Keepin' it greazy!!!

[Big Al]

Briefly mentioned earlier in the thread, Grantstand and especially "Blues in Maud's Flat" is all sortsa greeeeeazy!!! Brother Jack makin' a rare appearance on a Grant Green Blue Note date, adding more fuel to an already ferocious fire. And then ya got Brother Yusef Lateef with his big thick muscular tenor just makin' everything deep-fried wonderfulness.

And then there's the absolutely gorgeous reading of "My Funny Valentine" with Lateef on flute. Green & McDuff prove themselves masters of space on this one.

[Jim Alfredson]

As I'm sure you know, Grant was one of Jack's guitarists for quite some time.

[Big Al]

Oh yeah!!! "Honeydripper" baby!!! But AFAIK, this was the only time that Brother Jack appeared with Green on Blue Note; I know Green was on a lot of McDuff's Prestige work (of which I am now an expert! )

[Soul Stream]

Oh yeah!!! "Honeydripper" baby!!! But AFAIK, this was the only time that Brother Jack appeared with Green on Blue Note; I know Green was on a lot of McDuff's Prestige work (of which I am now an expert! )

"The Honeydripper" LP is organ jazz at it's finest. Grant, Vick, ect... wow

[wolff]

i just picked up smith's rockin' the boat rvg

why didn't someone tell me about "pork chop"???

I guess I gave up mentioning this album a year or so ago. Glad to hear you like it. This is my favorite BN greeze session. Donaldson's entrances are classic and priceless.

[Soulstation1]

i'm diggin' bailey's drum work on "pork chop"

especially that "hard beat" he works on that cut and others

[BFrank]

Speaking of "greaze", nice article in today's SF Chronicle

+++

HAMMOND HEAVEN

- Andrew Gilbert

Sunday, January 2, 2005

Getting one Hammond B3 organ to a gig would seem to be hard enough. But B3 practitioners, particularly in the genre of jazz, like nothing better than setting up two of the unwieldy instruments -- which weigh nearly a quarter ton -- to lay down some simultaneous grooves.

According to Pete Fallico, the West Coast's primary B3 enabler, the reason that organ players stick together is an old-school imperative. While aspiring guitarists, pianists and saxophonists can study with any number of top-shelf musicians at a college or conservatory, "with jazz organ, it's pretty much the university of the streets," says the San Jose-based disc jockey, who proselytizes for the B3 on his Monday night show "The Doodlin' Lounge," broadcast on the Santa Cruz public radio station KUSP (88.9-FM). "What develops is a mentorship. Older players take younger cats under their wing, show them the stops, the licks, the techniques and registrations. You have a kinship going on that's different than studying piano."

Evidence for Fallico's theory can be found at the Boom Boom Room on Jan. 14-15, when Dr. Lonnie Smith, a Hammond veteran widely considered the most exciting jazz organist on the planet, holds forth with Wil Blades, the Bay Area's 24-year-old B3 upstart. In a relationship facilitated by Fallico, Blades has regularly sought out the Queens-based Smith for information, a relationship that led to their first two-organ summit last spring at the Boom Boom Room.

For this gig, they'll be joined by saxophonist Joe Cohen, drummer Deszon X. Claiborne, and guitarist Will Bernard, with whom Blades performs regularly around the region in a hard-driving trio powered by drummer Scott Amendola.

It's no coincidence that Blades and Smith are hooking up at the Boom Boom Room, which keeps a Hammond on stage no matter who's on the bill. The venue has been the Bay Area's B3 headquarters for decades, since R&B organ grease- meister Jackie Ivory had a regular gig there in the mid-'70s, when the Fillmore joint was known as Jack's.

In recent years, club owner Alex Andreas has continued to showcase the B3, often pairing Blades with players who made their mark during the instrument's golden age, such as drummer Idris Muhammad and guitarist Melvin Sparks.

For Blades, the challenge of playing with Smith has been a powerful creative spur. "He's been a major influence on my organ playing," says Blades, who grew up in Chicago and moved to the Bay Area in 1998. "The great thing about him is he's so versatile. When he's funky, he's really funky. When he's swinging, he's swinging his tail off. When he plays the blues, he's deep into it."

Smith, who was awarded his honorific by his peers and usually performs adorned with a turban, has often been mistaken for pianist/keyboardist Lonnie Liston Smith. Raised in Buffalo, he came up during the B3's glory years in the early 1960s and first gained widespread notice as a member of guitarist George Benson's classic quartet. He also played a key role on several recordings by altoist Lou Donaldson, most importantly the hit 1967 Blue Note album "Alligator Bogaloo." Heard on countless jukeboxes, the title track helped popularize the boogaloo sound, a groove that re-emerged in the 1990s as a favored rhythm of numerous acid jazz bands.

