I was indifferent to the Hammond organ for years. I knew it played a big role in a lot of bands I liked. Hell, my first concert ever was Deep Purple. So, yeah, I knew that big keyboard wasn't a piano, and wasn't a farfisa, an electric piano, or anything like that. The thing was massive, a lot of buttons and what not. And even as much as I was into Deep Purple back then, and as integral as organ was to their sound, Jon Lord would have to take a back seat to Ritchie Blackmore. In rock 'n' roll, with few exceptions, guitar always wins. But jazz is entirely different. Anyone can be a showboat. And Jimmy Smith is the showboat that made me love the Hammond organ. Dude was so damn smooth.
I ran into an old German documentary on Smith and am ass deep in it. Even though the non-invasive narration is in German, all of the Smith footage is in English, and it's definitely worth seeing. Skip around, there's live footage, studio footage and candid footage. Two hours worth. Here's a starter pack, to get you in the mood. Just listen to him rip the "Mission: Impossible" theme a new one.
~ NOTE: ALL MEDIA IS HOSTED BY THE BLOGS & SITES NAMED BELOW ~
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