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Thread: Favorite Organists

  1. #1
    Senior Member Ducatista47's Avatar
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    Favorite Organists

    I was messing around with YouTube the other day and saw a tribute to the 70th anniversary of the Hammond organ. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Ck__wghRww In the related videos I discovered a great player I had never heard of. I thought it would be interesting to have a thread about our favorite organists. Hammond B3, pipe organ, Farfisa, Vox, anything is fair game. I'll start things off with my two favorite artists, both B3 players.

    Being a Jazz head, Larry Young is the head of the class for me. He is far less known than Jimmy Smith, but he was closer to my taste for deeper, heavier jazz styles. The CD Unity is available and reasonably priced. It is one of those remastered Rudy Van Gelder albums - remastered by Rudy. The 1965 session is a very good example of why I think he was the greatest. Back in 1975 when I turned on to heavier jazz, a Larry Young album was one of the reasons why.

    A disciple, more or less, is my recent discovery. She sounds more like Young than anyone else I have heard, at least sometimes, and she is an amazing technical player as well. The German Barbara Dennerlein plays the B3 with what might pass to some as a normal mode of hand usage, but her left leg plays pedal bass with the speed of a Fender Jazz Bass player. She therefore seldom uses a bass player, but has played with some very impressive talent. She has a CD with Straight Ahead and often used Andy Sheppard as her reed man. My limited German leads me to believe her name is pronounced like "daner-line."

    Barbara's recordings are either mostly out of print or not imported to the USA. There are two CD's recently released on a Japanese label, but are rather expensive. She is so good I am actually thinking of ordering them at forty dollars each. There are I think three other discs availlable new. She can be seen on YouTube - a search will turn up performances starting in the eighties. Here is a nice place to start: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=60ut7yIuCE
    A search will reveal two pages of videos. Her B3 playing is the hottest you will ever hear, and she is very convincing bringing her modern sensibilities to the pipe organ.

    I lied, let me do one more. Having seen a great Blind Faith gig back in the day, Steve Winwood. What a great B3 man he is. The recordings give only a hint of what he can do. While we are at it, don't forget his work in Traffic.

    So who do you like?


    Clark
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    Information is not Knowledge; Knowledge is not Wisdom
    Too many audiophiles listen with their eyes instead of their ears


  2. #2
    Senior Member richluvsound's Avatar
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    well since you asked !

    there was a young lady I met on holiday in Italy a few years back !

    Sorry Clark

  3. #3
    Senior Member Ducatista47's Avatar
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    Nice one, Rich
    I can't wait to hear what Ian has to say about your taste in "organ-ists." I should not have ended the list of British organs with Vox, apparently.

    I am also expecting some of our esteemed German forum members to wonder out loud why we have not heard of the Goddess of German Jazz.

    Clark
    Information is not Knowledge; Knowledge is not Wisdom
    Too many audiophiles listen with their eyes instead of their ears


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    Senior Member Ducatista47's Avatar
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    A good friend of mine tells me that Richard "Groove" Holmes was something else. Is anyone familiar with his work?

    Clark
    Information is not Knowledge; Knowledge is not Wisdom
    Too many audiophiles listen with their eyes instead of their ears


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    I had the chance to attend the living creature in Brazil, the Bruce Katz here, touching a Hammond B3, in the house of spectacles Bourbon Street in São Paulo, Capital.
    James Benatti Lansing
    http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/pic...39966dkzmc.jpg
    http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov...89376ec6q2.jpg

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    Senior Member BMWCCA's Avatar
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    I'm a simple man, easily amused: Lee Michaels "Fifth": http://www.amazon.com/Fifth-Lee-Michaels/dp/B000002R8D

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    Dis Member mikebake's Avatar
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    Jimmy McGriff, Groove Holmes had some good stuff, also check out Tony Monaco.

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    Senior Member grumpy's Avatar
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    Joey DeFrancesco can be a good listen for B3 folks.

    E. Power Biggs recordings also occupy a few slots on my shelf, along with some
    other famous, enjoyable classical pipe organ artist recordings, but for some reason,
    I have a fondness for the Biggs renditions.

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    Quote Originally Posted by grumpy View Post
    Joey DeFrancesco can be a good listen for B3 folks.

    E. Power Biggs recordings also occupy a few slots on my shelf, along with some
    other famous, enjoyable classical pipe organ artist recordings, but for some reason,
    I have a fondness for the Biggs renditions.
    A few years ago, I got to see Joey DeFrancesco _and_ Jimmy Smith together in what was termed the Passing of the Torch organ duel. It was quite the show, I must say, and only a few months later Jimmy was gone. We lost Jimmy McGriff this year, too. We still have Shirly Scott and the good Dr. Lonnie Smith still around, though.