Smith recorded a series of adventurous albums on his own for Blue Note in the 1960s, often featuring trumpeter Lee Morgan, and went on to considerable acclaim for turning unlikely material into rewarding jazz vehicles, such as his two CDs exploring the music of Jimi Hendrix. More recently he released "Boogaloo to Beck" (Scufflin' Records), an album featuring instrumental interpretations of songs by the stylistically omnivorous, single-monikered singer/songwriter.

Always ready to share knowledge with dedicated young players, Smith has embraced his role as B3 elder statesman, encouraging promising musicians like Blades to keep at it.

"I definitely see Wil developing himself more and more," says Smith, 61. "He's gonna get much better, believe it or not. He has a love for the instrument, and that comes out in his playing. He also listens to the old- timers. There are a quite a few other young guys coming up: Tony Monaco, Pat Bianchi, Sam Yahel, Larry Goldings. There's plenty of room."

In a veritable Bay Area Hammond convergence, Yahel finishes out a week- long run at Yoshi's tonight with Joshua Redman's Elastic Band; and Larry Goldings, a brilliant player who helped spark the B3 resurgence in the mid- '80s after a decadelong organ drought, plays the Kuumbwa Jazz Center in Santa Cruz on Jan. 10 with his superlative trio featuring guitarist Peter Bernstein and drummer Bill Stewart.

Perhaps the most eagerly anticipated organ event this month is the return of Paris-based B3 great Rhoda Scott, who holds forth at Jazz at Pearl's on Jan. 11-12. Scott made her Bay Area debut back in 2000 at Bimbo's in one of the many B3 showcases engineered by Fallico for the San Francisco Jazz Festival. A resident of France since the mid-1960s, the Newark-raised Scott isn't well known in the United States, but she's a remarkable musician whose distinctive style flows from the surging bass lines produced by her left foot pedal action, coupled with beefy left-hand chords and lithe right-hand solos.

In another case of organists sticking together, Lonnie Smith is planning on dropping by Pearl's to sit in with Scott, an old friend from the East Coast, on a second organ suppled by Fallico.

The days when every urban nightspot kept a Hammond on hand are long gone, but Fallico is doing everything in his power to keep the instrument in the spotlight. He notes that Jimmy Smith, the legendary organist who popularized the B3 in the mid 1950s with his sensational linear solo style, is being presented with a National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Masters Award at the International Association of Jazz Educators Conference this week in Long Beach, making him the first pure organist so honored.

"There's no other instrument that can generate crowd excitement like the Hammond," Fallico says of the B3. "You have all four limbs working. Your left foot tapping bass pedals and your left hand driving the bass lines. Your right foot is controlling the dynamics, and you can build incredible crescendos while you're soloing with your right hand. You cannot beat that sound."

[Big Al]

Grrrrrrrrreat article!!!! Thanks for posting that!

I was out with my wife today and we went to Bath & Body Works so she could spend a giftcard she'd received. (No, really!) We were standing in line when what should we hear on the overhead music was Jimmy Smith's "Organ Grinder Swing!" Made waiting in line easy & greeeeeazy!

[Soulstation1]

just picked up benson's "the george benson cookbook"

again nobody told me about it

ss1

[scottb]

Personnel includes: George Benson (vocals, guitar); Lonnie Smith (Hammond organ); King Curtis (tenor saxophone); Ron Cuber (baritone saxophone); Blue Mitchell (trumpet); Benny Green (trombone)

With a lineup like that, what more could be said.

[Soul Stream]

just picked up benson's "the george benson cookbook"

again nobody told me about it

ss1

Those Benson on Columbia are just "so-so" in relation to the Benson/Lonnie Smith collaborations on Blue Note. Although I've talked to some who really swear by them. IMHO they fall into that catagory of jazz album where the solos are kept extremely short or are extremely edited to keep the songs 3 minutes plus. Not too much of a fan of that. To me, Alligator Bogaloo and Midnight Creeper are just superior in all respects. Although I would have liked to have heard the band w/Cuber doing standards like that on Blue Note...now THAT would have been great. As it was, that band was castrated on Columbia.

Edited January 6, 2005 by Soul Stream

[Soulstation1]

i finally picked up root down last night

they also had a copy of crazy baby

"after hours" is my kinda jam

the guitar player rips it up

the linear notes in this cd suck

only a 2 star from amg, what's up wit dat?

ss1

[king ubu]

"Midnight Creeper" is fantastic, Soul Stream! Gave it a first listen last weekend, and Benson is very nice there (not his biggest fan, but then I don't really know him). Also gave "Mr. Shing-A-Ling" a listen (prior to the creeper), and it's a good one, too, though I prefer "Midnight Creeper" - probably it's Benson who makes the difference for me.

The Benson Columbias I only listened in stores, and never really liked them (though the bands on paper do look fantastic). As you said, they're probably directed at too large an audience to be really successful, artistically. Also I don't need Benson singing, no sir!

[Chrome]

i finally picked up root down last night

I just got mine on Saturday!

I only wish the entire thing was unedited ... does anyone know why only some of the edited tracks on this were restored? Are the full versions of the edited tracks just not available?

