Robben Ford Discussion

[fingerlakes]

Jimmy Smith, Legendary Jazz Organist, Dies
02.09.2005 1:48 PM EST





Jazz organist Jimmy Smith passed away Tuesday at the age of 76,

apparently having died in his sleep during an afternoon nap.

The legendary musician was a hugely influential figure in music, whose style of play affected not only his own genre




but others, including hip-hop. DJs and producers often sample his soulful riffs; among the songs on which Smith's music appears are the Beastie Boys' "Root Down" and A Tribe Called Quest's "Push It Along."

Smith played piano before switching to the organ in the early 1950s, and his innovative style of playing the Hammond B-3 organ helped revolutionize the sound of jazz while he was recording for influential record labels like Blue Note and Verve.

Smith's manager, Bob Clayton, discovered the musician's body at around 1:30 p.m. at his Phoenix-area home, where he had taken a nap while watching television. He said Smith had been in generally good health and that the night before he seemed in positive spirits.

The body is being flown to Philadelphia, where the musician was born and raised. Details on services will be announced by the family shortly.

— Joseph Patel

[telefunk1]

Oh man, this hurts. JS is one the giants. I have been a fan of his and his work with Kenny Burrell for years. Several years ago my wife and I were in Chicago for a conference and we were walking down the street and I noticed a little handbill on the side of a building advertising Jimmy Smith with Kenny at a jazz club (forget the name but it was in a hotel club down the street from the Hilton). I thought I had died and gone to heaven - JS and KB that night! We went to the early show and it was the two of us and about 20 Japanese tourists. Freaking amazing show, even with a pick up drummer those two cats just took it to another plane. I will never forget that show as one of the highlights of my life. The only disapointment was the fact that there were so few people in the club. I wanted to walk outside and scream at Chicago "do you know who is playing in here tonight??? *@#$^^*&^% Jimmy Smith and Kenny Burrell!!!" I picked up a copy of his Dot Com Blues a few months ago and he still had it going on. Man, this is a sad day. RIP the organ grinder, but I bet heaven is swingin tonight!

[Aeolian]

Got bunches of Jimmy Smith records but one of my favorites is with Benson. Fueled my love for organ trios. Always loved that sound, and the way JS made it talk.

Even though I can't play it, I had to fire up the M3 and do a little Chicken Shack in his honor.

We'll miss ya!
_________________
There are no such things as wrong notes, there's only the look on your face.
My Stuff: www.stevekirbymusic.com

[elizabeth]

We have definitely lost a giant.
_________________
www.elizabethgage.com

[AndyR]

I just found out...my day is ruined.

Me and my boyz were just playing "Eight Counts for Rita" over the weekend.

I saw Jimmy 3 times...each time, he stopped during the show, and went into a profanity-laced tirade about how bad the rental B3 was, then went back to playing his butt off. I think he liked to get a rise out of people.

Jimmy was in the Navy, and stationed here in Baltimore, in the mid 1950s, I think.

I saw Jimmy in Annapolis in 2000. During an interlude, he acknowledged in the audience, the former Baltimore Colt great Lenny Moore, who was a close friend. Then he gave Moore a hard time about being too cheap to get "good" tickets so he could sit up front!

Plenty of great Jimmy stories floating around on the Internet.

Andy

[Bluelobster]

I was in my 13's when a man who was working with my dad lend me 3 lp's as he discovered i was listening to Dylan and Otis Redding : it was
Rubber soul , The Doors LP with clowns on the cover and something like
" get in the groove with " or " the incredible organ of " Jimmy Smith.

Strong feelings are comin' back. Ray Charles Last summer , Jimmy Smith now ................. Uh , let's keep on running.

[UncleSalty]

You feel a certain pang of guilt when someone of Jimmy Smith's stature passes on. That's largely because he had the audacity to refuse to fade a way and his influence on his instrument is so huge it's hard to imagine it
without him. I was not lucky enough to have seen him, but the groove on his records provides some semblance of solace.