The Listening Guide
🎶 The listening guide: five albums, released during the past twelve months, chosen around a weekly theme 🎶
This week, we look at organ trios: groups built around a Hammond organ and drum set, with a guitarist or saxophonist typically completing the line-up. Irwin Hall’s We In It! is the saxophonist’s take on the classic organ sound he grew up hearing in his New Jersey home. Hall names artists such as Larry Young, Jimmy Smith, Jack McDuff, Charles Earland, and Shirley Scott as those that passed through Newark and shaped the organ trio sound that informed their project. Manchester’s Revival Room features Adam Fairhall on organ, Mark Hanslip on tenor sax, and Johnny Hunter on drums. The trio use the time-honoured instrumental combination as a vehicle for improvisation and exploration on their eponymous album for Efpi Records. Charlie Hunter— famed for his hybrid guitar work—takes on the role of guitarist and producer on organist Sam Fribush’s album, Riverboat Vol. 1. The trio cover soulful compositions by the likes of Allen Toussaint, D’Angelo, and Yusef Lateef, with the help of drummer Geoff Clapp. Tom O'Halloran’s TLC Organ Trio features Freddie Grigson on guitar and Chris Tarr on drums. They draw inspiration from the likes of Young and Smith too, as well as exploring fusion and groove. Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio round off our selections with their funky, gritty, sometimes psychedelic album for Colemine Records, I Told You So. You can support all of these records on Bandcamp!
Album of the Week
Our NQ Jazz album of the week is bassist and composer Adi Meyerson’s second album, I Want To Sing My Heart Out in Praise of Life. Described as a ‘six-part musical journey inspired by the life and work of iconic avant-garde visual artist Yayoi Kusama’, the album features Meyerson on bass and production duties, Marquis Hill on trumpet, Anne Drummond on flute, Lucas Pino on bass clarinet and saxophone, Sam Towse on keys, Kush Abadey on drums, spoken word artist Eden Girma and vocalists Sabeth Perez and Camille Thurman. You can support the album on Bandcamp!
Classic Album
Our NQ Jazz classic album this week is the eponymous release from pianist Irène Schweizer and percussionist Louis Moholo on Intakt Records. Recorded at the International Jazz Festival in Zürich, Switzerland, in 1986, it contains brilliant improvisation, dynamic shifts, and the spirit of celebration. The duo has endured through the decades, and this release explains why! You can find the release on Bandcamp and streaming services.