[Soul Stream]

"Midnight Creeper" is fantastic, Soul Stream! Gave it a first listen last weekend, and Benson is very nice there (not his biggest fan, but then I don't really know him). Also gave "Mr. Shing-A-Ling" a listen (prior to the creeper), and it's a good one, too, though I prefer "Midnight Creeper" - probably it's Benson who makes the difference for me.

The Benson Columbias I only listened in stores, and never really liked them (though the bands on paper do look fantastic). As you said, they're probably directed at too large an audience to be really successful, artistically. Also I don't need Benson singing, no sir!

Glad you dug it! To me things like "Midnight Creeper" and the rest of the Lou Donaldson organ catalog represent the best that organ jazz ever offered. That is, those records are real BAND recordings. I love the interplay of horns, organ, guitar and drums. And those guys really are playing together for the good of the song.

Sometimes the JOS catalog leaves me flat to a degree. My favorites are always the ones with horns (The Sermon, Midnight Special, Houseparty, ect). The organ trio can get a little, to "organy" for me, (hey and I'm an organ player!). I always dig a horn or two added to the mix and Lou Donaldson ALWAYS does it right. And with Blue Mitchell along for the ride on Creeper, that's just grade A stuff....

[danasgoodstuff]

i may have said this before, but I STILL think that Blue Mitchel was da man for blending trumpet with organ, other guys like Lee M played well on organ dates but to me Blue really had the sound for it...

I really like Lou's Alligator Boogaloo and after stuffs but they do get a little samey if you listen to 'em all in a row...

[Guest akanalog]

me too. thats the thing-too same-ey.

well john patton tends to add a little something different usually to my ears-thanks to his sidemen i think.

ever listened to lee morgan on charles earland's "intensity"?

to me, that is one of the top five organ albums i have heard.

billy cobham works surprisingly well with earland.

[Soul Stream]

Yes, I think you're right about Blue Mitchell. He was THE best trumpet player w/organ imho. John Patton's "Oh Baby" is certainly a highpoint for the combination of tenor/trumpet/organ.

I do agree that Alligator and Creeper, Say It Loud, ect have a sameness to them. But I would argue that so does Art Blakey's and Horace Silver's groups of certain eras. So, it's not a bad thing for me. Just a winning formula.

[Big Al]

Yes, I think you're right about Blue Mitchell. He was THE best trumpet player w/organ imho. John Patton's "Oh Baby" is certainly a highpoint for the combination of tenor/trumpet/organ.

YES!!! That and Harold Vick's Steppin' Out are potent examples of Mitchell's undoubted greeeeaziness!

[scottb]

I like Blue too but Tommy Turrentine is a close second in my book. BLUE JOHN is a fine example.

I really need to get my hands on STEPPIN' OUT

Edited January 12, 2005 by scottb

[Soul Stream]

I like Blue too but Tommy Turrentine is a close second in my book. BLUE JOHN is a fine example.

I really need to get my hands on STEPPIN' OUT

Tommy Turrentine does deserve special attention. Especially his work on "The Natural Soul" w/Lou Donaldson. That is another example of trumpet/sax/organ masterwork.

[king ubu]

I like Blue too but Tommy Turrentine is a close second in my book.  BLUE JOHN is a fine example.

I really need to get my hands on STEPPIN' OUT

Tommy Turrentine does deserve special attention. Especially his work on "The Natural Soul" w/Lou Donaldson. That is another example of trumpet/sax/organ masterwork.

Yes indeed! He could be a very fine player (not always, but when he was "on", he was great, check him on Booker Ervin's Bethlehem album, for some clearly inspired playing).

Also, Soul Stream, I'm with you as far as the Donaldson's are concerned: a winning formula indeed, and having four or five of these albums is nice. There are others by Lou which are quite different, in my opinion ("Natural Soul" is one, the live set "The Scorpion" is another).

And scottb: you NEED "Steppin' Out" badly, I assure you!

[Soul Stream]

Yes, "The Scorpion" is a classic, and one of the best unheraled organ records. Maybe the late date hurt it. But the song selection is great (and a typical Lou set, even to this day), and it's certainly one of Lou's best BANDS (equal to the green/dixon/patton linup I'd argue). I'd LOVE to hear the full recording of this which includes Brother Soul, Bye Bye Blackbird and others. Wish they'd reissue the full night ala' Miles at the Blackhawk. Too bad they only seem to afford that kind of attention to "real" jazz classics.

[scottb]

Yeah, before I found the Spanish Blue Notes and this recent batch of RVGs were announced, my "Holy Grail" discs were TRUE BLUE, BASRA, HOOTIN' AND TOOTIN' and CURTIS FULLER VOL 3.

Now the big three on my wish list are

TWO HEADED FREEP, FACE TO FACE and STEPPIN' OUT.

[Soul Stream]

To me, Face To Face and Steppin' Out are just flat out classics. Two Headed Freap is interesting, but is way, way down on the list for me. It's good, not great imho.