Organ Trios (or maybe quartets) that you enjoy following?

[cbhathco]

Long time lurker, first time poster. Had to come out of the woodwork to add a few current organ groups. I really dig this music. 

-Eric Scone (in Miami) leads Scone Cash Players 

-The White Blinds, led by drummer Michael Duffy (L.A./Miami)

-The City Champs, out of Memphis. Their first two albums totally slay.

-Tim Carmon Trio, whose new album King Comfy is extremely good. Great tunes, perfectly recorded.

-The New Mastersonds (four piece). Their guitar player, Eddie Roberts, is the P.T. Barnum of current soul jazz music. 

-Ibrahim Electric (from Denmark, their live album is totally bonkers) 

 

All of these groups have multiple albums out there in the ether and are actively out there writing and gigging this music. What impresses me is that this is a genre/tradition that is alive. It's not just a bin of old records. 

 

Also, that video of Wil Blades linked above comes from a live album he did with Charlie Hunter (on normal-human guitar) and George Sluppick (of City Champs fame) called Just Play the Blues. An excellent showcase of his talent. And don't sleep on Amendola vs. Blades, his duo with drummer Scott Amendola. 

[stoken6]

23 minutes ago, cbhathco said:

-The New Mastersonds (four piece). Their guitar player, Eddie Roberts, is the P.T. Barnum of current soul jazz music. 

I saw them almost 20 years ago on my stag do [bachelor party] and they were about 5 years old already. I was drunk enough not to enjoy the show, and sober enough to remember it. 

 

Cheers, Mike.

[Mark Zeger]

Though James Francies isn’t exclusively playing organ, he does here with Pat Metheny’s Side Eye trio. I’ve also see Francies with Chris Potter. Excited to hear what he’ll do next.

 

 

[omvibes]

I would urge people to check out anything that Kit Downes (Troyka, Deadeye, and a host of other things) does, the guy is an absolute genius. Talking of genius, 'Organ Freeman' is a fantastic name for an organ-led group, wish I'd thought of it 🙂

Here's my contribution, an organ trio with a slight difference - organ, drums and…vibraphone. Saw them play in Budapest a while ago, was very nice indeed.

 

 

[Adan]

To state the obvious, genre and instrumentation are different things that often overlap.  A fiddle, dobro, banjo group is probably playing old time country, but nowhere is it written that they have to.  

 

In a similar way, when I think of "organ trio" I think soul jazz, pop tunes goosed up in the way that sort of comes naturally when played on the B3; Richard Groove Holmes playing Misty or Charles Earland I Love you More Today than Yesterday.

 

A lot of stuff in this thread is super interesting, but it isn't that. But the thread is titled "Organ trios," so it's supposed to be about the featured instrument, not the genre.

 

Speaking for myself, I love the Soul Jazz version of the organ trio. It's a timeless sound I'll listen to forever.

[retrokeys]

 

 

[SamuelBLupowitz]

On 11/18/2023 at 6:47 PM, Adan said:

To state the obvious, genre and instrumentation are different things that often overlap.  A fiddle, dobro, banjo group is probably playing old time country, but nowhere is it written that they have to. 

I remember watching the documentary about Chris Thile's first tour with the band that would become Punch Brothers -- which, for those who don't know, has the instrumentation of and old time string band (mandolin, acoustic guitar, violin, banjo, upright bass), but is equal parts classical, jazz, art song, and alt-rock; it's "progressive acoustic" music. There is a moment in the film where the documentarian catches Thile on a frustrated phone call with his management, about how they can't bill the group as "hot bluegrass" or any other such things, especially when they play Bluegrass festivals, because they're coming out and playing a multi-sectioned, through-composed suite about his divorce when people are expecting stomp-and-clap fiddle tunes, and it was alienating the audience. I really felt that.

 

I too love an old-school approach where a group of musicians decide "this is the thing that we do." But I also have a special love for groups that use a traditional instrumentation to try new things. I'm really enjoying the breadth of styles evident in the groups shared here -- soul, jazz, rock, avant-garde, anything you can imagine, all with organ, drums, and some other combination of guitar, bass, or horn. Keep it coming, y'all!

[To B3]

I like the Koch-Marshall trio for a more rockn roll aproach of the format:

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUC0gao4-Xs

 

And some trios from my homeland of Brazil are very good too.

