Wes everyone seems to include playing octaves. Wes started to play octaves to quiet the sound of his playing so the neighbors didn't complain. There is no one that does this technique as polished and playing fast runs as Wes Montgomery.

[Jim R]

Wes started to play octaves to quiet the sound of his playing so the neighbors didn't complain.

There's nothing inherently quiet about playing octaves versus single lines. What he did to soften his sound for the sake of his neighbors was to play with his thumb.

Wes didn't invent octave playing, he just took it to a new level.