Johnny "Hammond" Smith - Gettin' Up (1967) [re-rip]

Smith came right out and declared it in the liner notes: "I'm thinking more commercially and I don't care what the critics say." That meant covering soul hits like "Knock on Wood," "Stand By Me," and "The 'In' Crowd," presumably, in addition to throwing in standards like the title cut and "Summertime," as well as three Smith originals. So what does this critic say? Good job, Johnny! This is superior organ-soul-jazz with a feistier edge than much of the genre, evident right from the opening "The Sin-In," which has riffs worthy of a TV detective show and some fine stuttering keys from the leader. The feistiness in this combo is in large part down to drummer John Harris, who really bashes it out; on "Knock on Wood," for instance, he sounds rather more like a rock drummer than a jazz one. Prestige stalwart Houston Person is on hand with tenor sax, while Virgil Jones' trumpet lends the arrangements some good complementary color. In some respects this is more of the same as far as mid- to late-'60s soul-jazz goes, particularly in repertoire ("Summertime" certainly isn't the most imaginative cover choice), but there's a brash energy that makes it a cut or two above the norm for the genre.  ~ by Richie Unterberger, AMG.

Prestige Records, PRST 7494, 1967

Recorded 3^rd March, 1967 at Rudy Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey

Personnel:

Johnny "Hammond" Smith - Organ

Virgil Jones - Trumpet

Houston Person - Tenor Saxophone

Thornel Schwartz - Guitar

Jimmy Lewis - Electric Bass [Fender]

John Harris - Drums

Track Listing:

A1. The Sin-In {Johnny "Hammond" Smith} (4:22)

A2. Stand By Me {Ben E. King, Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller} (2:44)

A3. Knock On Wood {Eddie Floyd, Steve Cropper} (2:43)

A4. The Soulful Blues {Johnny "Hammond" Smith} (7:30)

B1. Ebb Tide {Robert Maxwell, Carl Sigman} (2:44)

B2. Summertime {George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin, DuBose Heyward} (3:33)

B3. Gettin' Up {Johnny "Hammond" Smith} (6:15)

B4. The ‘In’ Crowd {Billy Page} (3:16)

Credits:

Producer - Cal Lampley

Recording Engineer - Rudy van Gelder - RIP

Liner Notes - Chris Albertson

A sweetly funky set from Johnny “Hammond” Smith - a date done right at the start of the jazz funk era on Prestige - and one that marks a nicely heavy Soul Jazz groove.

Shirley Scott - On A Clear Day (1966) [vinyl]

One of the best Shirley Scott albums ever - a wonderfully groovy little set that seems to stand head and shoulders above some of her other trio dates of the 60s! Shirley really hits a nice clean groove here - a sense of tone we don't always hear this beautifully on earlier Prestige dates, with almost an influence from some of the 60s bossa organists, which seems to show up in the grooves as well. But there's also a deeper swing too - one that seems to come from the album's tight rhythms from Ron Carter's bass and Jimmy Cobb's drums – both of whom snap the groove very tight, and keep Shirley's solos very lean, very clean. Titles include "What The World Needs Now", "Corcovado", "Instant Blues", and "On A Clear Day". © Dusty Groove, Inc.

Impulse! Records, AS-9109, 1966

Recorded 6^th January, 1966 in New York City

Personnel:

Shirley Scott - Organ

Ron Carter - Bass

Jimmy Cobb - Drums

Tracks:

A1. On A Clear Day You Can See Forever {Alan J. Lerner, Burton Lane} (4:44)

A2. What'll I Do? {Irving Berlin} (4:32)

A3. Cold Winter Blues {Shirley Scott} (3:45)

A4. All Alone {Irving Berlin} (4:43)

B1. What The World Needs Now Is Love {Hal David, Burt Bacharach} (3:56)

B2. Corcovado {Antonio Carlos Jobim} (5:18)

B3. Days Of Wine And Roses {Henri Mancini, Johnny Mercer} (5:17)

B4. Instant Blues {Irving Berlin} (6:14)

Credits:

Producer - Bob Thiele

Engineer - Bob Simpson

Cover and Liner Photos - Charles Stewart

Cover Design - Robert Flynn, Viceroy

Liner Design - Joe Lebow

Liner Notes - Stanley Dance (Jazz Magazine)

Most of organist Shirley Scott's records in the 1960s featured her husband, tenor saxophonist Stanley Turrentine, so this trio effort with bassist Ron Carter and drummer Jimmy Cobb was a change of pace. As usual, Scott features an off-the-wall tune ("What The World Needs Now Is Love") in her repertoire, along with standards (including "On A Clear Day" and selections by Henry Mancini, Antonio Carlos Jobim and Irving Berlin) and a couple of basic originals. The music grooves and Scott shows that she did not need a competing horn in order to come up with soulful and swinging ideas. ~ Scott Yanow, AMG.

Freddie McCoy - Funk Drops (1966) [re-rip]

Funk Drops is the third album by American jazz vibraphonist Freddie McCoy which was recorded in 1966 for the Prestige label. This is a classic Jazz Funk/Soul Jazz LP. Just listen to ‘And I Love Her’ as a cover masterpiece. Another highlight is the Billy Taylor piece ‘Theodora’. Brackeen’s playing is a splendid counterpoint to Freddie’s vibes. Ripped from a well-loved LP, there are a few artifacts but not detrimental to the overall sound.

Holy cow! Freddie McCoy's records are amongst the hardest to find from the Prestige catalog. And why not? This funky vibes player had a great sound, and his records have a cool soul vibes sound that's very different from other players in the same vein, such as Johnny Lytle. This LP features 2 types of tracks - some jazz, and some funk - and both are played by different groups. Joanne Brackeen plays with the jazz group on tracks like "Moyé", "Tough Talk", and "Theodora"; and Pretty Purdie backs a larger group on the funkier cuts like "Funk Drops" and "My Babe". © Dusty Groove, Inc.

Prestige Records, PRST 7470, 1967

Recorded 21^st June (#A1,B1,B4) and 22^nd June (#A2-A4,B2,B3), 1966 at Van Gelder Studio in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey

Personnel:

#A2,A3,A4,B2,B3

Freddie McCoy - Vibraphone

Joanne Brackeen - Piano

Augustus Turner - Bass

George Scott - Drums

#A1,B1,B4

Freddie McCoy - Vibraphone

James Robinson - Trumpet

Laurdine [Pat] Patrick - Baritone Saxophone

Napoleon Allen - Guitar

John Blair - Electric Violin

Albert Winston - Bass Guitar

Bernard Purdie - Drums

Track Listing:

A1. My Babe {Willie Dixon, Charles Stone} (3:25)

A2. And I Love Her {John Lennon, Paul McCartney} (6:51)

A3. High Heel Sneakers {Robert Higginbotham} (3:32)

A4. Moyé {Freddie McCoy} (6:19)

B1. Funk Drops {Freddie McCoy} (3:09)

B2. Tough Talk {Wayne Henderson, Joe Sample, Nesbert Hooper} (3:26)

B3. Theodora {Billy Taylor} (4:00)

B4. The Sleepy Lagoon {Eric Coates, Jack Lawrence} (4:24)

Credits:

Producer - Cal Lampley

Recording Engineer - Rudy van Gelder

Cover Design/Photo - Don Schlitten

Note:

The album cover lists Joanne Brackeen as ‘Joanne Brackeena’