 

Hammond Grooves:

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SZcMQnQkFeE

 

Du Rompa Hammond Trio:

 

 

And Hammatrio:

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nUZOhemHrjk

 

[CrossRhodes]

On 11/18/2023 at 11:12 AM, cbhathco said:

Long time lurker, first time poster. Had to come out of the woodwork to add a few current organ groups. I really dig this music. 

-Eric Scone (in Miami) leads Scone Cash Players 

-The White Blinds, led by drummer Michael Duffy (L.A./Miami)

-The City Champs, out of Memphis. Their first two albums totally slay.

-Tim Carmon Trio, whose new album King Comfy is extremely good. Great tunes, perfectly recorded.

-The New Mastersonds (four piece). Their guitar player, Eddie Roberts, is the P.T. Barnum of current soul jazz music. 

-Ibrahim Electric (from Denmark, their live album is totally bonkers) 

 

All of these groups have multiple albums out there in the ether and are actively out there writing and gigging this music. What impresses me is that this is a genre/tradition that is alive. It's not just a bin of old records. 

 

Also, that video of Wil Blades linked above comes from a live album he did with Charlie Hunter (on normal-human guitar) and George Sluppick (of City Champs fame) called Just Play the Blues. An excellent showcase of his talent. And don't sleep on Amendola vs. Blades, his duo with drummer Scott Amendola. 

 

I am really enjoying these guys, thanks for the recommendation!
 

 

[Docbop]

Well it was an organ trio that a buddy from school talked me into going to hear that converted me to a Jazz fan, it was the Jimmy Smith Trio with Phil Upchurch on guitar.    If I listen to a organ trio today it would be the Larry Golding trio with Peter Bernstein on guitar and Bill Stewart on drums.   

 

 

[MAJUSCULE]

Some great names so far, there really is a healthy scene out there these days.

 

A great player I learned about here years ago who probably doesn't get enough attention is Red Young. At the time, this band (Black Red Black) put a record out that I bought on Bandcamp and quite enjoyed. Interestingly, the record is no longer available and I see almost no mention of it online anywhere. Regardless, Red is still active with several groups, I believe.

 

 

Another nice trio in a blues setting (w/ traditional LHB vs Lachy having an electric bass player) is Matt Schofield with Jonny Henderson on B3.

 

 

And of course, as has been said, we have a wealth of resources and excellent players here on the board. Jim, Mitch, Brian, Bobby, Todd, etc etc etc. I quite enjoyed this clip JoJoB3 posted recently. Has some nice ARP textures as well, and Will Bernard is always a bonus too.

 

 

[Chummy]

I've been silently following this thread, discovered some great gems, keep 'em coming folks !

[Spider76]

On 11/18/2023 at 4:26 PM, Matthiola said:

 Organ/guitar/drums trio is easily my favorite line-up.

 

This is something I never really understood. How come that the "standard" organ trio came to be Hammond+drums+guitar?

To me the guitar seems totally redundant next to an organ that can easily do the same parts plus much more.

Wouldn't a bass or a lead instrument (sax, trumpet etc) make more sense?

 

 

Ps is it possible that nobody mentioned the Cory Henry trio yet?

[bill bosco]

56 minutes ago, Spider76 said:

 

This is something I never really understood. How come that the "standard" organ trio came to be Hammond+drums+guitar?

To me the guitar seems totally redundant next to an organ that can easily do the same parts plus much more.

Wouldn't a bass or a lead instrument (sax, trumpet etc) make more sense?

 

 

Ps is it possible that nobody mentioned the Cory Henry trio yet?

the combination makes a lot of sense when the organist is blowing  lead with his right hand while his left hand is playing the bass .  a guitar keeps up 

the chords of the tune . and besides , they just compliment each other so well .

[ProfD]

IMO, organ-based music has always appealed to a niche listening audience. Same goes for KBs in general. 

 

Thankfully, there are still musicians who've chosen to make organ their primary voice. Kudos to those who've stuck with it and  found an appreciative audience too.

 

As mentioned above, the traditional organ/drum/guitar trio works well in maintaining a full sounds when the organist is playjng bass and blowing leads.

 

I'm not an organist but I'm a proponent of KB-led bands using a similar approach. The technology available to KB players nowadays makes it easier. 

 

Long live KB-based music and bands in one format or another.😎

[re Pete]

On 11/18/2023 at 10:06 PM, retrokeys said:

 

 

These Hammonds sound great.  A 58 and 66 says the credits at end.

For me, hearing Don Patterson in Philly at Gert's lounge drew me in with the full organ sound from outside. 

