Embark on a musical journey with The Organ Odyssey, where artists like Rhoda Scott, Barbara Dennerlein, and Klaus Wunderlich breathe life into the realm of jazz and Americana through the magical sounds of the organ. From soulful jazz solos to storytelling in Americana, the organ’s versatility shines bright in the hands of legends like Lenny Dee and Leon Berry.
The Organ Odyssey
The organ dances its way through jazz and Americana like a chameleon at a carnival. In jazz, the organ conjures soulful, intricate solos, resting upon syncopated rhythms and improvisation, while Americana’s broad embrace of folk, blues, and country’s storytelling mythos leans on the organ to weave tales of love and resilience. The Hammond B3, synonymous with jazz clubs of the ’50s and ’60s, finds no quarrel in sharing its esteemed post with the Americana scene.
Jazz organists, descending from the lineage of Jimmy Smith, spin their narratives from gospel and bebop threads. Within these contemplative arrangements, they map landscapes of emotion and solitude. Across the aisle, Americana uses the organ as a bookbinding glue, sewing patches of shared history or forgotten tales, like Garth Hudson warping organ melodies around The Band’s rustic chronicles.
The Great Migration of Sound
This multi-tasking marvel finds itself as a beacon of electrified sound and oft a recipient of irony-laden fanfare. One might ponder the fate of fragments such as the Wurlitzer, worshipped in print but hidden in plain sight, only to emerge as echoes in venues like Chicago Stadium. Variety is the paradoxical mode, as seen in the chronicles of The Wurlitzer Organ Trust of Auckland, whose installation defied punctual theaters with notes rolling out only in 1927, harmonizing time’s jumbled yarn.
Lew Williams and Charlie Balogh, dripping with Americana essence, imbue organs with distant echoes of patriotic refrains. The symbol of meticulous punchlines, Lenny Dee melds humor with hallowed keys, and Leon Berry’s baroque basement succumbs to the organ’s opulent footprint. With homespun narratives tinged with unpronounced irony, players like Ena Baga bathe Bacharach in cinematic gold on rugged “Happy Hammonds.”
The Genre Clay
Rhoda Scott flaunts symphonic poise through “Flight Of The Bumble Bee,” swiftly grafting classical charm onto jazz’s pulsing heart. Barbara Dennerlein, with deft hands, thrums bass-heavy tides against urban shores. Such waves wash over concert halls, extend under forgotten bridges, spurred by artistes piloting audio odysseys on the grand scale of a “Mighty Wurlitzer.” The organ’s trickster nature thrives in concealed irony.
The Hammond Organ Console, a phoenix in a ceaseless loop of rebirth, becomes the mantle under which innovation and nostalgia coalesce. Klaus Wunderlich sidesteps pianos in disrepair, favoring the organ’s ameliorative fidelity. Superb in its banality, it bridges genres both sacred and profane, waltzing through chambers of sound like spirits in “Eyes Of Blue.” Staring into this audible abyss, the ennui recedes, as instrument and artist forge soundscapes anew, curious, vivid, boundless.
Tracklist :
Lew Williams Takes Us Out To The Ball Game
“Lew Williams Takes Us Out To The Ball Game” suggests a vintage recording, possibly of 1950s TV announcer Lew Williams singing “Take Me Out to the Ball Game,”.
Charlie Balogh Plays Patriotic Americana
Barbara Dennerlein & Rhoda Scott On Hammond B3 Organ
“Barbara Dennerlein & Rhoda Scott on Hammond B3 Organ” features German jazz organist Barbara Dennerlein and soul‑jazz legend Rhoda Scott collaborating at the 2002 Bern Jazz Festival in Switzerland—a meeting of two Hammond B3 powerhouses .
Jim Riggs At The Wurlitzer: “Singing In The Rain” Duet
“Jim Riggs at the Wurlitzer: ‘Singing in the Rain’ Duet” appears to capture organist Jim Riggs performing the classic on a Wurlitzer theatre organ.
Ray Willetts Playing A Tribute To Lenny Dee On Hammond Organ
“Ray Willetts playing a tribute to Lenny Dee on Hammond organ” names two prominent theatre organists, with Willetts covering Dee’s style.
Theatre Organ: Five Foot Two, Eyes Of Blue
“Theatre Organ: Five Foot Two, Eyes of Blue” refers to a theatre‑organ rendition of the 1920s tune “Five Foot Two, Eyes of Blue,” commonly featured at organ concerts.
Watch A Doctor Play Flight Of The Bumblebee With Her Feet
Watch a Doctor Play Flight of the Bumblebee With Her Feet
The Hammond Organ Consoles
The Hammond Organ Consoles