Rate it!
Avg: 3.5 (22 ratings)
- Date Released: January 1, 1975
- Genre: Jazz
- Style: Acid Jazz, Soul
- Label: Fantasy / Milestone
A funky soul-jazz organist so badass that his instrument became his nickname.
-
We Say...
Like blues and funk great Johnny "Guitar" Watson or Motown session player Eddie "Bongo" Brown, Johnny Smith was such a badass that his instrument of choice, the Hammond B-3 organ, became his nickname. He was a successful (if critically loathed) soul-jazz player, sliding further into funk during the early '70s, including a couple of titles with the much-sampled producer-writers Larry and Fonce Mizell, including 1975's Gears. The DJ's choice here was the semi-title track, "Shifting Gears," which appeared on Ultimate Breaks & Beats Vol. 5 and whose funked-up drumming and electric piano (played by Smith) helped form the backbone of tracks for several rappers, including Hieroglyphics' "See Delight," Jungle Brothers' "Sunshine" and Stetsasonic's "In Full Gear."
-
They Say...
By the mid-'70s, the embracing and assimilation of soul and funk elements into the jazz vernacular had come full steam. Artists and producers from both communities were exchanging ideas and sounds that once again challenged jazz purists' definitions of what jazz "should" be. These collaborations were often scoffed at by academics and critics attempting to pigeonhole and quantify jazz into an academic exercise ripe with songbook predictability and sonic parameters. Thankfully, the record-buying public at large had the good sense to politely ignore these people and continue purchasing records with these new sounds, largely concocted by the production team of Larry and Fonce Mizell. This time around, their subject was Johnny "Hammond" Smith who proves to be more than up to the task of playing around and inside the Mizell's string arrangements which foreshadowed the early days of disco. In fact, two of the cuts found on Gears -- "Fantasy" and "Los Conquistadores Chocolates" -- were played extensively at the early Loft parties hosted by legendary DJ David Mancuso, as well as at the club many consider to be the true home of disco, the Paradise Garage in NYC. Gears starts off innocently enough with "Tell Me What To Do," which could have easily found its way on to a Donald Byrd album from this period, but then kicks into full steam with "Los Conquistadores Chocolates," a six-and-a-half-minute tour de force of funk, soul, jazz and disco all rolled into one. Hammond is in fine form throughout with crisp playing; never over improvising, but playing only what's necessary to help the music move along at a brisk pace. This is unquestionably another jewel in a treasure chest already filled with so many for the Mizell production team, and a great performance by Hammond to keep up with his contemporaries who refuse to be held back by conventional wisdom.
“ The indie iTunes — Hardcore music fans are migrating to eMusic, the iTunes Music Store's cheaper, cooler cousin.”
Rolling Stone
eMusic Tip
Paid downloads are counted towards an album discount but free downloads are not.
COMPLETE FOR FREE!
You can download the rest of the tracks from this album for free! Just click the Complete Album button.
We’re sorry this album can only be downloaded using paid subscription download credits.
We recommend you Save it for Later by clicking the Save for Later button shown just above this message. For a list of related albums you can download right now, check out these recommendations.
We'll give you 6 additional free credits to download this album and start your paid subscription.
Get 6 bonus credits on us if you download this album. Sweet!
| 01. |  |
Tell Me What To Do |
5:21 |
|
| 02. | |
Los Conquistadores Chocolates |
6:12 |
|
| 03. | |
Lost On 23rd Street |
5:56 |
|
| 04. | |
Fantasy |
6:08 |
|
| 05. | |
Shifting Gears |
5:21 |
|
| 06. | |
Can't We Smile? |
4:35 |
|
06 Total Tracks, 33:33 Total Length
Loading...
Playlists If you like Johnny "Hammond" Smith, check out these member playlists
Explore music recommended by Johnny "Hammond" Smith fans
Credits
- Hadley Caliman - Sax (Tenor) // Johnny Hammond - Organ // Johnny Hammond - Synthesizer // Johnny Hammond - Piano (Electric) // Johnny Hammond - Main Performer // Johnny Hammond - Performer // Julian Priester - Trombone // Julian Priester - Trombone // Chuck Rainey - Bass (Electric) // Roger Glenn - Flute // Roger Glenn - Vibraphone // Kenneth Nash - Percussion // David Hassinger - Remixing // Jeff Hawks - Remix Assistant // Phil Kaffel - Assistant Engineer // Orrin Keepnews - Executive Producer // Harvey Mason, Sr. - Drums // Craig McMullen - Guitar // Fonce Mizell - Vocals (Background) // Fonce Mizell - Clavinet // Fonce Mizell - Producer // Fonce Mizell - Vocal Arrangement // Larry Mizell - Arranger // Larry Mizell - Vocals (Background) // Larry Mizell - Producer // Larry Mizell - Solina // Larry Mizell - Vocal Arrangement // Jim Nipar - Remixing // Jerry Peters - Piano // Jerry Peters - Piano (Electric) // Sigidi - Conductor // Michael White - Violin // Eddie Bill Harris - Engineer // Johnny "Hammond" Smith - Main Performer // Johnny "Hammond" Smith - Main Performer // Joe Tarantino - Remastering // Phil Bray - Photography // Charly Franklin - Cover Photo // William Jordan - Recitation
Choose from over 7 million
music downloadseMusic features legendary and emerging artists in every genre: classic rock to classical,indie to international, soundtracks to spiritual, jazz to country and many more.
MP3 downloads work on any digital media player
With eMusic, you OWN your music without any restrictions. Burn music to a CD, play it on your computer, mobile phone or any digital media player - including iPod®, Zune® and Walkman®.
Songs available for 50¢ or less
eMusic subscriptions start at just $11.99 a month for 24 downloads - that's just 50¢ per song! And it gets better from there - our plans go as low as 42¢ per song!
Music Discovery
eMusic is about discovery. We make finding new music fun again with music recommendations from our award-winning team of music experts, member playlists and new music features.
Cancel anytime
With all the great music and site features we're pretty sure you will love eMusic. If not, no problem. You can cancel at any time and keep the music you have downloaded.
© 1992 - 2009 All Media Guide, LLC