 

 

 

 

[bill bosco]

On 11/28/2023 at 6:17 AM, Spider76 said:

 

This is something I never really understood. How come that the "standard" organ trio came to be Hammond+drums+guitar?

To me the guitar seems totally redundant next to an organ that can easily do the same parts plus much more.

Wouldn't a bass or a lead instrument (sax, trumpet etc) make more sense?

 

 

Ps is it possible that nobody mentioned the Cory Henry trio yet?

i think that was just for one gig , but awesome tasty stuff for sure , is that a word ?

[SamuelBLupowitz]

On 11/28/2023 at 6:17 AM, Spider76 said:

 

This is something I never really understood. How come that the "standard" organ trio came to be Hammond+drums+guitar?

To me the guitar seems totally redundant next to an organ that can easily do the same parts plus much more.

Wouldn't a bass or a lead instrument (sax, trumpet etc) make more sense?

For me as a player -- and mind you, I am not the virtuoso that some who work in this format are -- I am much more comfortable being able to trade off both the lead/melody/solo role and the rhythm/comping role, especially when I'm covering the bass as well. I've certainly heard organ trios with a sax instead of a guitar, and then there are groups like Medeski Martin and Wood that have a bass player, and the keyboards cover the great majority of the harmonic and melodic content. I think having a second instrument that can cover lines as well as chords just allows for more flexibility. I know when I play in my singer-songwriter trio (piano/bass/drums), being the primary soloist and chordal instrument is an extra challenge -- a bass or drum solo requires a bigger change to the texture than just throwing it over to a horn or guitar. Plus, that lineup has the advantage of having the additional focal point of a lead singer, as well as vocal harmonies to vary the texture and thicken things up harmonically. Jazz piano trios are common, of course, and in that instrumentation, piano, bass, and drums is much more familiar. I suspect that the more percussive nature of the piano, as well as its more static tone and less round, full low end relative to the organ, led to this.

 

Total conjecture, but the predominance of organ/drums/guitar may also have something to do with the amplified nature of the Hammond, that another amplified instrument has an easier time keeping up. I'm thinking about the early days of the jazz organ trio, Jimmy Smith and such, and the kind of clubs they would play. I suspect it was long before every venue had a built-in PA system, so a guitarist bringing an amp was all set, whereas a horn player might find themself in a situation where they had to compete with a drum set and a Leslie speaker without any reinforcement. They didn't make those fold-up travel PAs back then! I know jazz drummers were much more accustomed to playing at a level that would allow horns and acoustic piano to carry, but tube Leslies do tend to sing a little more once they hit a certain volume, so I'd be interested in thoughts from folks better acquainted with the history.

[Spider76]

Great explanation, thanks so much!

[Matthiola]

Also, organ and guitar just blend so well sonically, pure tonal bliss.

[Matthiola]

5 hours ago, SamuelBLupowitz said:

I am much more comfortable being able to trade off both the lead/melody/solo role and the rhythm/comping role, especially when I'm covering the bass as well

This is the real strength of the OGD line-up from a players perspective, imho. With a bassist you would have two comping roles simultaneously and be careful what harmonics you play.

[Doerfler]

analogika (Chris Haertel) is a regular contributer on this forum  

 

 

[niacin]

 

 

 

[niacin]

If you're ever in Melbourne, Jake Mason is the man:

 

 

[niacin]

Carlo de Wijs 'modular' Hammond: 

 

[lightbg]

On 11/28/2023 at 6:17 AM, Spider76 said:

 

This is something I never really understood. How come that the "standard" organ trio came to be Hammond+drums+guitar?

To me the guitar seems totally redundant next to an organ that can easily do the same parts plus much more.

Wouldn't a bass or a lead instrument (sax, trumpet etc) make more sense?

 

 

Ps is it possible that nobody mentioned the Cory Henry trio yet?

New York City has a “cabaret” law that limited live musicians to trios (not to mention restrictions on dancing). This was partly due to a club fire which killed many due to inadequate exits. The big bands were gone, but cats like Wild Bill Davis capitalized on it and partially created the organ trio, and his band was Floyd Smith on guitar, Chris Columbo on drums, and himself originally on a Hammond C2, then later the -3 models. This was before Jimmy Smith started playing organ.

[Matthiola]

 

[Matthiola]

 

[MAJUSCULE]

21 hours ago, Matthiola said:

 

 

Taking me back to the Joshua Redman Elastic Band with Sam Yahel. Listened to those records a lot in high school.

 

 

[Matthiola]

Yes, that first Joshua Redman Elastic Band album is a desert island album. Highly recommended.