    I was also able to catch Tony Monaco at a show here in Santa Cruz a bit over a year ago, too. This guy is one bundle of energy, too. At the show at Moe's Alley, he had dual Leslies flying behind him plus drums and guitar. The guy does know his stuff, I must say, and when he kicked those Leslies into high, the whole dang place seemed to levitate. There's nothing like that Hammond sound through those revolving speakers.

    Cheers,

    David

  10. #10
    Senior Member Ducatista47's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by grumpy View Post
    E. Power Biggs recordings also occupy a few slots on my shelf, along with some
    other famous, enjoyable classical pipe organ artist recordings, but for some reason,
    I have a fondness for the Biggs renditions.
    So do I. Biggs always gets the nod if I have a rendition of the piece by him, especially for Bach. The other I turn to for that repertoire is Albert Schweitzer. His recordings of Bach from around 1935 are not hifi, but the power and faith come through just fine.

    I saw Lee Michaels (the duo) in the late sixties. I still have some vinyl. The last I heard of him was a Guitar Player interview years later. He had taken to the six string and ended by saying, "Keyboards are just fading from my life." You know what i mean?

    I need to check out Bruce Katz. And if you like flamboyant players, who was that guy in Focus?

    Clark
    Information is not Knowledge; Knowledge is not Wisdom
    Too many audiophiles listen with their eyes instead of their ears


  11. #11
    Dis Member mikebake's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by doodlebug View Post
    A few years ago, I got to see Joey DeFrancesco _and_ Jimmy Smith together in what was termed the Passing of the Torch organ duel. It was quite the show, I must say, and only a few months later Jimmy was gone. We lost Jimmy McGriff this year, too. We still have Shirly Scott and the good Dr. Lonnie Smith still around, though.

    I was also able to catch Tony Monaco at a show here in Santa Cruz a bit over a year ago, too. This guy is one bundle of energy, too. At the show at Moe's Alley, he had dual Leslies flying behind him plus drums and guitar. The guy does know his stuff, I must say, and when he kicked those Leslies into high, the whole dang place seemed to levitate. There's nothing like that Hammond sound through those revolving speakers.

    Cheers,

    David
    I have had Tony at my venues a number of times, and he is something of a friend. His story leading to playing B3 is interesting, and he can get down on that thing!
    http://www.b3monaco.com/index.htm

  12. #12
    Senior Member Krunchy's Avatar
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    Another world to explore!

    Quote Originally Posted by richluvsound View Post
    there was a young lady I met on holiday in Italy a few years back !

    Sorry Clark
    !!! Its good to have you back Rich!

    Hi Clark! you always bring up interesting subjects, thank you. What about the Moog, would that be considerable in this context, its such a funky instrument (is it an instrument)??? This should be a fun thread, cant wait to see what shows up on this list.
    Just Play Music.

  13. #13
    Senior Member richluvsound's Avatar
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    [QUOTE=Krunchy;219057] !!! Its good to have you back Rich!



    Iv'e missed you guys too xxxxxxxxx

    I'll shut me mouth now and hope to learn a little .

    Rich

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    Senior Member Hoerninger's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Krunchy View Post
    What about the Moog, would that be considerable in this context, its such a funky instrument (is it an instrument)??? This should be a fun thread, cant wait to see what shows up on this list.
    Moog ... thank you for playing the ball, Krunchy!

    In may I was at a concert "Oldie Nacht" in Bad Segeberg, look here:
    http://de.youtube.com/watch?v=1J21Yd...eature=related
    Among many other artists - do you remember the Shadows? - there was SAILOR, great live performers.

    They were happy with their NICKELODEON:

    " The instrument is basically Georg's brain-child and is in fact the casing of two upright pianos moulded together to look like an old-fashioned barrel-organ and raised on a rostrum so that it can be played standing up.
    Georg rigged up some piano keys to a Piano Mate, two synthesisers and a glockenspiel device was adapted from a series of doorbell mechanism which instead of activating a clapper to hit a bell now sets of little hammers against glockenspiel bars.
    "
    [http://www.sailor-marinero.com/nickelodeon.htm]

    Clark, organ is not my favorit instrument. But I will add some thoughts I have collected during this day.
    ____________
    Peter

  15. #15
    Senior Member Rusnzha's Avatar
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    Originally posted by Ducatista47
    need to check out Bruce Katz. And if you like flamboyant players, who was that guy in Focus?
    Jan Akkerman -- Guitars and Synthesizers
    Thijs Van Leer -- Keyboards: Roland JX-3P, Steinway + Bechstein piano, Fairlight, Yamaha DX-7, M.S.Q. 700digital keyboard recorder, Hammond organ, Fender Rhodes Piano, flutes & vocals

    One of my favorite players is Jimmy Smith's student, Brian Auger. He has been kicking ass for 40 years now.

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